White Knight gets Outplayed. Blames the Queen

Before recently relocating, I had spent almost my whole life in the often-forgotten State of South Australia. Referred to as the Nanny State, it was only today that I found out that this nickname has nothing to do with the number of nannies I have seen knitting scarves here. I was positive it was the knitting nannies, because I always wondered why they would knit in a state that literally reached 47.8 degrees Celsius (119.66 degrees Fahrenheit) this year. Apparently, it was actually referred to as the Nanny State because of its various regulations, which hadn't ever occurred to me as it's also the wine capital of Australia.

South Australia also has many random 'Big Things'. This includes the Big Rocking Horse, the Big Hat, the Big Ant, the Big Lobster, the Big Olive, the Big Pigeon, the Big Oyster and the Big Scotsman, to name only a few. Adelaide (the capital city of South Australia) was also dubbed the City of Churches, even though the most recent census has shown that there are more people without a religion that live here now. Another of South Australia's biggest claims to fame was inventing the pie floater (which is literally a meat pie placed in soup).

One thing, however, that I haven't mentioned here is chess, because I hadn't personally seen any kind of competitive chess scene in South Australia. I mentioned all the above to paint a picture, because, recently while reminiscing about the home I knew for most of my life, I went on a wild journey of random Google searches. Suddenly, I stumbled upon a ridiculous and outlandish chess scandal by happenstance that happened in South Australia! So, sit back and relax, as I simultaneously cover and reveal (puns intended) the controversy that unfolded between Ngan Phan-Koshnitsky and Robert Cowley. Rest assured, you are in for a show!

Contents

• The Ngan-ny State Champion
• Things got more than a Little Rocky
• The Games they Played
• Bobbing for Scapegoats
• Pigeonholed
• He Just Pelican't Handle it
• Hoisted by his own Petard
• Final Thoughts

The Ngan-ny State Champion

I want to begin by stating that Ngan Nadalin (previously Ngan Phan-Koshnitsky) has had a brilliant chess career. She represented Vietnam in two Chess Olympiads, and then Australia in another five, even playing on the first board. Ngan is a Women's International Master, and apart from her much publicised South Australian Chess Championship win, she was also the Australian Women's Chess Champion in 1998, and the Oceania Women's Chess Champion in 2001. The latter earnt her a place to compete in the Women's World Chess Championship later that year.

Things got more than a Little Rocky

Alas, here we are, about to discuss what transpired in the infamous South Australian Chess Championship in 1998. Back then I was 11 years old, and snap pants were all the rage (in my eyes). While my fashion sense hasn't much improved, one person who knew a thing or two about fashion was Ngan. She was quoted in saying "I'm young, I want to wear nice clothes and be happy - and that's it". However, much to her chagrin, this was not it for her. In fact, you could say what unfolded next garnered a lot of exposure.

It was meant to be Ngan's moment after winning the South Australian Chess Championship. Another great achievement in an already stellar, albeit young career, and yet it turned into a farce when Robert Cowley, a 50-year-old man at the time, who had previously won two South Australian Chess Championships (back in 1978 and 1992), claimed that he would have won for a third time if her 'pawn structure' hadn't gotten in the way of his gaze. He suggested that he was caught between a Rook and a hard place, arguing that her attire could be seen as a gambit of hers. In what could be viewed as a case of being a sore loser, Robert acted like it was a case of wham, bam, thank you, Ngan, which couldn't have been further from the truth.

The Games they Played

I felt it was important to have each game analysed to find out if there was any truth in the claims Robert made about being distracted in his games to determine whether he played worse than his Elo rating. For this, I was lucky enough to bring in my friend, the analysis expert that is @KevinSmithIdiot, who kindly analysed all six games for our enjoyment. I also checked the weather for each day to see if this impacted the clothes that were worn.

Game 1

Temperature: 23.5°C (74.3°F)

Black (Ngan) played the Pelikan Variation of the Sicilian. White (Robert) stumbled out of the main lines on move fourteen, where he placed his Queen on the h5 square, which threatened nothing and did nothing to improve his position. Ngan reacted correctly with 14...f5, a central riposte that placed her in the driver's seat for most of the game. However, she ended up missing a golden opportunity on move 35 for a positional exchange sacrifice that would have netted her the win with relative ease, and the game ending in a draw.

Game 2

Temperature: 22.3°C (72.14°F)

Game 3

Temperature: 37.4°C (99.32°F)

Game three began like game one, before White (Robert) decided to deviate on move nine in the hopes that didn't end up the same way game one was heading. However, it seems like Robert panicked on move 21, after Black (Ngan) pushed a pawn to f5. Kevin hypothesised that it's more likely that Robert was distracted by the memories of the should-have-been disaster he so narrowly averted in game one, rather than on anything he could see over the board, literally. 

Game 4

Temperature: 20.8°C (69.44°F)

Game four was the only game that Robert won. If one believes Robert's assertions, it could be assumed that Ngan chose to wear a turtleneck during this game to give Robert a fighting chance. While Robert continued in his habit of sending his Queen off on adventures, his predilection was rewarded in this game. Robert avoided any situations that would require accurate calculating skills by forcing pieces off the board and ended up defeating Ngan.

Game 5

Temperature: 28.5°C (83.3°F)

With games 1 and 3 going so poorly for White (Robert), he decided to switch from the Sicilian to 1.d4 in the fifth game. The line they played typically offers some fireworks, but instead, both played tentatively. The game ended up being quite lackluster, ending in a draw by repetition.

Game 6

Temperature: 29.1°C (84.38°F)

White (Ngan) played more aggressively than in game four and was rewarded for her change of pace. During this game, Robert made a complaint about Ngan's wardrobe choices. Both sides had chances in this game. Again, Robert misplaced his Queen (on move 19). Kevin speculated that Robert must be confusing the placement of the Queen on the enemy's half of the board with meaningful activity. While Robert still had chances for a draw, he chose to focus on one move threats, rather than precise activity, and ended up losing the game, and therefore the match.

Findings

Kevin had sent me a minimum of three paragraphs for each of the six games, detailing the openings and critical moments, as well as the blunders. He may have written more notes for me to go through than the paragraphs I had written for my entire blog. He truly is a man of many words and incredible insights, and yet, his conclusion was as succinct as it gets. Kevin stated "I'd say he (Robert) was simply outplayed (by Ngan), but not by much. It looked like typical play by a couple folks rated almost 2000 over the board".

While this isn't conclusive proof that he hadn't been paying close enough attention to the chess games, it does highlight that he consistently played around the level he was rated at. In the end, it was his poor habits with the placement of his Queen, which occurred in multiple games, along with his idol threats that ended up being his undoing. This suggests that it was more of an oversight in his tactics, rather than whatever else he was seeing.

Also, discussing the weather is normally considered small talk, and yet one could suggest that it played a bigger part in these games. While this might all be merely coincidental, there was an interesting observation I discovered.  Game three was perhaps Ngan's most dominant win and it also happened to be by far the hottest day a game was played, reaching 37.4°C (99.32°F)! Game four was the only game Robert won and it was also the coolest day, reaching a maximum of 20.8°C (69.44°F). Finally, the game in which Robert made a complaint was the second hottest day, reaching 29.1°C (84.38°F).

While this is purely speculative, this could suggest that Ngan was wearing weather appropriate attire during these games. If this is the case, and Robert was indeed so impacted by Ngan's sensible clothing decisions that he couldn't focus as a result, it would imply that Robert should not be allowed out during Summer. Assuming that the weather played such a significant role, I could only imagine that he may also become so distracted while driving in summer that it could cause an accident.

Bobbing for Scapegoats

According to Robert (his friends called him Bob), he had only lost the match 4-2 because he couldn't keep his eyes on the chessboard, which he claimed was based on what Ngan was wearing (rather than suggesting that it was a lack of discipline on his part). During the sixth and final round of the contest, he made a complaint to the organizers about Ngan's "penchant for revealing tops". Ngan countered that her cleavage "shouldn't be an issue at all". She continued by stating that this was nothing more than a stupid excuse by Robert for losing, stating that "It makes me angry that he didn't think I was good enough to win. I believe that most men can't accept losing a game against a woman".

Robert claimed that Ngan's clothes were more suited to a disco than a chess game, and that he had tried with all his might to avert his eyes "but it was very hard not to see it (her cleavage). I put my hands across my forehead but that didn't work very well, so now I may consider wearing a wide-brimmed hat". Furthermore, while Robert didn't say whether he thought her attire was a deliberate tactic of hers, he stated that he plays for "mental exercise, social interaction, discipline and prestige", and wanted "to be able to think of the game and not be distracted by other things".

Pigeonholed

Chess tournaments have been known to be quite flippant when it comes to what someone can and can't wear. There have been events where, at the same tournaments, certain players have been forced to forfeit, or are fined for wearing sneakers, while others were allowed to wear theirs. One of chess's official laws states that it is forbidden to distract or annoy one's opponent, however, what dictates as distracting an opponent? A few years ago, Magnus Carlsen was so distracted by his much lower ranked opponent (who was given permission to wear a watch), that he ended up losing. However, was it his opponent's fault when he was allowed to wear it? And do not get me started on Magnus Carlsen and his jeans (which ended up getting sold for $36,100, with all the proceeds going to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America).

I personally feel it is a shame that Ngan was placed in a situation where she was subjugated to this awful rhetoric, largely due to her gender. I can't imagine Robert sharing these sentiments if a male opponent had unbuttoned a button or two. Yet, Ngan was forced to defend herself. She handled herself well, sharing that she "had no intention to make Mr. Cowley (Robert) uncomfortable".

He Just Pelican't Handle it

I'm aware that this championship match happened in 1998, and times were very different back then. However, this is a poor excuse at best for what transpired. Retrospectively, I personally feel like Ngan was the only one in this situation that had every right to feel uncomfortable. A man who was over twice her age was publicly stating that it was practically her fault he lost because he couldn't help but ogle her throughout their six games. I am surprised that she wasn't the one distracted by his behaviour and his unwanted gaze.

I do believe that chess has come a long way in regard to how women are treated in the chess world. However, in my opinion, it hasn't yet reached the stage where it can comfortably label itself as inclusive, which is evident from the many voices of women who compete in chess, in more ways than one.

I have been receiving hateful comments related to the way I dress, look or speak since I was 14 years old … It makes me sad that people don't pay the same kind of attention to my chess skills.

GM Divya Deshmakh, 2024

Luckily for Ngan, the vice-president of the South Australian Chess Association, Evelyn Koshnitsky (82 at the time) had her back. Evelyn was the first South Australian Woman Chess Champion and was a pioneer for women in chess. It was even luckier for Ngan that Evelyn was her mother-in-law! Evelyn expressed that Ngan is "just a modern girl" who won the title of state champion on her own merits. She continued by stating that it was Robert's problem and not Ngan's if he was distracted by his opponent's clothing.

Hoisted by his own Petard

While it is clear that Ngan didn't break any rules, I want to clarify that I do believe certain items of clothing could distract an opponent to the extent that it shouldn't be allowed. For example, if someone walked up to the chessboard wearing an inflatable T-Rex costume, I would not be able to contain myself. Every time they would go to move a piece with their tiny T-Rex arms, I would uncontrollably giggle until I had the urge to pop it (the outfit, not the chessboard, as chessboards cannot be popped), inadvertently sacrificing... THE T-ROOKS in the process. However, I will say that thankfully I am yet to see someone attend a chess event in a T-Rex costume.

In the end, I believe that it comes down to intent. Firstly, it really didn't seem like Ngan wore clothes with any intent to distract her opponent's. Also, to be candid, I don't believe any of her outfits were remotely provocative. From every article I could find, Robert came across as both prudent and pervy with his actions and by the comments he made.

In recent years, I do believe that women are now receiving more respect in the chess world. Women like Evelyn Koshnitsky, Ngan Nadalin and too many others to name were huge proponents in carrying chess in a more positive direction. In fact, Evelyn, with her husband Gary, donated a collection of 405 chess magazines, books and materials (most of which are out of print) to the State Library of South Australia (known as The Koshnitsky Collection). With this collection, we can see how much society has changed, including in the way women are now perceived in chess, while also learning just how far there still is to go.

Final Thoughts

When I began writing this blog, I had several zany ideas, such as making an alternate account where my display picture was perhaps a photo of Ngan. I would have played a few games and then compared the Elo of that account to my own to see whether Ngan really had these magical powers of distraction that Robert alluded to. I was even tempted to go one step further and dress demurely, donning something better than snap pants, and then rocking up to an over the board tournament to see if I would crush all the 50-year-old men with my stunning (in one way or another) appearance.

My original intention was to write an objective blog without having any kind of bias. However, while writing, it was hard to shrug off how unfair this situation was to Ngan. Not just by Roberts comments, but also by the media. This would have been a non-story if it was about a man's cleavage. Granted, chess tournament's, especially at the highest level, are quite strict with what can be worn. However, this tournament wasn't at the highest level.

In fact, I haven't even seen an article about any other South Australian State Championship match than this one, which was all the way back in 1998, and mostly about Robert's assertions. While these articles weren't on his side, they were also crasser when describing what transpired. Truthfully, I wouldn't have even had a blog if Robert was the one who liked to dress "in nice clothes and be happy". Alas, Robert's focus was less on checkmating Ngan and more on checking out what she was wearing, and now some 27 years later it is still relevant to talk about.

In the end, I decided that Ngan, now 51 years old (one year older than Robert was at the time of their championship match), as well as this incident deserved to be its own blog. Who knows, maybe in a future blog you will see me wearing $36,100 jeans, complete with a wide-brimmed hat, competing in a chess tournament. And even though that won't be in the South Australian State Championship, it was really nice to discover that South Australia does have a long and rich history in chess.

I hope you enjoyed this blog. Feel free to comment your thoughts or personal experiences. Thank you so much for reading. I also want to give a special thanks to  @KevinSmithIdiot for the tireless work he put into analysing the games. Have a beautiful day, and until next time, goodbye, farewell and Sia (see you) later.