Is it Unsportsmanlike to let the Arena Clock Run Out

Imagine using Hikaru as an example of good sportsmanship.

Running the clock out at any point is unsportsmanlike. Just because it's the last few minutes of an Arena match doesn't make it any less so. What if the person on the other side of the board is a contender for first place? Just because you're a sore loser, they shouldn't get a chance at their points?

Running the clock out egregiously at any point in an Arena should be punished heavier than a regular game. Had a guy in a 5 min Blitz game run 3 mins out yesterday, moving me from 2nd to 10th as the other people in the top ranks won games while I sat there twiddling my thumbs.

Part of sportsmanship is the agreement that both sides want to do as well as possible. In individual game results, overall arena performances, and rating performances.

If you are intentionally playing moves when you could just let the game get aborted, you are not playing for the best rating, which in my book is unsportsmanlike. You may disagree with this definition, but I have no problem with my opponent stalling out the end of the arena. When you start a game late in an arena, you and your opponent should both know that you need to play quickly, or else any advantage gained is for nothing.

don't change the rules i  do it alot!!

Stalling for the sake of stalling is not. Stalling to end the arena is. Same thing in bughouse, if you are checkmated in one move but have a lot more time than your partners opponent, it is a huge part of the game to stall so that your partner can win on their board.

Where on the site is this distinction made?

bughouse is a doubles variant with special time considerations... i haven't played an arena before but for me, yes it seems unsportsmanlike to be stalling in one.

lots of people do it so i mean while its unethical or may seem sad it still is in fair rules

Hi

I'm not entirely sure, somewhere in the forums. But in the help & support documents, stalling is defined as letting the game clock run out instead of resigning. Which is not the case if you're just letting the arena time run out.

...causing your opponent to needlessly wait for selfish reasons.     🤔

This just happened to me (I was on the winning side) and I was curious to see what the general opinion is. So based on my personal experience and what I've read here, I would say it's unsportsmanlike and definitely very annoying to let the arena clock run out on the last game, but it's within the rules and therefore allowed. I guess it's similar to a soccer team keeping the ball in their half and wasting time when winning by 1 in the last 5 minutes of a game.

I think it would be MUCH better if the rules of the arenas changed to allow all games to finish, especially for shorter blitz and bullet formats. I'm now of the opinion that players who waste time during the last game are just "working the system" but are not necessarily "wrong", it's the format of the arenas that should change for the better.

As a sidenote - letting the GAME clock run out during an arena (not the arena clock, but a single game's clock in the middle of it) is definitely not OK, should be reported, and heavier sanctions should be given because it impacts the overall results of the arena as a whole.

In your scenario, the game clock and the arena clock effectively become the same thing, hence, they are still stalling. One player should not be punished for being in a winning position because they started a 5 min Blitz game with 7/8/9 minutes on the arena clock, as that is a realistic time to expect to finish that game. 

Allowing the arena clock to run out because you're in a losing position is akin to throwing a temper tantrum - because the person allowing the clock to run out is a huge baby, the person on the winning side is now not getting their points. 

I actually went and found the stalling page: https://support.chess.com/article/675-what-is-stalling#:~:text=Stalling%20is%20something%20poor%20sports,some%20pointless%20moves%20added%20in.

Stalling is something poor sports do to annoy their opponent when it becomes clear they can't win. Stalling can be: 

• Letting the clock run out instead of resigning
• Taking VERY long between moves, in effect letting the game run out but with some pointless moves added in. 

It does not make a distinction between arena and game clock specifically, and letting the arena clock run out is definitely covered by the second point. Ergo, letting the arena clock run out IS stalling and IS unsportsmanlike. 

If you wish to interpret "the clock" as the arena clock in an article that does not mention arenas, that's fine by me. However, the second point clearly indicates that it is referring to stalling for the sake of stalling. It's not "pointless" moves if they give you enough time to not lose the game.

It doesn't mention game clock either.

Your second point is correct if you completely ignore the first clause, "Taking VERY long between moves," and ignore the meaning of "in effect."

Are you seriously implying that "the clock" is supposed to mean the arena clock? There's no other mention of arenas, and what about all the games that aren't a part of arenas?

Also, are you aware that the same thing happens in bughouse? In fact it is encouraged, there are / commands that encourage strategic stalling in bughouse games. I don't see why these bughouse games and arena tournaments are different as far as playing the best strategy.

You seem pretty intent on being pedantic to defend the use of unsportsmanlike stalling to save a few rating points. If you're going to be a pedant, I will as well, and the implication of "the clock" when it is referred to throughout the rest of the site as "game clock" is clearly both arena and game. What do you mean what about all the games that aren't a part of arenas? Stalling there is also unsportsmanlike, it's literally no different at the end of an arena, except you are also now costing someone their tournament points. 

You don't see how a chess variant with multiple players is different from a chess tournament and might have different strategies? I think we are done here then. You don't see the difference in stalling in bughouse where it might actually lead to a win, whereas stalling at the end of an arena is (I stress for the umpteenth time) a petty tantrum to save ranking points at the cost of your opponents tournament points AND rating points. 

It's literally throwing a petty little fit - something that children do when they don't get their way. 

No, it's not. It's using the format of the game to your advantage. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with that. I fully expect my opponent to do the same - same thing with winning on time, premove tricks in fast games, etc. 

However, I do believe that games that are in progress while the arena ends should be finished, whether it's for arena points or just rating points.