Money makes the (chess) world go around
In the German chess journal Schach our President Frank Hoffmeister published recently an article about the difficulties of world champions and their challengers to find sponsors for their matches. With the kind authorisation of the publisher, our member Raj Tischbierek, please find attached his contribution (in German).
Frei Schach! Free Chess!
Abstract and text (in German) proposed by Bernd-Peter Lange
Abstract
The tension between the game of chess as strictly regulated by rules and the idea of freedom can be traced in three radical examples separated by media and different periods of the twentieth century.
The first emphatic employment of the concept of freedom is in the title of a chess journal issued by the Communist opposition of the central German working-class chess organization at the end of the Weimar Republic.
In the journal Frei Schach! the radical subsection of "Red Sports Unity” asserts its claim for supremacy, demanding revolutionary goals in the class struggle.
The accession of Germany and the Soviet Union to FIDE
Frank Hoffmeister, President of the CH&LS Association, retraced the history of German and USSR membership of FIDE.
Two countries with a tumultuous history in the 20th century, a tumult that is reflected in their relations with FIDE.
Here is an extract from the presentation text for the General Meeting on 13 and 14 September 2024.
Read more … The accession of Germany and the Soviet Union to FIDE
Nimzowitsch's handwritten letter
This General Meeting is also an opportunity for our members to present documents from their collections. Claes Løfgren, for example, presented a remarkable handwritten letter from Aaron Nimzowitsch and put it into context. As you can see, part of the document is missing, and Claes explained to me that it is likely that Nimzowitsch's autograph was cut out before the letter was acquired.
Here is an extract (corrected - the game played is Nimzowitsch's) from the presentation text for the General Meeting on 13 and 14 September 2024.
The pre-war Olympiads
The second lecture of the CH&LS General Meeting was given by Matthias Johansson on the subject of the Chess Olympiads before the Second World War. As we can see, these Olympiads were strongly influenced by the political events of this troubled period in history.
Here is an extract from the presentation text for the General Meeting on 13 and 14 September 2024.
The creation of FIDE in Paris in 1924
Here is the support for the 1st conference given in Budapest as part of the CH&LS General Assembly.
Dominique Thimognier presents an in-depth study of the creation of FIDE in 1924.
Dominique focuses in particular on the various protagonists of this creation, and he has uncovered some previously unpublished documents.
This work complements my series of articles on this website about events in Paris in 1924.
Here is an extract from the presentation text for the General Meeting on 13 and 14 September 2024.
The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Epilogue (4/4)
by Jean Oliver Leconte
Fourth and last article dedicated to the 1st Chess Olympiad and the creation of the FI(D)E.
Part one: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The first steps (1/4)
Part two: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Getting organized (2/4)
Part three: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The Chess Tournament (3/4)
To begin with, here is a photo of the participants in the first Chess Olympiad, which appeared in the Belgian magazine L'Échiquier in 1925.
-
L'Échiquier -
L'Échiquier
Read more … The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Epilogue (4/4)
The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The Chess Tournament (3/4)
by Jean Oliver Leconte
Third part of the articles dedicated to the 1st Chess Olympiad and the creation of the FI(D)E.
Part one: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The first steps (1/4)
Part two: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Getting organized (2/4)
I would particularly like to thank Mr Guy Gignac, who sent me an exceptional document. It is the programme for the "International Amateur Chess Tournament", photos of which you have on the left and below.
Read more … The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The Chess Tournament (3/4)
The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Getting organized (2/4)
by Jean Oliver Leconte
Second part of the articles devoted to the 1st Chess Olympiad and the creation of the FI(D)E.
Part one: The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The first steps (1/4)
While the organisation of the grand tournament starts moving forward, the newspaper le Figaro ironises.
Chess and the Olympic Games
There will even be a chess tournament during the Olympic Games!
It is being organised under the patronage of Mr Fernand Gavarry, Minister Plenipotentiary, Commander of the Legion of Honour, and will take place from 12 to 20 July in the salons of a grand hotel in the Étoile district.
Most of the major chess federations will be taking part.
After the Muscle Festival, it will be a small gala for the Brain.
Read more … The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - Getting organized (2/4)
The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The first steps (1/4)
by Jean Oliver Leconte
The year 2024 corresponds to the centenary of the creation of FIDE - Fédération Internationale Des Échecs. More precisely, it was in Paris on 20 July 1924 that FIDE was created (originally called FIE - The current acronym FIDE would be adopted at the 2nd FIDE Congress in Zurich, Switzerland in 1925, but the meaning did not vary: Fédération Internationale Des Échecs).
I propose to retrace this creation of FIDE, as well as the first Chess Olympiad via several articles. These two events are closely linked. Moreover, as we shall see, the idea of an International Chess Federation came after the launch of the organization of the international chess tournament alongside the Olympic Games.
This first part is devoted to the beginnings of the first Chess Olympiad.
To date, the FFE has said very little about this FIDE centenary event. You can find an article on its website here. But these events seem to me to be very meager (reconstruction of the act of signing the creation of FIDE and giant simultaneous).
There is no mention in these events, for example, of Pierre Vincent, the driving force behind the creation of FIDE. His grave is in the Montmartre cemetery.
Read more … The 1st Chess Olympiad and creation of the FI(D)E - The first steps (1/4)