Fast-start to the Chessable Masters as youngsters impress
Two young rookie stars took centre stage as the elite Chessable Masters e-sports chess event kicked off today. The world’s youngest grandmaster Abhimanyu Mishra scored his first win over a top 10 player on the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour aged just 13 as he racked up an impressive 6/12. Mishra is ranked just 459 in the world and is by far the lowest placed player in the event. But that won’t last long. The teenager’s victory over world No.7 Shakhiryar Mamedyarov with a nasty mating attack at the end was an ominous indication of what he’s capable of. Mishra, playing from New Jersey, was overjoyed with his start. “It was a very crazy day, of course,” he said. But it was China’s Wei Yi, the prodigiously talented 22-year-old, who stormed into the lead on day 1 on his debut with a scintillating 10/12, that included three wins and a draw. Yi defeated India’s Pentala Harikrishna, England’s Gawain Jones and David Anton of Spain to take a two-point lead into the second day. It puts him firmly in the driving seat to make it to the Knockout stage. Mishra, meanwhile, had a tough introduction to the event losing first to Anton and then in Round 2 against world No.2 Ding Liren. However, Mishra pushed the Chinese star hard and looked to be heading for an unlikely draw before a miscalculation in a pawn race at the end let it slip. Instead of playing 44. Ng2+, the youngster missed a bishop check that came after 44. bxa5 dxe3 45. axb6 g2 46. b7 Bc4+. From that point on the teenager went into overdrive winning back-to-back games against the Canadian streamer Eric Hansen and then his landmark win against Mamedyarov. Sixteen of the world’s best chess stars have gathered to compete for a prize pot of up to $150,000 in the Chessable Masters. World Champion Magnus Carlsen leads the Tour overall having won two of the first three events. The Norwegian sits equal second in the Chessable Masters having scored 8/12 but was more than happy with his day’s work as he rounded it off with a win over Jorden van Foreest. Carlsen said: “The score is good and to end on a high with two wins is nice. I think I didn’t play so well, but as long as I win it’s fine.” For further comments contact: Leon Watson leon@championschesstour.com About the Chessable Masters The eight-day Chessable Masters started on May 19 and coverage will focus on the study of chess openings. A prize pot of up to $150,000 is up for grabs and two qualifying spots for the next Tour Major. For the first stage of the event, all 16 players will compete in a round-robin with the top 8 progressing to a knockout. The final will be staged on May 25 and 26. The Chessable Masters is leg 4 of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour. The overall Tour winner in November will be crowned the world’s best online chess player. Action will be broadcast live with commentary from chess24’s studio in Oslo via chess24.com’s YouTube and Twitch channels, also available at chess24.com/tour. Play begins at 18:00 CEST / 16:00 UTC. About the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour The Champions Chess Tour is the leading online chess Tour worldwide determining the world’s best chess player over a full competitive season of online chess. The 2022 season begins in February 2022 and features monthly tournaments culminating in a Final in November 2022. The best chess players in the world are competing in rapid chess. All games take place online on chess24.com with players competing for a total prize pool of over USD 1.5 million. For more information visit championschesstour.com. About Play Magnus Group Play Magnus Group is a global leader in the chess industry focused on providing premier digital experiences for millions of chess players and students. The company offers e-learning and entertainment services via its market leading brands: chess24, Chessable, iChess, New In Chess, Everyman Chess, Silver Knights, Aimchess, the Play Magnus App Suite, and the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour. The Group’s mission is to grow chess to make the world a smarter place by encouraging more people to play, watch, study, and earn a living from chess. Play Magnus Group is listed on Euronext Growth Oslo under the ticker PMG. www.pmg.me
Chess will be compulsory in Georgian schools
Today, May 19, 2022, is a historical day for Georgian chess. The Ministry of Education Mikhail Chkhenkeli has announced that starting with the next school year, chess will be a mandatory subject for first-grade students in the country. It will apply to all the 2,200 schools in Georgia, both public and private. The plan aims at “developing the students’ analytical, logical, and practical problem-solving skills, encouraging critical thinking”, reads the announcement. “Chess improves students’ multifaceted skills such as attention, concentration, memory, analysis, logic, decision making, spatial orientation and more. This, in turn, is directly related to the competencies defined by the standards of mathematics and other subjects”, it concludes. The Minister of Education informed that the preparatory work with the Georgian Chess Federation has already begun to allocate the necessary resources to implement the program and start training teachers. FIDE Vice President Akaki Iashvili expressed his enthusiasm for the announcement: “There is relentless support for chess in Georgia. This plan implies that almost all first-grade students will learn chess, and the game will increase its popularity even further. That, in turn, will translate into more sponsorship. And, hopefully, this will also help us to see how one day a Georgian lady regains the title of World Champion, which is a national dream for us”. It must be noted that the decision of the Georgian Government aligns with the Declaration of the European Parliament of March 15 2012, on the introduction of the programme ‘Chess in School’ in the educational systems of the European Union, which reads as follows: The European Parliament, – having regard to Articles 6 and 165 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, – having regard to Rule 123 of its Rules of Procedure, A. whereas the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in its Article 6, provides that sport is among the areas ‘where the Union shall have competences to carry out actions to support, coordinate or supplement the actions of the Member States; B. whereas chess is an accessible game for children from every social group and can help social cohesion and contribute to policy objectives such as social integration, combating discrimination, reducing crime rates and even the fight against various addictions; C. whereas whatever the age of the child, chess can improve children’s concentration, patience and persistence and can develop the sense of creativity, intuition, memory, and analytic and decision-making skills; whereas chess also teaches determination, motivation and sportsmanship; 1. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to encourage the introduction of the programme ‘Chess in School’ in the educational systems of the Member States; 2. Calls on the Commission, in its forthcoming communication on sport, to pay the necessary attention to the program’ Chess in School’ and to ensure sufficient funding for it from 2012 onwards; 3. Calls on the Commission to take into consideration the results of any studies on the effects of this programme on children’s development; 4. Instructs its President to forward this declaration, together with the names of the signatories(1), to the Commission and to the Parliaments of the Member States. Photo: © Government of Georgia FIDE would like to express its gratitude to Mr Mikhail Chkhenkeli (pictured above), who, previously as Minister of Culture and Sports and currently as Minister of Education, has been a long-time supporter of chess.
Munich to host a leg of Women’s Grand Prix 2022-23
Munich will host the third leg of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-23, to be held from February 1-14, 2023. The venues, dates, and details for the other three legs in the WGP Series will be announced at the end of May. The venue for the event will be the luxurious Kempinski Vier Jahreszeiten hotel, centrally located in the heart of Munich and just paces away from Marienplatz, the city’s main square. The main sponsor for the event will be Krulich Immobilien Group, a real estate company with headquarters in Munich and branches in Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Zwickau. With more than 100 employees across various locations and a portfolio that includes around 15,000 units, Krulich has been a household name in the real estate business in Germany since 1957. Krulich Immobilien Group is also a long-time supporter of chess activities in the region, having founded the Munich Chess Academy and the Munich Chess Foundation, as well as some other chess competitions sponsored by the group. FIDE would also like to thank the German Chess Federation (Deutsche Schachbund) for their invaluable help in bringing this event to Munich. While the exact line-up for Munich is yet to be defined, the WGP Series 2022-23 will feature a total of 16 players, and each one of them will participate in three out of four WGP tournaments. The initial list of qualified players includes the reigning World Champion (Ju Wenjun), the four semi-finalists of the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2021 (Alexandra Kosteniuk, Aleksandra Goryachkina, Tan Zhongyi and Anna Muzychuk), the four top-finishers at the FIDE Grand Swiss 2021 (Lei Tingjie, Elisabeth Paehtz, Zhu Jiner and Mariya Muzychuk). Three more players are eligible by rating, with the March 2022 ranking list as a reference: these would be Hou Yifan, Kateryna Lagno, and Nana Dzagnidze. That would make Harika Dronavalli the first reserve player if any of the previously listed participants turned down the invitation. Lastly, each of the four WGP tournament organizers has the right to nominate a player of their preference in consultation with the FIDE President. The total prize fund for the event in Munich will be €80,000, with another €80,000 being distributed among the top 8 finishers in the global Women’s Grand Prix Series standings, according to the cumulative points they score across the four events. More importantly, the two top players in the WGP Series will also qualify for the FIDE Women Candidates Tournament 2023-24.
Wojtaszek and Rudzinska win Polish Championship 2022
GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek and WFM Michalina Rudzinska are the new Polish Champions. The 79th LOTTO Polish Championship in the open and women’s sections took place from May 9-17, 2022, in the old town Kruszwica. Just like a year before, the tournaments were played in different formats. The open event was a 16-player knockout tournament, which attracted the best Polish players, except Jan-Krzysztof Duda, preparing for the Candidates. The defending champion Radoslaw Wojtaszek cruised to the semifinals, where he clashed with the last-year finalist Wojciech Moranda. After the draws in classical and rapid games, Radoslaw prevailed in the second blitz encounter and reached the final to play for the title with Kasper Piorun. Kasper had a thorny path to the final, defeating Pawel Teclaf in Armageddon in the quarterfinals and beating Jacek Tomczak in blitz in the semis. After making a quick draw with black in the first game of the final, Wojtaszek won the second encounter in style and clinched his second straight national title and the fifth overall. Bartosz Socko won a six-player playoff round-robin tournament and claimed bronze. The women’s event, a 10-player round-robin, produced an entirely unexpected outcome. The lowest-rated participant WFM Michalina Rudzinska made a real splash winning the title with a round to spare. The 20-year old WFM from Suwalki beat all the main favourites and picked up 79 rating points. Monica Socko scored an important victory in the final round and took silver. Julia Antolak tied for the third place with Maria Malicka but claimed bronze thanks to better tiebreaks. Final standings: 1 WFM Rudzinska, Michalina 2236 7 2 GM Socko, Monika 2384 6 3 WGM Antolak, Julia 2371 5½ 4 FM Malicka, Maria 2377 5½ 5 WIM Kiolbasa, Oliwia 2375 5 6 WGM Zawadzka, Jolanta 2409 4½ 7 IM Kulon, Klaudia 2305 4 8 WGM Majdan, Joanna 2325 3 9 IM Cyfka, Karina 2404 2½ 10 WIM Kubicka, Anna 2245 2 Offcial website: mp2022.pzszach.pl/ Photo: Polski Związek Szachowy Facebook page
Chess and brain ageing
During the past months, we have brought to our social media channels the story of Manuel Alvarez Escudero, from Madrid. Born in 1921, Manuel is still very much an active player who, at 100 years and six months old, is rated 1627. He just took part in this season’s regional league with his club, where, despite starting off with a victory, he ended up losing a few rating points. To put things in perspective, Manuel was born in the year Jose Raul Capablanca became World Champion, and his life encompasses the greater part of modern chess history. Manuel also recently got some airtime in the Spanish media, which presented him as an example of active ageing. We all could name some other examples of chess personalities who demonstrated remarkable intellectual longevity. The beneficial effect of chess in delaying brain ageing and cognitive impairment (and therefore, Alzheimer and other types of dementia) is supported by relevant scientific studies and statistics. With all this in mind, a group of entrepreneurs and chess promoters from Spain have recently developed a chess-based cognitive training program in the form of a mobile application that they named Gymchess. The founders of this interesting project are Leontxo Garcia, chess journalist and science communicator, Juan Antonio Montero, psychologist and a world-class authority on the topic of therapeutic applications of chess and Asier Rufino, CEO of Tecnalia Ventures, Chairman and Board member in several deep-tech spin-offs, as well as a Professor at the prestigious Deusto Business School. The chess-based cognitive training program is based on the amp experience gathered by Juan Antonio Montero in multiple face-to-face workshops with more than 3,500 users over the last ten years with the support of the regional government of the Extremadura region in Spain. This allowed him to develop a methodology (ECAM) that has been applied to create Gymchess, with the ultimate goal of improving the cognitive system and slowing down the effects of brain ageing, serving as a complement to people conscious of their personal well-being and mental health. Users don’t need to have any prior chess knowledge or even know how the chess pieces move to start using and benefiting from the app. The Gymchess app was presented in the Spanish Pavilion at Expo Dubai last December, during the World Championship Match, with the presence, among others, of its founders and Teresa Riesgo, Secretary-General of Innovation at the Ministry of Science and Innovation of the Government of Spain. The technological start-up is supported by the Basque Government and the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa. If you are aware of any similar initiative involving chess for seniors and active ageing, please contact FIDE’s Social Commission at socialchess@fide.com.
IPCA World Championship 2022: Andrei Obodchuk clinches title
IM Andrei Obodchuk (FIDE) emerged as the winner of the 21st World IPCA Chess Championship for Disabled Players organized by Israeli Chess Federation and IPCA (International Physically Disabled Chess Association – Affiliated to the International Chess Federation, FIDE). The 9-round Swiss tournament in Ashdod City (Israel) brought together 24 players from eight countries. Obodchuk (pictured above) took a great start, winning four games in a row, but in Round 5, he suffered a painful defeat in the game against IM Andrei Gurbanov (Israel) after mishandling a won position. Unfazed, Obodchuk scored 2½/3 in the next three games and came to the final round a half-point ahead of IM Stanislav Mikheev of Serbia. The leader took matters into his own hands, beat Benny Shapiro with black pieces and clinched the title with an excellent score of 7½/9. Stanislav Mikheev (pictured below) finished just a half-point behind the champion and claimed silver. GM Yaacov Zilberman and Andrei Gurbanov tied for the third place, netting 6½/9 each, but the bronze goes to the former thanks to a slightly better Buchholz. WFM Svetlana Gerasimova (FIDE) netted 4½/9 and became the best woman player. Aleksandra Aleksandrova of Israel scored an equal amount of points but had inferior tiebreaks. Final standings: 1 IM Obodchuk, Andrei FID 2306 7½ 2 IM Mikheev, Stanislav SRB 2333 7 3 GM Zilberman, Yaacov ISR 2323 6½ IM Gurbanov, Andrei ISR 2301 6½ 5 IM Yarmonov, Igor UKR 2394 6 6 IM Campos, Eugenio ANG 2247 5 7 FM Lipilin, Ilia FID 2174 5 8 Srimskov, Elishar ISR 1992 5 9 Shapiro, Benny ISR 1899 5 10 FM Vit Vaclav, Valenta CZE 1999 5 11 Babanov, Aleksandr FID 1918 4½ 12 WFM Gerasimova, Svetlana FID 1906 4½ In addition to cups, medals and diplomas, the top-6 finishers received won prizes from €300 to €1,000. There were also three special money prizes for women. The winners (open, women and players in wheelchairs) gained the spots in the IPCA team at the Chess Olympiad 2022. Official website: ipca.chess.org.il/ Photo: Mark Livshitz
Queens’ Chess Festival: Your chance to see Chennai!
Travel subsidy for tickets to the Chess Olympiad 2022 in Chennai, India (up to 600 euro per person) and full board accommodation for six nights await the winners of the Queens’ Online Chess Festival 2022, a series of continental women’s online blitz tournaments. Four players, the winners of the finals in all categories, and one team of four will get a unique opportunity to see the biggest chess event, with over 2000 players from more than 200 countries participating, and to enjoy the scenic beauty of Chennai, a home for the world’s second-longest beach and rock-cut architecture. The lucky winners will also get a chance to see the Queens’ Pavilion at the Chess Olympiad Expo and to attend the FIDE Year of the Woman in Chess Awards, promoting gender equality in chess. Other prizes of the event include training sessions with leading chess trainers. The event, organized by the FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess in cooperation with the FIDE Events Commission, and supported by the Asian Chess Federation, the African Chess Confederation, the European Chess Union, and the Confederation of Chess for Americas, starts on June 05, 2022, on Tornelo platform. The competition will be held in four rating categories: Category A: 2000 and higherCategory B: 1800-1999Category C: 1600-1799Category D: <1600, unrated The first edition of the Queens’ Festival, held in 2021, brought together over 460 participants from 82 countries. FIDE welcomes female chess players all over the world and invites them to join again, making this festival the biggest online women’s chess event ever! Regulations for the Queens’ Online Chess Festival 2022 (pdf) Presentation of the Queens’ Online Chess Festival 2022 (pdf) National Federations register for the tournaments by filling this form and sending it to the organizers’ e-mail address: queensfestival@fide.com. The deadline for registration: Friday, May 27, 2022, for America;Friday, June 03, 2022, for Africa and Asia;Friday, June 09, 2022, for Europe. Contact Information: General Director: IM/WGM Eva RepkovaTournament Director: IM/WGM Ilaha KadimovaChief Arbiter: IA Tania KaraliE-mail address: queensfestival@fide.com
Winners crowned at South African Championship 2022
The South African Championship 2022, held in the open, women’s and seniors sections, took place from May 7-14 in Newland Cricket ground in Cape Town. All three tournaments were played in a round-robin format. The championships served as the qualifying events for the South African national teams that will participate in the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai. The open tournament was a close affair, with IM Daniel Cawdery and FM Banele Mhango netting 6/8 each and tying for the first place. Daniel Cawdery claimed the title (the second in his career) as the winner of their direct encounter. GM Kenny Solomon, the only grandmaster in the tournament, scored 5½/8 and took bronze. Final standings Open: 1 IM Cawdery, Daniel 2419 6 2 FM Mhango, Banele 2206 6 3 GM Solomon, Kenny 2356 5½ 4 FM Barrish, Daniel 2281 5 5 IM Kobese, Watu 2324 4 6 FM Klaasen, Calvin John 2245 3½ 7 FM Bhawoodien, Shabir Hussain 2033 3 8 CM Mazibuko, Khanya 1917 2 9 Willenberg, Kenneth Sean 1935 1 The women’s event, an 8-player round-robin, produced a minor sensation – one of the lowest-rated participants 15-year-old Chloe Badenhorst came out on top, scoring 5/7 and picked 117 rating points along the way. WIM Jesse Nikki February did not manage to defend her national title and finished a half-point behind the champion. WIM Charlize Van Zyl finished third with 4 points. Final standings Women: 1 Badenhorst, Chloe 1585 5 2 WIM February, Jesse Nikki 1890 4½ 3 WIM Van Zyl, Charlize 1682 4 4 WIM Laubscher, Anzel 1720 2½ 5 WCM Selkirk, Rebecca 1781 2 6 Grobbelaar, Jacqui 1517 1½ 7 Klaasen Robyn, Julian 1666 1½ Mark Lewis dominated the senior section scoring 7½/9 points. The champion conceded his opponents just three draws and finished a full point ahead of Hans Steyn and Cecil Ohlson, who tied for the second place. The silver goes to Hans Steyn, thanks to better Sonneborn-Berger. Final standings Seniors: 1 Lewis, Mark 1875 7½ 2 Steyn, Hans 1840 6½ 3 Ohlson, Cecil 1620 6½ 4 Southey, Andrew 1756 6 5 Galleid, Stephen 1578 6 6 Van Schaik, Michael 1578 3½ 7 Esau, Omar 1521 3½ 8 Goosen, Pierre 1427 3½ 9 Gabriels, Zaid 1357 1½ 10 Baker, Gregory 1044 0½ Official website: www.chessa.co.za Photo: Lyndon Bouah
2022 1st FIDE Council meeting: List of Decisions
2022 1st FIDE Council meeting 28 April 2022Abu Dhabi, UAE CM1-2022/01 To note President’s report. CM1-2022/02 To note Financial report presented by FIDE Treasurer. CM1-2022/03 To request FIDE President and FIDE Treasurer to reestablish contacts with national chess federations of Bhutan, Central African Republic and Comoros Islands, including with an aim to settle their multi-year arrears. CM1-2022/04 To note the FIDE Congress 2022 Schedule. CM1-2022/05 To note the FIDE Congress 2022 Elections Timeline. CM1-2022/06 To note progress reports on the preparations for the 2022 FIDE Chess Olympiad and FIDE Congress 2022 CM1-2022/07 To request the Members of the FIDE Council to propose candidacies for 3 Scrutineers and 3 substitutes for the FIDE Presidential elections. The names of the candidacies are to be submitted to the Office by 25th of May 2022. CM1-2022/08 To approve the Captain and Head of Delegation rules to be effective from 1st of July 2022 and to disseminate them to the National Federations. CM1-2022/09 To approve the Appeals Committee Procedural Rules. CM1-2022/10 To approve the regulations for Non-Elected Commissions. CM1-2022/11 To approve the Development Index Regulations and to plan the discussion of possible changes at the FIDE Congress 2022. To instruct the FIDE Management Board to suggest the improved set of criteria for the Development Index, considering the economic development levels of the countries and other factors such as a need to provide special support for new federations etc. The estimated deadline – 15th of July, 2022. CM1-2022/12 To approve the deletion of C07 Time Control from the FIDE Handbook. CM1-2022/13 To approve the addition of the new point 2 to D02 Continental Championships and Zonal Tournaments. CM1-2022/14 To note the Global Strategy Commission’s report. CM1-2022/15 To approve general principles of the proposed agreement between FIDE and Grand Chess Tour and to instruct the Management Board and Director General Emil Sutovsky to finalize the details, taking into consideration the input from the Council members. CM1-2022/16 To note the Arbiters’ Commission’s report. CM1-2022/17 To approve the recommendations of the Arbiters’ Commission on Seminars, Classification upgrades, Amendments to the FIDE Lecturer list, FA norms and titles. CM1-2022/18 To approve the Arbiters’ Commission’s proposal to move the date when IA Certification Seminar norms are mandatory for IA title applications to 01/01/2024. CM1-2022/19 To instruct the Arbiters’ Commission to consult with the Continents on the potential list of match arbiters for the FIDE Chess Olympiad 2022. CM1-2022/20 To approve the Chess Education Commission’s report. CM1-2022/21 To approve Regulations for the Titles and Certifications of Chess in Education. CM1-2022/22 To approve Chess Education Commission’s description of its missions, vision, objectives and strategy for the FIDE Handbook. CM1-2022/23 To note the Commission’s for Women’s Chess report and encourage the WOM to activate publicity in respect of the Year of Women in Chess activities. CM1-2022/24 To note the Constitutional Commission’s report. CM1-2022/25 To approve the decision of the FIDE Constitutional Commission to hold the elections to fill the vacancies in the Commission membership. CM1-2022/26 To approve the extension of the mandates of the reverse delegates for the South Africa and Cote d’Ivoire Chess Federations as proposed by the Constitutional Commission. CM1-2022/27 To note the Ethics and Disciplinary Commission’s report. CM1-2022/28 To note the update on the EDC case 2/2022. CM1-2022/29 To note the Events Commission’s report. CM1-2022/30 To approve the recommendations of the Events Commission on titles. CM1-2022/31 To send the bid of the Royal Dutch Chess Federation to organise the 2023 World Youth U-16 Chess Olympiad to the FIDE Council for an e-vote, pending the inspection of the proposed venue. CM1-2022/32 To note the Fair Play Commission’s report. CM1-2022/33 To approve the amendments of the Anti-Cheating Regulations. CM1-2022/34 To note the Planning and Development Commission’s report. CM1-2022/35 To note the Rules Commission’s report. CM1-2022/36 To conceptually support the Rules Commission proposal in respect of the use of gender-pronouns wording in the Laws of Chess. CM1-2022/37 To note the Qualification Commission’s report. CM1-2022/38 To approve the recommendations of the Qualification Commission on titles. To postpone the decision on the title application to IM E. Paehtz (GER). To instruct the Qualification Commission to prepare further analysis and suggest policy changes aimed at improving the efficiency of confirming norms and titles. CM1-2022/39 To note the Social Commission’s report. CM1-2022/40 To note the Trainers’ Commission’s report. CM1-2022/41 To approve the Trainers’ Commission’s proposal in respect of having a minimum time frame of 10 years serving as a high-level trainer for the title of FIDE Senior Trainer. CM1-2022/42 To approve the recommendations of the Trainers’ Commission on titles and Academies. CM1-2022/43 To note Continental Reports. CM1-2022/44 To note ACF’s intention to hold its GA in December 2022. The FIDE Council does not object and regards such schedule as an exemption from the general rules. The elections have to comply with general principles and applicable norms of the FIDE Electoral Rules. Due to special circumstances, in 2022 FIDE Council approves holding the Continental elections before or after the FIDE Congress if such request is made by the Continental Body. CM1-2022/45 To note the report on Chess in Olympic Games. CM1-2022/46 To reject the use of artificial pairings in the upcoming FIDE individual events. CM1-2022/47 To reapprove signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with Shenzhen Nanshan District. CM1-2022/48 To note the reports of reverse delegates of Morocco, Pakistan, Cote d’Ivoire and South Africa Chess Federations and to ask FIDE Constitutional Commission to analyze the corresponding practices and provide relevant recommendations. CM1-2022/49 To approve the proposal of Mr. Iclicki to endorse fund-raising for the first step of the FIDE anniversary 2024 film project. CM1-2022/50 To note the fact that the RCF has expressed their intention to join the ACF. Before taking any other action, to consider the decisions of ACF and ECU and analyze all the legal and practical implications. To request the Constitutional Commission to present an official opinion in respect of an application of the RCF to change continents. CM1-2022/51 To note the report of Deputy President on the geopolitical situation. CM1-2022/52 To hold the next FIDE Council meeting in person in Chennai, India, during the FIDE Congress, on 4th of August 2022.
Gligoric Trophy 2021: Call for nominations
FIDE is pleased to announce the Gligoric Trophy 2021, an award established to give recognition to an individual who, in that year, had displayed exemplary behaviour that promotes the spirit of fair play and sportsmanship in chess. Candidates to win the Svetozar Gligoric Trophy shall have demonstrated during the period January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021, the following accomplishments: – Outstanding gesture or action of sportsmanship during the sports event. – Outstanding contribution to the popularization of the values and principles of Fair Play. – Outstanding support towards initiatives on enforcement of ethical values. – Promotion of integrity and high ethical standards. The Svetozar Gligoric Trophy is a recognition of sportsmen who exercise the fundamental values of Fair Play both during and beyond the game. It’s a way of thinking rather than a mere behaviour and includes the concepts of: FairnessTo enjoy the victory is not enough. Triumph must include fairness and honesty RespectWritten rules are mandatory. Unwritten rules of respect for all are obligatory FriendshipRivalry in sports does not exclude friendship Team SpiritA genuine consideration for others EqualityCompeting on equal terms is essential ToleranceThe ability or willingness to accept what you may not agree with CareTrue champions care about each other Nomination Procedure The winner of the Gligoric Trophy is selected annually by the Award Commission chaired by Mr Mahir Mammedov and its two members, the Grandmasters Mrs Judit Polgar (FIDE Honorary Vice-President) and Mr Eugenio Torre. Proposals for Nominations (Nomination Letter) shall be submitted by Continental Federations, National Federations, and FIDE Commissions to the Gligoric Trophy Award Commission (gligorictrophy@fide.com) no later than June 15, 2022. Nominations coming from individuals, including self-nominations, are also allowed, but they should be channelled through the Federation associated with the nominee. We would like to stress again that this is an award for the nominee’s accomplishments during the previous year and NOT a recognition of a lifelong career. Please note that Commission’s decision is final and not open to discussion, nor shall the members of the Commission be requested to give any justification beyond what they wish to, with their final announcement. The Award Ceremony will take place in August 2022, during the 44th FIDE Olympiad in Chennai. About the award The fair play award, named after Svetozar Gligoric, was established by FIDE in 2019. In the 1950s and 1960s, Svetozar Gligoric was one of the top players in the world and one of the most prominent, owing to his particularly engaging personality. At the chessboard, Gligoric was an uncompromising fighter and, at the same time, a symbol of gentlemanhood and correctness. His impeccable reputation has been a deserved result of his success in chess games and fair-play manners. Gligoric’s trademark was high respect for his chess opponents: his main principle was – It’s chess pieces, not a man I play against! It is no coincidence that the book of Gligoric’s selected games is called “I play against pieces!” The first recipient of this award was Magnus Carlsen, who was awarded his Trophy during the FIDE World Cup in Sochi, 2021.