A horseman cometh…
SPRAGGETT ON CHESS
KIRSAN MAKES FRONT PAGE NEWS!
KIRSAN MAKES FRONT PAGE NEWS!
I was watching the news with my wife this evening and…lo and behold…images of FIDE president Ilyumzhinov playing chess with Libya’s besieged dictator Kadaffi !
At first I thought that these images were from the 2004 World Cup organized in Tripoli. But no: Kirsan and Kadaffi met for several hours this weekend and they even played a ceremonial game for the cameras. Curiously, while it is well known that Kadaffi’s eldest son plays chess, it is not clear if Kadaffi really knows the rules of the game. In the video below, Kadaffi senior started with a (illegal) move of one of his pawns and Kirsan immediately made him take it back!
Some political analysts believe that while Kirsan was in Africa last week, his visit to Libya was at the request of the Russian government. In recent weeks Moscow has been working behind the scenes to negotiate a peaceful outcome to Nato’s adventures in the oil-rich country.
Chess In Translation quotes Gazeta.ru’s analysis of Kirsan’s trip to Libya :
”Known for his extravagant actions and statements, Ilyumzhinov doesn’t particularly suit such a responsible mission. He does, however, have an excellent relationship with the Libyan leader, which started seven years ago.”
This wouldn’t be the first time that Kirsan has been deployed to a hot spot on the Kremlin’s behalf. While Sadam Hussein was still in power Kirsan visited to try to , amongst other things, re-negotiate his multi-billion dollar debt to the Russian government.
For some idle speculation, check out this LINK
On a final note, we are always saying how good it is when chess gets into the media! Well, I am certain we didn’t really have this in mind…in anycase, we have to hand it to Kirsan: he has a style all of his own.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A9m-OB_-fE]
SPRAGGETT ON CHESS