Media comments on chess

[Lewis Martin]

Agreed on reporting quality, though later mentioning that Ashley was the first one (true) he is not the only one. The journalist must not have heard about Pontus Carlsson.

or Amon Simutowe of Zambia. He will be known to British players from playing (as an IM) in the 2000 British and also at Hastings. Later he went to study in the USA and completed his GM title. I didn't notice him as playing in the Olympiad, so he may have retired from active play.

Had a nagging feeling that I may have forgotten someone else! As for GM's in Varsity matches, there can't have been many surely?

[John Clarke]

Brit expatriate Mark Reason has some comments here on recent changes to rugby laws.

On the recent Springboks-Pumas match he remarks:

"But still the Pumas came on, assisted by South Africa's appalling kicking game. Enough already, said Meyer ('Boks coach).

On came Morne Steyn for Handre Pollard and Francois Hougaard for Ruan Pienaar. Meyer was losing the game of chess. So he gave the board a good nudge and changed the pieces."

[Christopher Kreuzer]

As for GM's in Varsity matches, there can't have been many surely?

Luke McShane was a GM while playing in the Varsity matches. Can't remember whether Rowson was or not. OK, he became a GM in 1999 and played in the 1999 Varsity match, but I don't think he was a GM at that point. So only McShane and Simutowe so far.

Ah, I see the answer is here (with thanks to David Sedgwick):

http://www.ecforum.org.uk/viewtopic.php ... 756#p50842

So the answer is: David Norwood, Dharshan Kumaran, Luke McShane, and Amon Simutowe.

Maybe someone could supply the years?

More on Simotowe:

http://www.gtc.ox.ac.uk/news-and-views/ ... match.html

http://en.chessbase.com/post/the-gm-jou ... n-simutowe

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Talking of Rowson, letter from him in today's Evening Standard reiterating his support for Scottish independence and namechecking his GM status as well.

[JustinHorton]

Here

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Here

Thanks, Justin. Probably worth quoting in full:

"As a chess grandmaster who has represented both Scotland and Britain, I feel truly sad about a prospective loss of kinship with fellow Brits. Like many Yes supporters, I am no nationalist — the question is whether an established country is ready for political independence, and the answer is Yes. We never looked back after devolution. Following the necessary adjustment after a Yes vote, we will wonder what all the fuss was about.
Jonathan Rowson"

Talking about necessary adjustment, I was reading about the issue of the succession of the states for the USSR when it broke up, and the moments when certain Soviet institutions ceased to exist. If Scotland votes Yes, the issues won't be quite the same, but it did get me wondering a bit more (Russia agreed to take on all the Soviet debt, for example). The closer parallel would more likely be the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia, that led to the formation of the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

[Alistair Campbell]

Here

I'm not sure of the relevance of his Grandmastery. He certainly has become very enthusiastic about the debate all of a sudden. Although the question quoted is not that which we will be asked.

[Stewart Reuben]

When writing a public letter, it is quite normal to explain one's status.

Jonathan has not explained that, in chess, Scotland has always been separate from the rest of the UK. Indeed, it was formed in 1884 and decided not to join the British CF when that was formed in 1904. In due course they joined FIDE separately, although were not founder members, as have Wales, Guernsey and Jersey of course.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Lots of chess metaphors here (from December 2011):

http://behindthenytimes.blogspot.co.uk/ ... rovka.html

"In Russian the word for castling is rokirovka ; and what is going on in the streets of Moscow right now, with unusual demonstrators protesting the political rokirovka in which President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin are changing places..."

[John Upham]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/0961fd7a-330e ... z3CSQcaOS1

[Neill Cooper]

Chess pieces on the cover of this week's 'Economist'
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/2 ... eel-itself

[Chris Rice]

Ever thought of getting a tattoo with a chess motif?

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/meet-chess-man ... rs-1464411

[Stewart Reuben]

About the new Fischer film
http://chessnewsagency.com/#/tobey-magu ... -in-sochi/

This chessnewsagency has a huge number of photos. Even John Upham should be impressed.

[Mike Gunn]

There was a short documentary on Radio 4 today about the chess players of Washington Square, New York. It was called "Wood Pushers".

[Craig Pritchett]

To balance matters, given one Anglo-Scot chess player's glowing take on the 'Yes' side in the forthcoming Scottish Independence referendum (quoted a few posts above), here's one from another lifelong chess playing Anglo-Scot, an old Glasgow school-mate and fellow Glasgow University graduate.

From today's "Scotsman", which has just come out for the 'No' side and quotes as below in an article on a very current problem in its business pages:

'As Roy Batchelor, a professor at Cass Business School, pointed out, “Financial markets hate uncertainty, and this quickly gets translated into prices … the risks to the UK are trivial compared to those triggered in Scotland by the likely flight of capital and business talent if the Yes campaign wins.”'

Unlike those two London-based Anglo-Scots, this ex-London-based Anglo-Scot has a crucial vote ... Guess who's take I take?