Acceptable team strategy.

More acceptable than Yemen deciding they weren't going to play Israel IMO

I think these kinds of "package" deals are pretty standard in the Olympics. Unlike in individual tournaments, the team captain's job is to get the best result for the team, and if that means trading draws, that's what they do. The tie secured the Gold for the Ukraine and the Bronze for Israel, so it was in both team's interest.

You have a point there ACEChess!

The question was asked.  Opinions are given.  Get with the program and stop bullying forum participants

Come on...  :Þ

No, the message is that sometimes you should sacrifice personal stats for the good of the team.  Such is the way of a healthy community.  Sometimes it is the right thing to do to be selfless for the good of the many.  The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... or the one.

What's SOL? 

Too bad.  They should learn that life isn't always fair.  Politics is often stepping in to make life unfair for someone and if it's you, suck it up and get on with it.

There's always two sides to every argument!

@BorgQueen

At the risk of setting off the profanity filter, SOL stands for sh1t out (of) luck

Hmmm....

In our local leagues here the team captain can instruct players to accept or offer draws. It's in the rules, and I seem to remember (a long time ago) that other posters here agreed it was pretty standard all over, it's agreed practice.

As long as the result is not agreed before the match, we have to remember that team matches are different from individual effort.

I think it's OK.

   I've been very vocal about this thing ever since I read the article about these two teams matches for that round all going to draws under 90 minutes the last day of the Olympiad. I've voiced my "conspiracy theory" to people around me, in my blog and on the forums. Was it done to prevent Russia from winning the gold? Probably(Svidler took care of that by himself anyway). They should be looking deeper into this premeditated result and FIDE should step in and regulate things a little more, but, of course, they won't. I'm still annoyed by this and I will be, and I won't cease my opinions about it. Whether Svidler won or not, whether the Russians were kept from winning gold or not, in an event of this magnitude, or any event, this was wrong, plain and simple, and I don't care if I get hazed for it. Me being of Russian heritage, I'm biased, so, this is bothering me even more.

   -Mark

With you all the way AceChess.  Sport with poor sportsmanship is poor sport.  The organisers should have the power to act appropriately if they suspect agreed draws are happening - void the games and make them play again til there is a result, maybe.

Agreed draws by individual players or by teams or team captains should be against the rules.  It makes a tournament anti-climatic which is bad for our sport.  I think the large majority would agree.

   I was looking forward to a decent match between these two countries on the last day and was given this mess. I hope the chess world let's these two countries have it, because if I was on the Russian team, I'd be livid about it. When was the last time a chess event caused a war?!?! LOL

   I've always been the "shoot people first and then give the answers" kinda guy LOL, this just happens to be one of those instances, and it doesn't help that I've been nicknamed "The Mad Russian."  It certainly fits the billing!

Do you think the captains spoke Russian while making their deal ? It would be a fitting irony :-)

   LOL..ugh. That just made my guts roll up to my throat