2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

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Mick Norris
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Mick Norris » Sat Mar 04, 2017 11:33 am

Jovanka may be correct, but FIDE think the match will be in 2018
Any postings on here represent my personal views

Chris Rice
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Chris Rice » Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:05 pm

Compare and contrast:

Ilyumzhinov: "The Women's World Chess Championship in Tehran was colourful because the players played in headscarves. In the beginning some criticized that rule but after a while everybody got used to it, and chess players put on a new headscarf every day. It adds colour. I noted that the tournament was organized at a high level. Everything was perfect: meals, accommodation for players and competition ambiance." http://kirsan.today/en/opinion/item/139 ... -iran.html

Emil Sutovsky, ACP President on FB: "FIDE leaders praise the organization of the Women's World Championship in Iran, planning to stage there more top events, and possibly even the Olympiad. Do they live in the dual reality? Leaving aside a hijab issue, which actually is already a sufficient reason NOT to stage any women's events in Iran, that was a poorly organized Championship. It was by far the most expensive hotel rate ever charged in such a tournament, but it didn't help players to feel comfortable and focus on the games. Starting from the overheated rooms and playing venue, ongoing repair works in the building, constant noise from the air-conditioners that annoyed many a player and deprived them of much-needed proper rest - some of the participants had to change rooms in a hope for a minor improvement. Several players suffered from the stomach problems, many players complained about long waiting time and high costs in the hotel restaurant - and mind you, Tehran is not a place where a foreign lady feels secure to go outside alone.
Changing schedule - the final tie-break started two hours earlier than it was scheduled, just in order to have the closing ceremony on the same day, thus to spare one day and have everybody leave one day earlier. Extremely low-quality broadcast of the games, with many glitches - up to not having a commentary of the final matches for the significant part of the games. Poor website with very limited and not updated information. I can continue, but if people live in the dual reality, the facts hardly matter."

Roger de Coverly
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Roger de Coverly » Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:12 pm

Emil Sutovsky (quoted by Chris Rice) wrote: if people live in the dual reality, the facts hardly matter."
Attempts to remove Kirsan as FIDE President seem doomed to failure. A prominent business supporter/sponsor and two ex world champions have tried and failed. What other choices are there?

NickFaulks
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by NickFaulks » Thu Mar 09, 2017 8:17 am

Roger de Coverly wrote: Attempts to remove Kirsan as FIDE President seem doomed to failure.
I predict that Kirsan will not be in place after 2018. The problem, as always, is the lack of a serious alternative. I'm hoping there is someone in the wings about whom most of us do not know. What we do not need is for Kasparov, who has made himself a toxic figure in the past two campaigns, to have a third go.
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Chris Rice
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Chris Rice » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:07 pm

Russian Chess News reports that the Iranians have not handed over the prize money or FIDE's commission to FIDE by the deadline, which was at the very latest two weeks after the tournament was finished. The amount that should have been handed over was $450,000 + 20%. According to the report the same thing happened in the Hou Yifan-Koneru 2011 match in Albania. FIDE then found the necessary $200,000 by collecting money from the national federations under various pretexts.

Kirsan was unavailable for comment.

http://chess-news.ru/node/22875

Roger de Coverly
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Roger de Coverly » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:35 pm

Chris Rice wrote:According to the report the same thing happened in the Hou Yifan-Koneru 2011 match in Albania.
Didn't that happen after the Las Vegas World Cup/Championship Knock Out back in 1999? There were stories of players receiving their prizes as Kirsan personal cheques.

Chris Rice
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Chris Rice » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:31 am

Roger de Coverly wrote:
Chris Rice wrote:According to the report the same thing happened in the Hou Yifan-Koneru 2011 match in Albania.
Didn't that happen after the Las Vegas World Cup/Championship Knock Out back in 1999? There were stories of players receiving their prizes as Kirsan personal cheques.
Yes it's not the first or second time this has happened. Ironically the bidding procedure for the 2018 FIDE Women's World Championship match has shown up on the FIDE site today. Presumably as both contestants are Chinese it will be played in China and there will be no issues on the financial front. (The FIDE site is still showing Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia as we discussed earlier in the thread and my guess is that this will be the default location if no bids are received).

My main point is that in order to bid at all the prospective organisers are supposed to provide bank guarantees. Given Iran's global issues with sanctions etc it's not surprising if they were struggling to provide such a guarantee which in that case would make you wonder why they were allowed to stage the 2017 tournament at all. Given that they were allowed to do so then wouldn't it have been prudent to have asked for the prize money and commission up front before the bid was accepted? If on the other hand bank guarantees were placed with the Tehran bid (and presumably with previous bids where there has subsequently been issues) is there an actual issue in activating the guarantees? Has it ever been done before to anyone's knowledge?

http://www.fide.com/component/content/a ... -2017.html

Roger de Coverly
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Roger de Coverly » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:54 am

Chris Rice wrote:Given Iran's global issues with sanctions etc it's not surprising if they were struggling to provide such a guarantee which in that case would make you wonder why they were allowed to stage the 2017 tournament at all.
Those who sought to justify holding it in Iran made the claim there were no other bidders. The FIDE President even believes Iran is a suitable site for a future Olympiad.

NickFaulks
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by NickFaulks » Wed Mar 22, 2017 10:37 am

Roger de Coverly wrote: Those who sought to justify holding it in Iran made the claim there were no other bidders.
I'm assuming that was true. There's still no excuse for allowing it to go ahead with the money not in place, if that is what happened.
The FIDE President even believes Iran is a suitable site for a future Olympiad.
Fortunately, I don't believe that what he thinks matters any more. This weekend's PB may be a test of that.
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Matt Mackenzie
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by Matt Mackenzie » Wed Mar 22, 2017 2:02 pm

Roger de Coverly wrote:
Chris Rice wrote:Given Iran's global issues with sanctions etc it's not surprising if they were struggling to provide such a guarantee which in that case would make you wonder why they were allowed to stage the 2017 tournament at all.
Those who sought to justify holding it in Iran made the claim there were no other bidders. The FIDE President even believes Iran is a suitable site for a future Olympiad.

And some time in the "future", it may be. Probably not in the next few years, though.
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David Sedgwick
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by David Sedgwick » Wed Mar 22, 2017 5:51 pm

NickFaulks wrote: Fortunately, I don't believe that what [Kirsan Ilyumzhinov] thinks matters any more.
If Ilyumzhinov does run again in 2018, I predict that you will once again support him on the grounds that the alternative(s) are worse.

I didn't have to look far from evidence of that.
NickFaulks (upthread) wrote:The problem, as always, is the lack of a serious alternative.

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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by NickFaulks » Wed Mar 22, 2017 6:13 pm

David Sedgwick wrote: If Ilyumzhinov does run again in 2018, I predict that you will once again support him on the grounds that the alternative(s) are worse.
I'd be delighted to take a bet on that, but I doubt that it would settle, because I do not expect the premise to be satisfied. I believe that if it were necessary yet again to repel a Kasparov takeover, most federations would coalesce around some third candidate, although I have no idea who that might be.
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by David Sedgwick » Wed Mar 22, 2017 7:02 pm

NickFaulks wrote:
David Sedgwick wrote: If Ilyumzhinov does run again in 2018, I predict that you will once again support him on the grounds that the alternative(s) are worse.
I'd be delighted to take a bet on that, but I doubt that it would settle, because I do not expect the premise to be satisfied. I believe that if it were necessary yet again to repel a Kasparov takeover, most federations would coalesce around some third candidate, although I have no idea who that might be.
Okay then. £50 at evens that, if Ilyumzhinov stands, you support him in preference to any other candidate who stands.

It's a win-win bet as far as I'm concerned. Either I collect £50, or you finally take a sensible decision on the matter, albeit twelve years late.

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JustinHorton
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by JustinHorton » Wed Mar 22, 2017 7:31 pm

"Do you play chess?"
"Yes, but I prefer a game with a better chance of cheating."

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David Sedgwick
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Re: 2017 FIDE Women's World Championship (Tehran)

Post by David Sedgwick » Wed Mar 22, 2017 7:35 pm

JustinHorton wrote:Cough
I must be missing something. Whilst you are entitled to criticise me for supporting Danailov in 2014, I don't see the connection with this thread.