Fighting draws

ONE feature that anyone following the recent world chess championship match between Viswanathan Anand and Veselin Topalov could not fail to notice was the absence of short draws. Yes, the two players did agree to draw seven of the 12 games but all of them were great fighting draws.

The games were hard fought all the way and the players had to prove to one another that they’d only agree to split a point when there was no more possibility of squeezing a win from the position.

Great fighting chess. That was what we all wanted to see when those two players came together in Sofia, Bulgaria. Of course, we know that Topalov’s uncompromising style would guarantee excitement in every game. He wouldn’t take a draw if he could help it. It was just not his style. It was aggression all the way.

However, Anand refused to let all that aggro affect him too much, if at all. He had such a universal style that he could absorb everything that his opponent threw at him and then he would throw everything back at the opponent.

The end result?

Twelve games that made worldwide spectators sit up enthralled from the first to the last move. Though I was only observing the games through the Internet, the feeling and excitement was exactly the same as the time I was watching Anatoly Karpov and Jan Timman play onstage in Kuala Lumpur 20 years ago.

We marvelled at the resourcefulness of the players, applauded when they went for each other’s throat, and groaned when we noticed their mistakes. They are undeniably humans first, prone to making mistakes and other inaccuracies, and only chess gods second.

A lot of the fighting games in Sofia could be put down to a little-known chess rule that has become very popular lately at top-level chess events, but never employed before at the world chess championship level.

It’s known as the Sofia Rule, not because it was used in this match but because it’s generally accepted that it was first used in a top-level chess competition in the Bulgarian capital in 2005.

The Sofia Rule dictates that players could not draw their games by agreement. They could have technical draws through stalemate or three-fold repetition of position or the 50-move rule or through insufficient material, but that was all.

Other draws would only be allowed if the arbiter declared it as a drawn position.

The FIDE Grand Prix 2008-2009 series of tournaments did not even allow players to offer a draw directly. The draw had to be claimed with the arbiter, who was assisted by an experienced grandmaster.

At this world chess championship match, Topalov tried to impose the Sofia Rule on Anand during the pre-match negotiations. He would not talk to Anand over the board, he declared. He would also ignore any attempt by Anand to offer a draw by talking to him during a game. If there was any draw offer, he would make it through the arbiter.

This request was rejected by Anand because according to him, world championship chess should be played with world championship regulations, and the Sofia Rule had never been accepted in any world championship regulation before.

Of course, there could always be a first time but how could there be a first time when both players cannot agree to using the rule?

Nevertheless, despite Anand’s rejection of the rule, Topalov’s team insisted that they would use it unilaterally and effectively forced Anand to recognise it.

Anand’s response to this Sofia Rule was masterful. It was okay with him if Topalov refused to offer draws or accept draws.

Anand was prepared to fight it out with Topalov in every game, no matter how long they played, but even without talking to his opponent, Anand could still tacitly offer to repeat positions on the chessboard.

He was confident that if Topalov refused to accept such offers, it would make him continue the game and maybe, the pressure of trying to find the best alternative plans may force him into errors.

We saw that happen in the 12th game. At one stage, the two players could have played their queen and bishop up and down the board and repeat the position three times but Topalov baulked at that.

Drawing that game would mean extending the match into the tie-break which Topalov didn’t want, so he tried something else and he allowed Anand to break open the centre and train his guns on him.

Anand carried out an irresistible attack and Topalov had to recapitulate at the end. Final result: 6½ points to world champion Anand and 5½ points to vanquished challenger Topalov.

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Still champ

Viswanathan Anand retains title as world champ.

FINALLY, the world chess championship match in Sofia, Bulgaria, is over. India’s Viswanathan Anand is still the world champion and Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov is left regretting what could have been.

What a match. Right from the very first move in the first game until the last move in the 12th game, the match had bedazzled me all the way. Topalov showed an uncompromising fighting spirit and took the game to Anand, but Anand proved to be a more capable and complete player than Topalov.

When the Bulgarian challenger won the eighth game to level the match at four-all, I never thought that this match would not go the full distance. For sure, it would be decided by the tie-break games.

The next two games – the ninth and the 10th – were drawn. The 11th game was Anand’s last chance to win with the white pieces but a very confident Topalov held out comfortably to force a draw.

The 12th game then became the most critical. Topalov had the white pieces in this final game and hence, the initiative of playing the first move.

In this game of death, a win secures either player the title of world champion; a draw leads to the tie-break games. However, it was not to be. After a great deal of manoeuvring by both players, Anand took a bold step to pry open the centre with a pawn push.

Topalov was reckless enough to go along with the plan. He captured the pawn and suddenly, Anand’s attack appeared from nowhere. Checkmate was expected but at a critical stage, Anand did not play the best move and Topalov almost came back to hold the game.

But the tension finally took its toll on the Bulgarian. After a series of exchanges, it was clear that his remaining pieces (a rook and a knight) were very uncoordinated on the chess board and Anand’s sole queen had no problem to wrap up the game.

The final score of the match was 6½-5½. Anand had won the second, fourth and 12th games while Topalov took the first and eighth games. The rest of the games were drawn.

Here is the final game of the match:

Viswanathan Anand-Veselin Topalov, Game 12

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 Ne4 8.Bxe7 Qxe7 9.Rc1 c6 10.Be2 Nxc3 11.Rxc3 dxc4 12.Bxc4 Nd7 13.0-0 b6 14.Bd3 c5 15.Be4 Rb8 16.Qc2 Nf6 17.dxc5 Nxe4 18.Qxe4 bxc5 19.Qc2N Bb7 20.Nd2 Rfd8 21.f3 Ba6 22.Rf2 Rd7 23.g3 Rbd8 24.Kg2 Bd3 25.Qc1 Ba6 26.Ra3 Bb7 27.Nb3 Rc7 28.Na5 Ba8 29.Nc4 e5 30.e4 f5 31.exf5 e4 32.fxe4 (It was at this point that Topalov lost his nerve) 32…Qxe4+ 33.Kh3 Rd4 34.Ne3 Qe8 35.g4 h5 36.Kh4 g5+ 37.fxg6 Qxg6 38.Qf1 Rxg4+ 39.Kh3 Re7 40.Rf8+ Kg7 41.Nf5+ Kh7 42.Rg3 Rxg3+ 43.hxg3 Qg4+ 44.Kh2 Re2+ 45.Kg1 Rg2+ 46.Qxg2 Bxg2 47.Kxg2 Qe2+ 48.Kh3 c4 49.a4 a5 50.Rf6 Kg8 51.Nh6+ Kg7 52.Rb6 Qe4 53.Kh2 Kh7 4.Rd6 Qe5 55.Nf7 Qxb2+ 56.Kh3 Qg7 0-1

And here are some of the earlier games of this match.

Veselin Topalov-Viswanathan Anand, Game 3

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 e6 7. f3 c5 8. e4 Bg6 9. Be3 cxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd4 11. Bxd4 Nfd7 12. Nxd7 Nxd7 13. Bxc4 a6 14. Rc1 Rg8 15. h4 h6 16. Ke2 Bd6 17. h5 Bh7 18. a5 Ke7 19. Na4 f6 20. b4 Rgc8 21. Bc5 Bxc5 22. bxc5 Rc7 23. Nb6 Rd8 24. Nxd7 Rdxd7 25. Bd3 Bg8 26. c6 Rd6 27. cxb7 Rxb7 28. Rc3 Bf7 29. Ke3 Be8 30. g4 e5 31. Rhc1 Bd7 32. Rc5 Bb5 33. Bxb5 axb5 34. Rb1 b4 35. Rb3 Ra6 36. Kd3 Rba7 37. Rxb4 Rxa5 38. Rxa5 Rxa5 39. Rb7+ Kf8 40. Ke2 Ra2+ 41. Ke3 Ra3+ 42. Kf2 Ra2+ 43. Ke3 Ra3+ 44. Kf2 Ra2+ 45. Ke3 Ra3+ 46. Kf2 ½-½

Viswanathan Anand-Veselin Topalov, Game 4

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 a5 7. Qc2 Bxd2+ 8. Qxd2 c6 9. a4 b5 10. Na3 Bd7 11. Ne5 Nd5 12. e4 Nb4 13. O-O O-O 14. Rfd1 Be8 15. d5 Qd6 16. Ng4 Qc5 17. Ne3 N8a6 18. dxc6 bxa4 19. Naxc4 Bxc6 20. Rac1 h6 21. Nd6 Qa7 22. Ng4 Rad8 23. Nxh6+ gxh6 24. Qxh6 f6 25. e5 Bxg2 26. exf6 Rxd6 27. Rxd6 Be4 28. Rxe6 Nd3 29. Rc2 Qh7 30. f7+ Qxf7 31. Rxe4 Qf5 32. Re7 1-0

Veselin Topalov-Viswanathan Anand, Game 5

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 e6 7. f3 c5 8. e4 Bg6 9. Be3 cxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd4 11. Bxd4 Nfd7 12. Nxd7 Nxd7 13. Bxc4 a6 14. Rc1 Rg8 15. h4 h5 16. Ne2 Bd6 17. Be3 Ne5 18. Nf4 Rc8 19. Bb3 Rxc1+ 20. Bxc1 Ke7 21. Ke2 Rc8 22. Bd2 f6 23. Nxg6+ Nxg6 24. g3 Ne5 25. f4 Nc6 26. Bc3 Bb4 27. Bxb4+ Nxb4 28. Rd1 Nc6 29. Rd2 g5 30. Kf2 g4 31. Rc2 Rd8 32. Ke3 Rd6 33. Rc5 Nb4 34. Rc7+ Kd8 35. Rc3 Ke7 36. e5 Rd7 37. exf6+ Kxf6 38. Ke2 Nc6 39. Ke1 Nd4 40. Bd1 a5 41. Rc5 Nf5 42. Rc3 Nd4 43. Rc5 Nf5 44. Rc3 ½-½

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Snippets: catching attention

The resume is not the place for you to write an essay. Leave that behind you. In the resume, your personal description should be brief and concise. Your achievements should be highlighted as bullet points. This little open secret will allow interviewers to read faster and understand you better. Remember, your resume is likened to a stepping stone. It’s the first critical piece to lure interviewers to consider you. So don’t let them fish for information in an essay. Help them to catch their attention with brief, precise bullet points.

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Passing of a legend

The Philippine’s godfather of chess will long be remembered for bringing the game to new heights.

FLORENCIO Campomanes touched different people in different ways. Among the Western nations, Campoma­nes was despised as a dictator who overstayed his tenure as president of the World Chess Federation (Fide) and played an instrumental role in dividing the chess world.

Among the Third World countries, however, Campomanes was seen mostly as a champion who succeeded to the world body’s highest position and who opened up chess to the world and brought the game to its greatest prominence.

Who was right and who was wrong? Without a doubt, both sides would have their grounds and justifications to cast Campo­manes as their hero or villain. I don’t believe he cared very much for the labels. Ultimately, he wanted only results, not how the job got done. But all that is now behind him.

  f_25florencio.jpgInstrumental role: Florencio Campomanes (1927-2010) was the former president of the World Chess Federation.

Last Monday, Florencio Campomanes, popularly known as Campo to his friends and enemies, died in his native Philippines. He was 83.

I first got to know Campo back in 1974 when he was deputy president of Fide. Asia was his main playground then, and chess was just taking off in the continent.

He came to Penang for the inaugural Asian team championship and, at its conclusion, received the challenge trophy from our second Prime Minister, Tun Abdul Razak. Campo was truly the public face of the Philippines’ chess team.

In 1978, he organised the acrimonious world chess championship match between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi in Baguio City and, in 1982, achieved his ambition of becoming Fide president. His election to the world body’s top position, on the promise of elevating chess to greater heights, created a buzz everywhere.

As Fide president, he sowed the seeds that would eventually see Fide being accepted into the fold of the international Olympic movement. This wasn’t a short-term process; it took years before the walls could be broken down.

But his Fide presidency was marred by controversy. By 1984, Garry Kasparov’s star was rising and he was knocking on Karpov’s door. The 1984/85 world championship match was organised with rules different from today’s. It was a match in which a player needed to score six decisive victories, draws not counting.

Karpov was unable to deliver the final win and he enabled Kasparov to extend the match to 48 games. After five long months of play, Campo decided to abandon the match, citing players’ fatigue as the decision. There would be a rematch later in the year, limited to 24 games.

While this might have been seen as a logical decision – a tough decision, actually – that any Fide president would have to make, it did not go down well with many chess federations in the West. They claimed that Campo’s decision was scandalous and unilaterally made to favour the tiring Karpov at a time when an invigorated Kasparov was starting to get stronger at the chessboard. They said there was no precedent to stop the match but, precisely, it was Campo’s job to set a precedent if one was required.

Campomanes weathered all the criticisms and went on to achieve his second high point as Fide president by bringing the biennial Chess Olympiad to Manila in 1992. It was again a first for Asian chess as never before had any Third World country organised such a large-scale team chess event in this part of the world.

But chess was never the same after that. During Campo’s tenure as Fide president, Kasparov declared that his world championship title never belonged to the World Chess Federation and he could choose to defend his title any time he liked or wanted. Not surprisingly, Kasparov had the support of the western chess federations and most of the top western chess grandmasters.

So chess went in two separate directions. Kasparov had his own version of a world chess championship running for several years, while Fide continued with its own regular world chess title series. It was not until 2006 that there was unification again.

The pressure on Campo began to tell and, in 1995, he stepped down as Fide president and Kirsan Ilyumzhinov took over. Neverthe­less, Campo remained active in the chess world and was made Fide honorary president which allowed him to roam the globe as chess ambassador.

He never slowed down; not even a horrendous car crash in Turkey in 2007 was able to stop him. Though warded in hospital with his neck in a brace, he received all guests and insisted on playing chess with them on his hospital bed. That was his dedication to the game.

Campo turned up often in Malaysia because he was a fast friend of Datuk Tan Chin Nam whom he first met in 1974. It was mainly Campomanes that persuaded Tan to stand for Fide election in 1982. Every time Campo came to town, he came as a guest of Tan.

I can’t remember the last time I met him in Kuala Lumpur. It must have been in the early part of this decade. He was already frail of body but still sharp in mind. He carried with him a distinguished and statesman-like air.

Tan told me: “I have lost an old and dear friend. There will never be another Campoma­nes.”

Casto Abundo, one-time Fide general secretary, recalled that Campo continued to be active in Fide, Asian and Philippine chess until his bout with cancer reached the terminal stage last year. “He was still strong and hearty on his 83rd birthday last Feb 22 but his health quickly deteriorated. I was at his bedside at the Notre Dame Hospital in Baguio City on May 1. As I thanked him for all our chess years together, he smiled and said, ‘We had fun.’”

Campomane’s death last Monday overshadows the current world chess championship match between defending champion Viswa­nathan Anand and challenger Veselin Topalov. The match still has four days to go, provided it goes the whole distance, and if it ends equal at 6-all after 12 games, tie-break games on May 13 will decide the winner.

However, as at the end of the seventh game earlier this week, Anand was leading Topalov by 4-3. After the turbulence of the first two games, both the players have settled down well into the match.

The third game was drawn and Anand won the fourth game. After that, the next three games were all great fighting draws.

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The civil service in Greece

A not-so-amusing analysis from the BBC Online:

On Planet Greece, some civil servants get a bonus for turning up to work on time. Foresters get a bonus for working outdoors. At least they show up.

There are civil servants called ghost workers because they never go into the office, head to a second job and still claim a state salary. They can’t get sacked, because a civil service post is for life. Unless the incumbent decides to retire in his or her forties, with a pension.

And the government can continue paying for the afterlife. Unmarried and divorced daughters of civil servants are entitled to collect their dead parents pensions. Another lucrative sinecure is to belong to a state committee. The government has no idea how many there are.

It has been estimated that they have 10,000 employees and cost nearly £200m a year, and that includes the committee to manage a lake that dried up 80 years ago.

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Punch and counterpunch

The ongoing world chess championship has its exciting moments.

IT HAS been a week since the start of the world chess championship match between defending champion Viswanathan Anand and his challenger, Veselin Topalov. After all the drama of Anand’s overland journey from Frankfurt to Sofia, the match was put off for a day and it kicked off last Saturday instead of Friday.

I was a little miffed to learn that the Bulgarian Chess Federation and the match organisers had refused to meet Anand halfway. A lot of reasons were given but I think they were only trying to make it difficult for the world champion. Initially, Anand had requested for a three-day postponement but a one-day postponement would have been reasonable enough.

In the end, it was left to the World Chess Federation (Fide) to find an amicable solution and they decided that the first game would start on Saturday. However, it doesn’t seem to be the end of the story because the latest word from Sofia is that Silvio Danailov, who is Topalov’s manager, is contemplating suing Fide for the late start.

Of course, he is well within his rights to seek legal redress but I think it also paints him in a bad light. After all, it was no fault of anybody that the volcano in Iceland erupted and caused air traffic chaos in Europe.

Everybody knows that this is a very high-stake match in Bulgaria. All the more reason that if Danailov really wants Topalov to win the world championship title, let him win it fair and square from Anand over the board.

By the way, I’m writing this story during the first lull in the match. As I write this on Monday, only the first two games have been completed. And I’m already having withdrawal symptoms!

Unfortunately, the match rules stipulate that there should be a rest day after every two games. As the schedule would have it, Monday was a rest day. The players are resting or preparing themselves for more battles ahead, but we chess followers can only wait impatiently for the next day to come.

The only consolation is that the two games have been very exciting and decisive. At the opening ceremony three days earlier, Topalov drew the white envelope, meaning that he would play the first game of this match with the white pieces. That was the first stir of excitement. With the white pieces, we can expect the Bulgarian grandmaster to kick off the match in his aggressive style.

True enough, Topalov was first off the block. He came out fighting and slugging. Remarkably, Anand tried to match him blow for blow. When I was following this game live through the Internet, my first thought was whether both players were playing blitz chess or world championship chess.

For this particular match, they had agreed on a time control of 40 moves in two hours, followed by 20 moves in one hour, and then a final 15 minutes for a play-to-death session. There’s lots of time to think and yet, Topalov and Anand sailed through their first 18 moves in barely 10 minutes.

It was only on the 19th move that Topalov paused long enough to think. Here was where the real battle began. Unfortunately, the game ended early, after another 11 moves. Anand made an uncharacteristic blunder in the game. He made his position more difficult for himself by walking into a piece sacrifice. This is the game:

Veselin Topalov – Viswanathan Anand, Game 1

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Na5 11. Bd3 b6 12. Qd2 e5 13. Bh6 cxd4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. cxd4 exd4 16. Rac1 Qd6 17. f4 f6 18. f5 Qe5 19. Nf4 g5 20. Nh5+ Kg8 21. h4 h6 22. hxg5 hxg5 23. Rf3 Kf7? (Black needs to tread carefully in this position. His knight and one of the rooks are terribly out of play on the queenside and his king is rather exposed. On the other hand, White has good chances on the kingside and there’s always a danger of him infiltrating through the c-file. Black’s 23rd move is a blunder and allows a decisive stroke from White. The best resistance may be 23…Bd7.) 24. Nxf6 (After this sac, which White played almost immediately, Black’s position is untenable.) 24….Kxf6 25. Rh3 Rg8 26. Rh6+ Kf7 27. Rh7+ Ke8 28. Rcc7 Kd8 29. Bb5 Qxe4 30. Rxc8+ 1-0

People like me watching from afar were shell-shocked. Why was it so easy for Topalov to dismantle Anand’s game? Has Topalov’s preparation been so superior that Anand had no answer? Or, was the Indian grandmaster still suffering from his overland drive?

It was also almost impossible to gauge Anand’s frame of mind after this loss. Would he brush it aside as an aberration? Certainly, it came as a shock to his system and to his world-wide fan base. Most people would be demoralised to have lost in only 30 moves. However, Anand is made of sterner stuff and he came back with a firm resolve on the next day. In the second game, he gave Topalov no opportunity at all for open tactical play and scored a fine win to level the match at 1-all. Here it is:

Viswanathan Anand – Veselin Topalov, Game 2

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 a6 6. Ne5 c5 7. Na3 cxd4 8. Naxc4 Bc5 9. O-O O-O 10. Bd2 Nd5 11. Rc1 Nd7 12. Nd3 Ba7 13. Ba5 Qe7 14. Qb3 Rb8 15. Qa3 Qxa3 16. bxa3 (Shades of Bobby Fischer. Inspirational. I still remember one of Fischer’s games with Spassky in 1972 when he willingly saddled himself with a doubled pawn on the h-file. Likewise in this game, Anand accepted the doubled pawns on the a-file. However, in return, he keeps up the pressure on the queenside.) 16….N7f6 17. Nce5 Re8 18. Rc2 b6 19. Bd2 Bb7 20. Rfc1 Rbd8 21. f4 Bb8 22. a4 a5 23. Nc6 Bxc6 24. Rxc6 h5 25. R1c4 Ne3? (This move is considered a mistake. Black showed impatience with the position.) 26. Bxe3 dxe3 27. Bf3 g6 28. Rxb6 Ba7 29. Rb3 Rd4 30. Rc7 Bb8 31. Rc5 Bd6 32. Rxa5 Rc8 33. Kg2 Rc2 34. a3 (At this stage, Black is probably already lost. This unassuming pawn will ultimately decide the game.) 34….Ra2 35. Nb4 Bxb4 36. axb4 Nd5 37. b5 Raxa4 38. Rxa4 Rxa4 39. Bxd5 exd5 40. b6 Ra8 41. b7 (I hope you remember that this was the pawn that was originally on the a2 square) 41….Rb8 42. Kf3 d4 43. Ke4 1-0

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Summit uncertainty

Mother Nature puts a whammy on world championship match.

AS IS typical with all high-stake chess events, especially the world chess championship matches, the pre-match mind games usually start well before the first move is played.

This year’s world championship match between defending champion Viswanathan Anand and challenger Veselin Topalov is no different. The mind games started months ago when both parties were negotiating the terms for this match.

It was to be expected that both sides would want the best conditions for their players without acceding any concession to their rival. Nevertheless at the end of the day, they would have to agree on a common ground on which the match could proceed.

  f_pg19veselin.jpgBulgarian Veselin Topalov (left) is an enterprising player and enjoys a slight edge over defending champion, Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.

That, of course, would have been settled long ago. Today, we are scheduled to see the start of the first game of the match in Sofia, Bulgaria, but will we? As I write this story earlier this week, there is a big question mark over this happening.

Even the best man-made plans can be torn asunder by the unpredictability of Mother Nature and as we all know, for much of the past 10 days or so, Europe has been affected by an event happening on the fringe of that continent.

Who would have expected that a volcanic eruption on Iceland could have affected air travel everywhere on the globe? Although travel within Asia, Australia, Africa and the Americas are generally unaffected, tens of thousands of flights within, in and out of Europe have been cancelled.

Air passengers are stranded everywhere and even the alternative land travel is pretty much choked up.

It’s a chaotic situation that is affecting even chess. Anand, who is based in Spain, has suddenly discovered that Mother Nature, aided unwittingly by the European Union, has no respect for world champions. His flight from Madrid took him to Frankfurt but on landing there, his contingent was told that the airport was closing and the connecting flight to Sofia had been cancelled.

This is not the best news for anyone who is directly involved in the high-stake world championship match. At the every worst, it will throw the player’s psychological preparation out of whack. We shall not know how much Anand has been affected until he sits down to face Topalov.

I’m sure to a lesser degree Topalov is also affected. However, he has comfortably settled into Sofia for several weeks now and his preparations continue uninterrupted. Whatever happens to the weather, every free day in Sofia is an opportunity for him to rest and psyche himself up for the match.

So the pressure is mostly on Anand. When I wrote this story earlier this week, I understood that the world champion had finalised plans to travel overland into Bulgaria.

He could have arrived in Sofia by Wednesday. Travel fatigue could have disrupted his preparations. Would one or two days be enough for him to recover his frame of mind?

Both Anand and the All India Chess Federation have made requests to the World Chess Federation and the match organisers from the Bulgarian Chess Federation to delay the start of the match for three days. This was while Anand was still stuck in Frankfurt.

To the majority of chess players worldwide, the request was not unreasonable. Although chess players are waiting for the match to start, they want both players to come to the match fully prepared physically, technically and psychologically.

However, the organisers said they could not postpone the opening ceremony two days ago because they had contractual agreements with third parties.

  f_pg19anand.jpgViswanathan Anand

Nevertheless, the organisers said they were still open to the postponing of the first game from today to tomorrow, but this would still have to be discussed internally. Let’s see how this turns out.

In the meantime, I am priming myself up to watch the match over the Internet. There’ll be a maximum of 12 games, all playing with classical time control, and they all start at 8pm, local time here in Malaysia.

Unless there are changes to the schedule, there will be a rest day after every two days of play with an additional rest day thrown in on May 9 before the 12th game. If the score reaches 6-all, the players will break the tie with a series of faster games on May 12.

The official world chess championship website is anand-topalov.com/ but there is a host of other high profile chess websites and blogs covering the event, too. Recommended are chessdom.com, chessbase.com and Susan Polgar’s web-blog (susanpolgar.blogspot.com).

On paper, Topalov, who is presently ranked second in the world at 2805, must be considered a slight favourite over Anand, who is ranked fourth at 2787. External influences aside, one can imagine almost anything to happen in this match.

Topalov is an enterprising player who creates energy on the chessboard. He sees resources where others may well get bogged down in complications. His games are stuff to excite any onlooker.

On the other hand, Anand is more experienced in match play and his game is more sound and filled with better judgment. This shorter match of 12 games is supposed to favour the older Anand (he’s 40, five years older than Topalov) who is likelier to get tired over a longer match.

The Indian grandmaster is also believed to play better if it comes to the faster tiebreak games.

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Snippets: first impressions

Job interviewers can usually tell whether or not you are an ideal candidate for the job within the first minute. It’s called the first impression. Your personal appearance, outfit, facial expressions and body language can make or break you. To make a great first impression, walk in with confidence but not cockiness, give a firm handshake and not a limp one, introduce yourself in a pleasurable tone of voice, make eye contact, sit up straight, show your enthusiasm and take a deep breath! Always dress for success with a nice pant or skirt suit, even if the position or job is casual. Lay low on heavy cologne, perfume and makeup. And whatever you do, don’t be late!

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Girl power

Teen sensation captures the hearts and imagination of players and spectators alike at KL open.

CHINA has a lot of young and talented chess players but few have made an impact like wonder lass Hou Yifan, 16.

Yifan, who started playing chess 10 years ago and is a grandmaster in her own right, stamped her mark on Malaysian chess when she claimed the Kuala Lumpur open chess title on Monday.

She captured the hearts and imagination of both players and spectators alike with a performance rarely matched among women competitors. Though not the top seed in this event, the unassuming and ever obliging No.2 seed was clearly the favourite of many.

  f_10hou.jpgChess prodigy: China’s Hou Yifan, 16, claimed the Kuala Lumpur open chess title.

She reeled off four consecutive wins in her first four games and found herself in a neckand- neck tussle with Vietnamese player Nguyen Anh Dong who had also won the same number of wins. The two of them met in the fifth round and drew their game.

At the sixth round, Yifan and Nguyen were joined briefly at the top of the tournament standings by Thomas Luther, Marat Dzhumaev and Oliver Dimakiling. However, this joint lead proved short-lived as these four rivals drew their games in the seventh round while she won her game.

As a result, the Chinese girl found herself enjoying a sole lead of half a point at this late stage of the tournament. She increased her lead to a full point in the eighth round when her closest rivals faltered again.

By then, it was a foregone conclusion that she was going to win the tournament. Regardless of her result in the ninth and final round, nobody would be able to catch up with her. Still, a loss would certainly be out of the question. She wouldn’t want to spoil an otherwise impressive run with a final-round loss.

Her opponent, Susanto Megaranto, was faced with an even greater dilemma. How was he to approach the game? Should he bring the game to her in the final round and try for a full point (and risk losing a full point, too) or go for a peaceful draw that would suit his opponent better than him?

Yifan was prepared for a fight over the chessboard if the situation warranted but at the end, discretion proved to be the better part of valour and both players quickly agreed to split the point.

Final top standings: GM Hou Yifan 7½ points; GM Nguyen Anh Dung, Mikheil Mchedlishvili (Georgia) 7 points each; GM Susanto Megaranto (Indonesia), GM Thomas Luther (Germany), IM Dhopade Swapnil (India), GM Marat Dzhumaev (Uzbekistan), IM Dzhurabek Khamrakulov (Uzbekistan), IM Ashwin Jayaram (India) 6½ points each.

Leading the field

The best performing Malaysian in the field of 111 players was newly-minted medical doctor Nicholas Chan. Chan, who is a Fide Master, missed out on his second international master norm but only barely. Still, finishing in 16th position was a very creditable effort considering that he hadn’t played at such a level in the last five years due to his studies.

Chan’s next tilt at an IM norm is at the closed Kuala Lumpur Masters tournament now on-going at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in Bangi, Selangor. Chan and Abdul Haq Mohamad are our two representatives in this 10-play, round-robin event. This third KL open chess tournament was very well run. Playing condition was superb although the lighting in the tournament hall could have been slightly brighter.

Nevertheless, the Kuala Lumpur Chess Association and its technical director Peter Long must be commended for a job well done. It wasn’t easy to coordinate the entries and guests from all parts of the world, but the organisers pulled it off without any observable hitch. I’m looking forward to the fourth edition of the KL Open next year. This event, played at Olympic Sport Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, was sponsored by Masterskill University College of Health Sciences and the Malaysian Intellect Development Foundation.

World chess

Get set for the world chess championship between Viswanathan Anand and Veselin Topalov which starts on April 23 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Anand, who turned 40 recently, is the defending champion but he is expected to face great pressure from Topalov who is five years younger. Both are dynamic players with lots of experience at top-level chess.

With the match starting next week, readers can visit the official website at www.anandtopalov.com/ for the latest developments.

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Those street sex drugs can kill

I came across this story that appeared in Singapore’s The Straits Times recently. It was quite timely too, because I haven’t written anything about this Power 1 Walnut sex-enhancing drug in my blog for quite some time already. So here it is, the story from Singapore:

streetsexdrugssingapore.jpg

BEWARE the dodgy sex drugs that can be bought in the back lanes of red-light areas here.
The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) says that if they do not kill, they could maim or leave a man with an erection so prolonged that gangrene kicks in.

Its conclusions come from a recent study of more than 175 samples of illegal sex drugs seized during raids over a one-month period in 2008.

HSA officers made a staggering haul of more than 200 types of pills, creams and lotions marketed in back lanes as sex-enhancement ‘health’ products. HSA researchers and those from the National University of Singapore found in these drugs exceedingly high levels of the active ingredient in Viagra, ordinarily available only by a doctor’s prescription; they also found glibenclamide, a drug used to lower blood sugar levels in diabetics and not even known to improve sexual performance.

italia2.jpgThe study, the findings of which were published last December, is the first in-depth research following a slew of deaths linked to the consumption of such drugs in 2008. The 10 who died were men aged 35 to 84 whose blood pressures had plummeted.

Several others fell into comas. They may have escaped death, but they have not recovered fully either, said HSA’s enforcement division director, Ms Chan Cheng Leng. Between them, they had consumed Power 1 Walnut, Zhong Hua Niu Nian, Santi Bovine Penis Erecting Capsule, and counterfeit Cialis – like Viagra, also a prescription drug. Following the deaths, HSA stepped up its number of raids, from about two a year to 80 that year and last year.

About 1.4 million units of such drugs, amounting to $3.5 million in street value, were seized; the dragnet also snared 50 individuals caught peddling the drugs. Three have been convicted this year.

Between February and March 2008, HSA officers descended on the back lanes of two red-light areas, Desker Road and Petain Road. There, apart from the drugs that had killed the men, they found other products bearing names like Africa Black Ant and Real Man.

They also seized counterfeit versions of approved prescription sex drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra. Their price tags would have raised a red flag: The real drugs cost about $20 a pill, but these imitations were going for $2; other ‘non-branded’ items cost as little as $1.

The study noted that many of the drugs were being hawked as herbal supplements or ‘natural’ alternatives. Yes, some may have contained herbs, but they also contained other unknown ingredients. Of the 175 types of illegal drugs sampled, 134 were tainted. And of the 134, eight in 10 were found to contain sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, most in far bigger doses than was safe. Doctors will not usually prescribe more than 100mg of sildenafil a day; 65 of the drug samples were found to contain more than this in a single dose.

The study said the generous dash of sildenafil could have come from its being easily available and cheap, and dishonest manufacturers thinking that more of it made the drug work better. Researchers behind the study also believe manufacturing error could have led to glibenclamide being added.

Other signs of the dubious quality of these drugs were the absence of manufacturing dates and thin information on dosage, possible side effects and possible interactions with other drugs. Only some advised consumers to consult a doctor before use; some even recommended drinking copious amounts of water if side effects arose. Manufacturers can be held accountable if consumers come to any harm, but this is only if they can be found: The addresses of these drug factories often do not exist.

Since the deaths in 2008, the number of adverse drug reports following the use of illegal sex drugs has gone down from a high of 240 to 77 last year; four reports came in the first two months this year. HSA’s Ms Chan said: ‘I hear from people that as long as you don’t take the Power 1 Walnut, you’re safe. Our message is, ‘It’s not just Power 1 Walnut, you should not tempt fate’. What you see may not be what you are going to get.’

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