World Championship Chess on Christmas

Even though I've been respecting WCC Wednesday since 2007 (the post Global Chess BV, May 2007, started the habit), this is the first time it falls on Christmas Day. What to write about? My first idea was to identify World Championship games that took place on 25 December. I thought of three events that fell over Christmas.

• 1990 Kasparov - Karpov Title Match; New York/Lyon, X-XII, 1990 • The 21st game of the 24 game match was played on 19 December, with an adjournment the next day. The draw brought the score to +4-2=15 (11.5-9.5) in Kasparov's favor, meaning he needed only a draw to retain the title. The 22nd game was scheduled for Saturday, 22 December, but Karpov took a timeout. Although there had been pressure from the Lyon organizers to avoid timeouts on the Saturday games (the games were scheduled for Monday / Wednesday / Saturday each week), rumor was that Karpov took a swipe at them for lodging he considered unsatisfactory.
  
  FIDE President Campomanes granted a technical timeout for Monday, 24 December, and the game was played on the 26th. Kasparov got his draw, but the match continued to settle the prize money. This was to be the last World Championship match played using the system of FIDE cycles invented after the death of Alekhine. Before the following title match, foreseen for 1993, the cycle collapsed just after the Candidate matches.
  
  
• 1997 FIDE Knockout Matches; Groningen, XII, 1997 • This was the first World Championship using the system of knockout matches imposed by FIDE President Ilyumzhinov. FIDE Champion Karpov was seeded directly into the final match, making the Groningen event more like a Candidates tournament. The 'quarter-final' (second-to-last round) of Groningen was scheduled to have the standard, long games played on 23-24 December, with the tiebreak on the 25th. Anand beat Gelfand in the standard games, while Adams and Short tied with a win each. In the fifth and last game of their tiebreak, a 5-minutes-to-4 blitz game (now called an Armageddon game), Adams, playing Black, beat Short. Anand beat Adams in the 'semi-final' (last round), which also reached the Armageddon stage, and earned the right to play Karpov three days later in Lausanne.
  
  
• 2000 FIDE Knockout Matches; New Delhi/Tehran, XI-XII, 2000 • The final round was scheduled for standard games on 20-26 December (with a rest day on the 23rd) and a tiebreak on the 27th. Anand drew with Shirov in the first game, but won the next three games to win the title of FIDE Champion. It was his first World Championship title.

If my dates are correct, the only games played on the 25th were the Adams - Short tiebreak series in 1997. Anand won the title on 24 December in 2000. In case I've overlooked any events, I'll add them below. In the meantime, a Merry Christmas to one and all!

2013 FIDE Executive Board : Whither the World Championship?

In past years, my annual look at documents published by FIDE about the World Championship -- last year's post was 2012 FIDE General Assembly : Whither the World Championship? -- has given me a good choice of material for this blog. This year, the documents from the 84th FIDE Congress Executive Board (EB), Tallinn, Estonia, in October, were less interesting, especially in comparison with, for example, the material on Ethics and Cheating.

I ended the '2012 Whither' post with a comparison of FIDE's two most recent attempts to commercialize its activities: Chess News Corporation (CNC) in 2009, and Agon in 2012.

I expect that any future 'Whither' posts will have little to say about CNC and much to say about Agon. Their London Grand Prix was a definite success and the Tashkent event starts today. The London Candidate matches in March will mark a clean break between the pre-Agon and Agon eras of chess history.

Let's look at the CNC and Agon in the 2013 EB. The first mention of either was during Ilyumzhinov's review of the past year.

1. Report of the President. President K. Ilyumzhinov presented his annual report. [...] As for our cooperation with Agon, both events in London took place with their active participation and its President A. Paulson, managed to succeed in several aspects, i.e. Chess Casting held during the London Candidates. He cooperated with Pentagram company, a leader in chess design, on a new design of chess pieces, you can find these on sale at the Harrods in London.

Mr. Paulson also had negotiations with Microsoft, Google etc. We are working towards bringing corporate sponsorship into chess and we think that during the match in Chennai, several important agreements will be signed. Large companies need much more time to prepare such detailed contracts.

That's not much, given that Agon was to be responsible for World Championship events over the next dozen years. No 'important agreements' were announced in Chennai, and for the next big event, Agon's presence is minimal.

5.20.3. FIDE Candidates’ Matches 2014. The dates should be 12-30 March 2014. [...] Mr. N. Freeman briefed the Board and said that there has been declaration of interests from Khanty-Mansiysk and Bulgaria, because the right to award the events belongs to Agon. [Long discussion of the circumstances around the two bids.] Mr. G. Makropoulos said this moment, with the situation we have in Agon, we could make a decision, negotiating on behalf of them at this moment.

What does Makropoulos mean by the 'the situation we have in Agon'? That had been discussed earlier along with the single reference to the CNC.

4. Administrative matters. [...]

4.4. CNC. Mr. G. Makropoulos presented his report.

4.5. Agon. Mr. G. Makropoulos informed the Executive Board about its activities

That's the entire content of the minutes on those two subjects. In contrast to the lengthy discussions on other important matters, usually further documented in an annex or two, the minutes offer two brief sentences. We can only assume that both projects are going the way of all previous FIDE commercial endeavors. Remember FIDE Commerce at the start of the year 2000? Neither does anyone else.

The person most closely associated with Agon was recently interviewed by Chessdom.com: Interview with Andrew Paulson, President of English Chess Federation

Q: What have you been doing in India to support the [Carlsen - Anand] Match?

A: I spent three months in India meeting with over 100 of India’s top companies, trying to evince interest in sponsoring the Anand-Carlsen World Championship Match. I thought that this would be really easy: Anand, the Tiger from Madras; Chaturanga, invented in India; Carlsen, the ‘hottie’; supposedly 58% of Indian adults play chess regularly; and I’m a pretty good salesman. I was wrong: it wasn’t easy. It was impossible. Zero. But now I know all the reasons these Indian companies had for NOT sponsoring that event, and I will build on this and the friendships I made in India to design the right package of Indian events to get these same companies to say yes. Which they will.

Although there have been half-hearted attempts over the years by FIDE and national federations to find commercial sponsorship for chess, the greatest success has always been with passionate, wealthy patrons. I believe my efforts have been the most wide-ranging and persistent attempt to find sustainable, professional commercial partnerships. Many gears have to mesh in any sponsorship package in order for it to pass muster with a rational Marketing Director of any admirable company we would want to work with. We’re getting there.

The name 'Agon' isn't mentioned during the interview. Other reports on Paulson published since the end of the Chennai match paint a similar picture. I could give links, but why bother -- 'zero' means exactly that.

2013 Carlsen - Anand & 2014 Carlsen - ???

I added the crosstable and PGN game scores to my page on the 2013 Carlsen - Anand title match, then added the event against both names on the Index of Players. I also created a new page for the 2014 Candidates Event to be held March 2014 in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. The next World Championship title match is scheduled for November 2014.

Carlsen - Anand, Wrapup

The big match in Chennai has given me ample material for blog posts, of which I count two dozen to date. Here they are in chronological order. Most of the posts are from my main blog; posts from this World Championship blog are marked '(*)'. The first batch of posts was made before the match.

• 2013-10-01: Opening Wisdom from Anand
• 2013-10-03: Anand on World Championship Opening Preparation
• 2013-10-23: Anand - Carlsen Interviews (*)
• 2013-10-25: GM King on Anand vs. Carlsen
• 2013-10-30: Anand - Carlsen Resources (*)
• 2013-11-04: Anand - Carlsen Openings
• 2013-11-06: Anand - Carlsen, One Day to Go (*)
• 2013-11-07: Anand - Carlsen, Predicting the Result

The second batch of posts was made while the match was being played. I spent so much time watching the games, that I sometimes was able to post only a photo.

• 2013-11-08: Anand - Carlsen Opening Ceremony
• 2013-11-10: Anand - Carlsen Autographs
• 2013-11-12: Anand - Carlsen, Pregame Photos
• 2013-11-13: Anand - Carlsen, the First Week (*)
• 2013-11-14: Anand - Carlsen, Missed Opportunity?
• 2013-11-15: Anand - Carlsen, the Venue
• 2013-11-17: Anand - Carlsen, and Kasparov
• 2013-11-18: Anand - Carlsen, the Edge
• 2013-11-19: Anand - Carlsen, Mainstream Press
• 2013-11-20: Anand - Carlsen, the Second Week (*)
• 2013-11-21: Anand - Carlsen, A Critical Blunder
• 2013-11-22: Anand - Carlsen Last Game Press Conference

Since the match ended, there has been plenty of opportunity for further posts.

• 2013-11-24: Carlsen - Anand, Signed Board
• 2013-11-26: Carlsen - Anand, More Mainstream Press
• 2013-11-27: Anand - Carlsen, the Third Week (*)
• 2013-12-03: Carlsen - Anand, Chess Press Overview

I am certain that there are more posts to come. The match will continue to furnish material for years.

Anand - Carlsen, the Third Week

The big match is over -- all over but the shouting, as they say, and I expect the shouting will continue for some time as the chess world adjusts to a generational shift. Magnus Carlsen's victory over Vishy Anand is the most important title match result since Kramnik beat Kasparov in 2000, which was the most important result since Kasparov beat Karpov in 1985, which was the most important result since Fischer beat Spassky in 1972, and so it goes in the history of the World Chess Championship, one generation supplanting and building on the previous.

My previous report, Anand - Carlsen, the Second Week, left off with the score +2-0=6 in Carlsen's favor, the Norwegian needing 1.5 points to win the match. Since that report, the benchmark Google News search on 'anand carlsen' has shrunk from 'about 82,800 results' to 'about 56,900 results', the first decline since I started tracking it the day before the opening ceremony. As the entire chess world knows by now, Carlsen gained the required 1.5 points in the next two games after that report.

• 2013-11-21: Viswanathan Anand loses, Magnus Carlsen a draw away from title [indianexpress.com; game 9]
• 2013-11-22: Magnus Carlsen dethrones Viswanathan Anand to become new Chess World Champion [dnaindia.com; game 10]

The post-match analysis began immediately. Much of it involved soul-searching from Indian sources. How could one of their favorite sons have been beaten so badly?

• 2013-11-23: World Chess Championship 2013: Defeat in Game 5 Sealed Fate, Says Anand [ibtimes.co.uk]
• 2013-11-24: Garry too early, Carlsen too late [deccanchronicle.com]
• 2013-11-24: Viswanathan Anand's dream is to see chess played in every school in India [ndtv.com]
• 2013-11-24: Gen Y has arrived [mumbaimirror.com]; lists other young GMs
• 2013-11-24: The day Carlsen won World Chess Championship [truthdive.com]
• 2013-11-26: Anand taught me a lot, but now it’s my turn to teach him: Magnus Carlsen [firstpost.com]
• 2013-11-26: The New King of Chess [newyorker.com]
• 2013-11-27: The men who helped Magnus Carlsen beat Anand [firstpost.com]

The closing ceremony, despite the rich rewards not often seen in chess, was almost anti-climactic.

• 2013-11-25: Jayalalithaa honours Magnus Carlsen [morungexpress.com]
• 2013-11-26: In a first, Carlsen gets 22-carat medal [deccanchronicle.com]
• 2013-11-26: Jaya honours world champion Carlsen with Rs 9.9 crore cash award, gold medal [newindianexpress.com]

What happens now? The next championship cycle continues with a Candidates tournament and a World Championship match in 2014. There is some speculation whether Anand will participate in the cycle, but I expect that he will play. His play will be different, because he no longer carries the weight of the title on his shoulders, but he has always been a fighter and the next fight is waiting to be fought.

Carlsen will continue to dazzle for many years. He is young and his personality will continue to evolve. How will he adjust to the even bigger spotlight? This is, after all, a generational shift, and no one can say for sure what it will bring.

Anand - Carlsen, the Second Week

We left off last week's post, Anand - Carlsen, the First Week, with game four just having finished in a thrilling draw. Since then, a Google News search on 'anand carlsen' has swelled from 'about 73,300 results' to 'about 82,800 results'. Let's first look at reports from Indian news sources for the five games played during the past week.

• 2013-11-14: World Chess C’ship: Anand admits he was 'lost' in Game Four [firstpost.com]
• 2013-11-16: Carlsen beats Anand in Game 5 of World Chess Championship [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-17: Magnus Carlsen wins Game 6; leads Viswanathan Anand 4-2 [dnaindia.com]
• 2013-11-18: World Chess: Game 7 between Anand and Carlsen ends in a draw [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-19: Another tame draw as Carlsen retains two points lead against Anand [indiatimes.com; game 8]

With wins for Carlsen in games five and six, it was a great week for the Norwegian grandmaster and a terrible week for Anand. Here are a few background stories that appeared during the week.

• 2013-11-15: Karjakin, Nepomniachtchi may be working with secretive Carlsen [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-16: Anand loses game 6: 'Most rook endings lead to a draw, except when Carlsen plays' [hindustantimes.com]
• 2013-11-18: It's Carlsen's throne for the taking [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-19: From respect to fear [thehindu.com; Ian Rogers]
• 2013-11-19: Is Friedel rooting for Anand or Carlsen? [indiatimes.com]

One of my personal discoveries during the week was the work of Jaideep Unudurti, writing for the Economic Times. I somehow overlooked his work until now and intend to review his previous articles when I find the time. In the meantime, here are two of his articles from this past week.

• 2013-11-17: Despite trying a hand in Russian politics, Garry Kasparov seems to miss chess [indiatimes.com]; also featured in my post Anand - Carlsen, and Kasparov
• 2013-11-18: Viswanathan Anand draws seventh game; Magnus Carlsen remains two points ahead [indiatimes.com]

With four games to go, Carlsen leads 2-0. Will Anand manage to pull off a miracle? With the odds heavily stacked against that, will he manage to win at least one game? As long as I'm covering Indian sources, let's go back a few months to an interview with Anand that was published just after Carlsen won the London Candidates tournament.

• 2013-04-02: 'Carlsen will be ridiculously difficult to play against' [indianexpress.com]

Q: How different will [the Carlsen match] be from your previous WCC matches? • A: Firstly, he is not from my generation. There is a difference in age and outlook. When I played Kramnik, Topalov and Gelfand, I read them in a certain way. And even then, I thought that if I end up playing Vlady this time, it would be a different Vlady from the one I played before. He (Carlsen) is from a different generation and Carlsen is also one of the most talented players from any generation. He will be ridiculously difficult to play against, yeah.

Next week's post might well be the last for this match. I hope you're enjoying the show as much as I am.

Anand - Carlsen, the First Week

My previous post, Anand - Carlsen, One Day to Go, was a summary of news stories on *the match*, mainly from Indian news sources. A week later, the 'about 12,700 results' given by a Google News search on 'anand carlsen' has mushroomed to 'about 73,300 results'. Let's make another summary of news from the past week. Here are some pre-match reports.

• 2013-11-06: Rousing reception for Carlsen [thehindu.com]
• 2013-11-06: World No 1 chess star was in Muscat to prepare for face-off with Anand [muscatdaily.com]
• 2013-11-07: Anand to open with black pieces in World Chess Championship [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-08: Viswanathan Anand, Magnus Carlsen share cold vibes [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-08: Anand reveals his seconds but Carlsen plays coy [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-08: Vishy Anand faces tough battle with Magnus Carlsen to keep world title [theguardian.com; Leonard Barden]
• 2013-11-08: It’s Anand’s experience vs Carlsen’s form [thehindu.com]
• 2013-11-09: Anand-Carlsen as seen by cartoonist Jose Diaz [chess.com; some commenters found this offensive]

As I write this, our two heroes have just drawn the fourth game, making four draws in four games, or +0-0=4 in W-L-D parlance. The first two games were short draws that ended in repetition, while the next two had considerable content. Somewhat surprisingly, all four games tipped in Black's favor.

• 2013-11-10: Anand forces short draw against Carlsen in opener [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-10: Viswanathan Anand says ‘midly surprised’ by Magnus Carlsen’s opening moves in Game 2 [livemint.com]
• 2013-11-11: Anand, Carlsen not playing cat and mouse game, say experts [business-standard.com]
• 2013-11-11: Anand vs Carlsen match will revive chess: Kasparov [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-11: Viswanathan Anand vs Magnus Carlsen: Chess stages biggest game since Fischer vs Spassky [independent.co.uk]
• 2013-11-12: Vishwanathan Anand - Magnus Carlsen duel fires up chess fervour in India [zeenews.india.com]
• 2013-11-12: Anand vs Carlsen: Gauging over, it's time for real battle [indiatimes.com]
• 2013-11-13: World Chess C’ship Game Three: Anand, with black, gives Carlsen a scare [firstpost.com]

The week's prize for bonehead chess reporting goes to a source I can't remember seeing before. The first story ignores the impact of an Anand victory on a nation of 1.000.000.000+ Indians. The second story needs to review the definition of 'disastrous'. What can you say about a news source whose current top featured article is 'Here's What It Takes To Work At Hooters'?

• 2013-11-05: Garry Kasparov: A Win For Carlsen In The Upcoming World Championship Match Will Be A Huge Win For The Chess World [businessinsider.com]
• 2013-11-10: The Most Anticipated Chess Match In Decades Is Off To A Disastrous Start [businessinsider.com]

Considerably better, and another source I hadn't seen before, was the source I used for game two above.

• 2013-11-07: What Anand match means for brand Carlsen [livemint.com]
• 2013-11-08: Few takers for paid tickets to Anand vs Carlsen match [livemint.com]

Also worth noting is the source for game three above.

• 2013-11-12: Anand vs Carlsen Game 3 Preview: Time to take things up a notch [firstpost.com]
• 2013-11-12: Anand vs Carlsen reminds me of the Spassky-Fischer game: Kasparov [firstpost.com]

Where's game four? It should be in next week's news.