My grandpa told me that this is becouse the winter is so cold people don't go outside too much so they have to find something to pass time while inside the house all that time, they become chess masters.
Yeah, that's the same thing my dad said about why Iceland is so good...lol
Cuba had him stumped though. 
Eddiewsox:
I'm an old Chicagoan (South Side chapter), and a Sox fan since I was eight. Do the Sox have any chance to do something this year?
Not without Shoeless Joe.
Say it ain't so Joe, say it ain't so.
Twobit
"You can advertise only as investment for future increased sales. In chess there is no money. Hence the need of state support , just like investment in culture, museums, renewable energy sources (maybe not in Solara)."
In general terms this maybe is true but in practice this doesn't really aplay. Economy works in basis of demand and offer, you can create the demand then the money will come.
Also we have to consider the reasons why the soviet goverment spended all those resources in a board game, I can pretty much tell It was not becouse they love chess. Maybe they saugh a way to keep people busy and under control.
paulgottlieb:
"Chess was covered extensively in all the Soviet media and films about chess were shown at the cinema."
That is interesting, do you know the title of this movies? I am kinda cine fan and being complaining there is not enough chess movies out there.
I find it fascinating that no one from Russia (or any of the former Soviet Union countries) has posted an answer. Maybe they are too busy playing chess.
Ahhh, and the wikipedia link gives only 24 titles.
From those movies the only ones I had watch is the "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (crazy spensive movie) and the "Seven Seal" witch is a clasic and a must.
- Genes. Russians are Proud. With that they have showed some Stupidness at World War 2, and now want to Compensate it; which I think is good.
You'll need to explain this concept. My initial reaction (as a professional historian) is that you have no idea what you are talking about. R. Santorum on social justice is more credible.
- Genes. Russians are Proud. With that they have showed some Stupidness at World War 2, and now want to Compensate it; which I think is good.
You'll need to explain this concept. My initial reaction (as a professional historian) is that you have no idea what you are talking about. R. Santorum on social justice is more credible.
That was also my initial reaction. I then told my Russian friend, who said "maybe they're not educated so well?"
Great stuff!
well ia am 25% Russian and it got me on the Russian Team Here...i am Loving It...
Why Play for the Rest, when you can play for the Best....?
The russians are good at this game of chess ? Hmmmm...
Not Really, i just like playing for the Underdogs....
Culture, and possibly some genetics thrown in.
Bobby fischer said it was because the Russian Govornment Paid Money to Educate its really good Players...
it's not the vodka, for sure...
The general status of the game i suppose. Here in UK chess is regarded as a bit elitist.
GM Fartov and GM Boogerov
Russia has always provided the incentives to study chess; players like Stein and Spassky could become your drinking buddies.
Two guys called Krylenko and Ilyin Ghenevsky back in the 1920's were given the task of 'taking chess to the masses'. Krylenko's title was Chairman of the Chess Section of the Supreme Council for Physical Culture of the Russian Federal Republic, Ilyin Ghenevsky headed something called the All Union Chess Section. In 1924 there were 24,000 registered chess players in Russia, ten years later there were half a million, all encouraged by slogans like 'Chess is a powerful weapon of intellectual culture' and 'In this country where the workers have gained victory chess cannot be apolitical as in capitalist countries'.
Krylenko also happened to be the leading state prosecutor at the show trials in the 1930's until he upset Stalin somehow and was shot for the crime of 'retarding the development of chess'. Basically chess was seen as a cheap way of proving the cultural superiority of the communist system over the decadent west so the state spent a disproportionate amount of its limited resources supporting and promoting the game.
There ya go, a little history lesson
A similar, but less sinister situation applies in Cuba. Obviously Capablanca is probably the most famous Cuban ever and Castro and Guevara were big chess fans so they emphasised chess in the education system (its a compulsory subject for study).
With regard to the Netherlands I'm not entirely sure why chess is so popular but I guess Max Euwe winning the world championship gave it a huge boost in popularity. Just look at what Anand's winning the WC has done for chess in India, he's a god like figure over there, almost as popular as Sachin Tendulkar (if you don't know cricket you won't know who he is but he's the most famous man in India believe me).
This proves something about something...I'm sure of that