More Trouble For FIDE Grand Prix

FIDE's Grand Prix series should have been a good idea; a series of tournaments featuring the world's top players to select a challenger for the World Championship.

However, changes to the rules and subsequent withdrawals by players and organisers have left the whole concept hanging by a thread.  See the previous news reports here, here, here and here!

That thread became even thinner in January when the planned final event of the series, in Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic was cancelled due to the organisers withdrawing.  Their statement is below.

Statement Bessel Kok & Pavel Matocha:

We have been informed that the NWR coal corporation which intended to support the Grand Prix in Karlovy Vary in December 2009 will not enter into sponsorship. This information and the reasons behind this decision were already communicated to Geoffrey Borg and FIDE and also to grandmaster David Navara, who was nominated by the Czech organisers to Grand Prix tournaments.

There are multiple reasons for this decision:

1. The withdrawal of top players from the Grand Prix tournaments (mainly withdrawal of Magnus Carlsen, the number one player of the GP and the most media atractive player is problem).

2. The confusion on the role of the winner of the Grand Prix (will be there the match between the winner of GP and the winner of World Cup for the right to play the worldchampionship match? or there will be a candidates tournament?), it is unacceptable to change the rules during the game.

3. The current financial crisis, which wiped out 80% of market value of NWR and sponsoring has been their first cut in operating expenditure.

Prague, 19 Jan 2009

So the fate of the remaining events of the Grand Prix becomes even less clear...