Translated material
Horse grooming
Horse grooming
No matter how the unification match for the title of world chess champion ends, it has, in fact, already failed. In any case, the way in which the champion will be identified does not contribute to the creation of a clear, universally recognized hierarchy in the world of chess, and also does not soften the frankly barbaric morals in this formally most intellectual and sophisticated sport. That is, it does not solve the two main problems for which, in fact, it was started.
Most of all, Vladimir Kramnik should be offended. He clearly failed to adequately resist the “toilet rudeness” of Veselin Topalov’s team and, above all, the main intriguer in the modern chess world, Topalov’s manager Silvio Danailov. Of course, when 500 thousand euros in net prize money is at stake for each player, and regardless of the outcome of the match, there is something to lose. However, there is reason to believe that, having interrupted the match immediately at the moment the appeal committee refused to cancel the technical defeat for failure to appear for the fifth game after the opponent’s toilet démarche, the Russian grandmaster would have won more. And world chess would not have lost anything.
Now the situation is frankly idiotic. Topalov, if he wins, will still go down in chess history as a “toilet champion,” as a chess player, despite his undoubted enormous talent, who won the match thanks to a dirty intrigue that has nothing to do with the game. Kramnik, having lost, will turn out to be a banal victim of psychological pressure. But if “withdrawal with a knight”, refusal to continue the match when the score was still winning, left Kramnik at least the undoubted advantage of the “moral winner”, now in case of defeat he looks like a “weakling”. And it will evoke pity rather than respect. Moreover, such a moral breakdown could radically affect the entire future career of the Russian grandmaster, who is already not distinguished by the super-fighting character.
Theoretically, of course, there is still a chance that Kramnik will still win the match. For fate, the appearance in chess after a long break of a universally recognized single absolute world champion would still be the best of all currently possible options. But, firstly, judging by the last three games, Kramnik has little chance of winning - he is clearly demoralized by the “toilet scandal”. And secondly, the aftertaste of the match is already such that hardly any of its sporting results will be recognized by the chess world. That is, the champion, no matter who he becomes, will still not be entirely complete.
In any case, the emergence of a crystal clear absolute world chess champion will be possible only after the creation of rules spelled out to the smallest detail by which the chess king is determined. If chess - for the sake of entertainment, a solid prize fund, and the ambitions of chess managers - continues to turn into a kind of fight without rules, this game will sink even deeper into the existential crisis that became especially noticeable after the departure of Garry Kasparov.
Kasparov, at least by the duration and quality of his victories, supported the image of chess as a kind of special and therefore interesting, important sport and creativity for humanity. Topalov and Kramnik, who due to their chess potential could have taken up Kasparov’s banner, alas, turned out to be hostages of chess-related functionaries. And Silvio Danailov, who promotes chess the way professional boxing is promoted, is unlikely to return super-popularity to this game with such tactics.
That is, of course, it’s funny in its own way when respectable people in jackets and ties with the status of international grandmasters talk to each other, like some Mike Tyson with Evander Holyfield. Like, “I’ll tear the jaws, gouge out the blinkers.” This tone simply does not correspond to the essence of chess. All that remains is for one grandmaster to bite off a piece of another’s ear to raise his rating, and victory is awarded to the chess player with the stronger fists.
So, no matter how bitter it is, we have to admit: another attempt to return the chess world to a civilized existence with the only legitimate world champion, who received his title in an impeccable sports fight, ended in failure. The washroom might reveal the winner of a Big Brother-style reality show, but not the king of an ancient mind game.