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From: ditzel@ssc-vax.UUCP (Charles L Ditzel)
Newsgroups: net.chess
Subject: Re: more kasparov-korchnoi
Message-ID: <412@ssc-vax.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 14-Aug-83 19:22:20 EDT
Article-I.D.: ssc-vax.412
Posted: Sun Aug 14 19:22:20 1983
Date-Received: Tue, 16-Aug-83 12:20:23 EDT
Organization: Boeing Aerospace, Seattle
Lines: 63

Ahh, it is not all that one sided. There is little doubt that if Gary
Kasparov played in Pasadena he would not be facing an admiring audience.

Though rumors abound about Kasparov's immenent defection one wonder's
as to the truth. I remember back in 1972 after Fischer's victory over
Boris Spasski everyone claimed that Spasski was about to defect. The
stories went on for years. Spasski did not defect though he took up
residence in France after he married a French woman. Last I heard Spasski
(as of informant 35 June 30 '82) Spasski not only has not defected but
continues to play chess for the Soviets. So much for long lived rumors.
Obviously love was confused for politics in this case.

Not to bring 1972 back into the picture. But....the Soviets have not
been the only ones to inject politics and crude behavior into chess.
I won't go on and on and on about Bobby Fischer's actions in 1972 during
his match with Spasski (or Petrosian for that matter) or his subsequent
default of his title in 1976  to Anatoly Karpov. Remember that's how
Karpov became world champion - Fischer refused to play him.  It's true
that the soviets regularly do unseemly things in the chess world but
they are not the only ones.

Another couple of points - Pasadena was definitely Korchnoi's preference.
No were else would he have such an impartial atmosphere. Kasparov if indeed
he wanted to defect need not have been in the United States to do so...
Korchnoi defected while playing in a tournament in Holland. Pasadena must
have been the Soviets last choice for a number of obvious reasons.  If any
of Fischer's semi-final matches (against Soviet players) had been scheduled
for say Moscow you know he wouldn't have stood for it.  

It is a pity that a certain level-headedness had not prevailed early in the
site selection. In all of Fischer's negotiations, both he and
the Soviet's had definite ideas in mind about where they wanted to play
and eventually some compromise was arrived at. The Soviet players for example
hated the notion of playing in Yugoslavia(!) because Yugoslav chess fans
were wild over Fischer. Whats more Fischer reportedly did not originally
want to play in Iceland because he perceived it as a primitive place.
Eventually when someone at the last moment offered a larger prize to play
in Iceland Fischer played in Iceland.

Like I said I don't think Pasadena is neutral territory in a match between
a Soviet defector and Soviet representative. Now maybe Ken from Toronto has
a different picture of the world. It has been mentioned that Rotterdam was
also a choice....hmmm....somehow I view Rotterdam as slightly more neutral
in a "cold war" sense then I do Pasadena.

My own *opinion* (which is all of the above also) is that someone really
screwed up the initial site selection and when the Soviets kept telling them
that they were not going to send representatives to play ...the people that
originally screwed up either didn't believe them or did not care. At this point
there really is a major schism in world chess (which is really too bad).
Whether people like it or not a certain amount of politics enters the sports
and chess arenas.This is a reality.  Things are real mess now because of
an absence of compromise. Clearly the Soviets do not have Victor Korchnoi's
best interests at heart and vice versa. Neither player should be forced to
play in areas that are clearly hostile to them. The question now is how to
resolve all the thorny issues.  Korchnoi logically should be awarded a 
forfeit win. Practically, this will be very bad for international chess.
This unfortunate delimma could have all been avoided fairly easily if
the FIDE bureaucracy had chosen a slightly more tactful road.

It is easy to make chauvinistic accusations about what dirty players the
Soviets are but I think it would be better to make them at more appropriate
moments (and there are plenty of them).