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why no chess in Olympics
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I strongly agree. the olympiad is better as a separate event. and best of all, the olympiad has been happening for quite awhile.
many great gm's have had brilliant games during the olympiad
azbobcat wrote:
lutak22 wrote:
yeah sure we have the Olympiad but does any one that isn't completely into chess going to watch or hear about this even? I think chess in the Olympics would be great for the popularity of the game
Actually it depends where in the world you live. In the former Yugoslavia which I think -- not sure -- has held the greaest number of Olympiads, we were treated like Rock Stars. One morning at some ungodly hour of 7 am our team room got invade by the Novi Sad press and everyone saw it coming except for me since I was deep in prep for my match that morning, and I was still in my skivies when the press broke in. I was interviewed wrapped in a blanket. Every night the LEAD STORY was what had happened at the WCO, which countries had distinguished themselves that day, top team rankings etc. And yes my infamous interview was seen later that night after it was translated. We could not go anywhere without being noticed: Each country was given a Team Car -- a Yugo of course -- and across the hood was amblazed "29th World Chess Olympiad -- Novi Sad".
One of the days I was not playing I along with 3 other people decided to go to Dubrovnik. On the way back we got forced off the road when we hit a pot hole and blew a tire. We were in the middle of NO WHERE, as far from civiliization as you could get. We rolled about 200 yds and pulled into a farmhouse so we could change the tire. The farmer came out to see what his dogs were barking at. He took one look at the car, went back into the house and came out with a vintage bottle of schnapps. The farmer ionsisted we toast to this grand occasion. I had a splitting migraine. The Farmer offered our driver a toast but he declined and signed that he was the driver. Next up: me. I tried to sign I had a bad headache ( and was stoned out on a anti-migraine drug to boot) and so after a lot of back and forth I agreed to *1* shot. The stuff knocked me on my @$$!!! It was STRONG!!! After that we did the sign language thing again and I agreed to *1* more *final* shot. After that shot the farmer wanted me to follow him to see his prized WHITE SOWS. I've never seen such large pigs!!! The only word I knew in Yugoslave was the word for "good" = "dobro". I told him "dobro" to congratulate him on his sows he slapped me on the back and smiled. We went back out side and the farmers son had brought his friends around and we gave each some of our Olympic pins. Before we could drive away the farmer insisted we have another toast. He offered it to our driver who signed he was the DRIVER, so for the third time that afternoon in the best Olympic spirit, I drank a final toast said "Dobro" and everyone shook hands and we were back on the road. Between the migraine drug and the 3 shotas I slept very nicely all the way back to Novi Sad.
I reiterate that story because we broke down in the middle of nowhere. Yet the farmer and everyone around him still had a TV and they were following the WCO - literally the Olympiad was the LEAD STORY every night, in spite of the prelude to the war that would eventually tear Yugoslavia apart (we were force to take an alternate route home because checkpoints were erected which is how we ended up on that road in the middle of no where ) which was usually the second story each night.
Just because the United States does not prize chess and chess players does not mean that holds true for other countries. The two most popular sports in many eastern european countries seem to be soccer and chess. In the countries that use to comprise what was once known as Yugoslavia CHESS was THE sport. I was there!! I LIVED it.
Wow! I missed this!
what a story. : respect
oh you little devil. you are tricky to place "S.W.Katz"
the last time the Olympiad was in Yugoslavia it was 1990- and it was just before the violence that war that gripped that part of the world.
I tried hard to see if I could find who exactly attended the 1990, but with 636 people and controversy of the olympiad.. it was more apparent who would NOT play.
"The 29th Chess Olympiad arrived to Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. Many expected it would not happen. In July it was even stated in the Scandinavian Press that the event was likely to be cancelled. The economy was in state of collapse and the directors and various other pre-Olympiad organizers had been replaced five months prior to the event. The organizers, however, went out of their way to make the arrivals most welcome. Overall organization and that in the press room in particular was excellent.
Prior to the opening ceremony Campomanes and Vlada Popović, president of the Organizing Committee, issued a joint statement rightly but regretfully rejecting the entries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania following the arrival of their respective teams. Despite a petition signed by many of the leading players including Ivanchuk, Gelfand, Beliavsky, Timman and Seirawan the three Baltic states were not allowed to play. Ehlvest, Tal, Oll, and Shirov's talent were not to be put on display.
All of top teams came to Novi Sad. For the last time we saw teams of old Eastern Block: the Soviet Union, East Germany and federal Yugoslavia. Even though Kasparov and Karpov were missing from Soviet team they were commonly recognized as big favourites for gold, led by Ivanchuk and Gelfand. England's trio: Short, Speelman and Nunn guaranteed them second position in the seeding table. The USA had refused Kamsky's demands for board one and an extra $10,000 fee. They thought that the extra 70 odd ELO points are less important than team spirit. Then came Yugoslavia (who had extremely strong "B" and "C" teams, seeded 10th and 17th respectively) and the Netherlands. Hungary were missing Portisch, Pintér and Sax, who only wanted to play at top board and Ribli was chosen instead. Iceland sent top 6 and were seeded in 7th. Other potential contenders for medals were Sweden, West Germany and Israel."
obviously you want to remain anonymous, but it would be SO cool "Az" for you to leak who you are and perhaps speak to who you played against and anything additional about playing in one of the greatest competitions in chess.
if 1990- there is 1972 and 1950.
I Suppose 1972 is also possible
😊
It's not actually the same as the Olympics, it's chess federations and so it's more like a club competition in which transfers can take place of people whatever their nationality. Of course the official broadcast has Polgar talking about nations competing and interludes talking in an Eastern European style of 'pride of nations', but it's tacked on without real substance, somewhat like people do with Eurovision (which is broadcasters competing despite all the waving of national flags).
👍
Apr 20, 2017
0
#230
BlargDragon wrote:
ltristam wrote:
I disagree heavily. Chess requires your mind to go through a lot, and chess CAN get stressful and even sometimes you're sweating like crazy. I know that's happened to me.
So for me, chess IS a sport.
NERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRD
If you think chess players are nerds than why are you on chess.com
I think Olympic competitions should have players who have no pot bellies and if bald are so because they shave their heads.
For the first time in Olympic history, Tokyo 2020 will have chess and karate
Apr 20, 2017
0
#234
I heard chess applied but was turned down for the 2020 summer Olympics in Tokyo, but in chess there's really no way to gain an edge by shooting yourself full of bull shark testosterone, so we wouldn't fit in anyway.
Apr 21, 2017
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#235
Then Checkers too, right....and Risk & Monopoly & Tic-Tac-Toe !!
cool. what a neat necro bump.
one of the earlier posters actually played in one of the olympiads.
@werner.
I'd appreciate a legit press release about that. my understanding was that Olympic officials were NOT going to allow chess in....
or is this some kind of special one-time thing??
hmmm
I think you got fake news about chess.
Yes; Tokyo 2020 will include new sports but Chess Isn't one of them
instead; softball, karete, skateboard, sports climbing, and surfing is part of the olympics.
Chess, aparently, didn't make the cut; https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-approves-five-new-sports-for-olympic-games-tokyo-2020
nimzomalaysian wrote:
pfren wrote:
Because it does not sell well, and drug companies have not made any chess businesses yet. Under the modern "Olympic Spirit" a non-profitable sport is not a sport at all.
I can name some idiots that proposed chess being part of olympics in the past: FIDE presidents Fridrik Olafsson and Florencio Campomanes.
Why are they idiots? Care to explain? You sound like a 12 year old kid.
His words needs to be careful checked, arguments sometimes just being thinking not reality.
I just remember the deleted Nazi-Thread. A real shame!
Apr 21, 2017
0
#239
The_Ghostess_Lola wrote:
Then Checkers too, right....and Risk & Monopoly & Tic-Tac-Toe !!
Checkers has been solved. tic-tac-toe has been solved. risk and monopoly are luck and also have leading 'best strategys'.
Apr 21, 2017
0
#240
stuzzicadenti wrote:
Olympics is for sports. Chess, although it requires mental and often physical stamina, is not a sport. I don't think you can suggest that chess players are athletes.
First of all, it's called The Olympic Games, not The Olympic Sports.
Second, Chess requires more mental and physical stamina than firing a rifle in the Winter Olympics or sweeping the ice in Curling. People who ride horses in Equestrian events need to be fit but not great athletes. Chess players who play a five round, one day Swiss tournament are helped by physical fitness.
Shooting isn't that physical (standing up sometimes, holding arms out), it's mental and about concentration like chess. Mental concentration is a form of physical effort in any case.
And the silly remarks about tiddlywinks...Chess is more complex and with a far greater history. Also it is played all over the world, I'm sure some Olympic sports aren't played as much as chess.
And on the argument that chess has loads of big tournaments, that's simply wrong. There's two that has potentialy all the best players, the World Cup and the Olympiad. And only one of them concentrates completely on what chess is really about, an individual sport.