Hide Article Text (OCR)
THE STARS AND STRIPES M Page 9• .*movesobertLONDON (AP) — Reigning world chess champion Garry Kasparov won the right to make the first move in his championship match against Nigel Short at a ceremony Friday that featured Russian dolls, giant chess knights and out-of-tune trumpets.“The drawing of the colors” for The Times World Chess Championship was the climax of a champagne lunch for 150 invited guests at a fashionable restaurant.Even the hors d’oeuvres were black and white, laid out in the pattern of a chess board. Some chess experts made chess moves with their edible squares before popping them into their mouths.A two-stage draw was held to determine who would play with the white pieces and who with the black when the 24-. game match opens Tuesday at London’s Savoy Theater under the auspices of the newly formed Professional Chess Association.It is generally believed that the player with the white pieces has a significant advantage in a chess game played at this level of competition,” noted New York attorney Rlt;E. Rice, the association’s commissioner.The first draw was to determine which player wouldmake the final draw for the colors.» • ■ rAs world champion, Kasparov, of Moscow, was given the choice between two identical giant red Russian dolls, carried in on a silver tray to a loud, somewhat discordant fan-fare by Royal Air Force trumpeters.One doll held a smaller doll inside with a chricaturc of Kasparov, the other contained Short’s caricature.This sounds like you,’’ Kasparov quipped to his British challenger as he shook one doll.Indeed, it contained the Short doll, giving Short the right to choose the color.To another ragged trumpet fanfare, waiters wheeled in two trolleys, each containing a giant chess knight covered by a red velvet cloth.Short chose one that turned out to be dark red —not black, but the best the organizers could manage.Kasparov pulled off the other cloth, revealing a creamy, greenish knight, which gave him the right to make the first move.• * »Kasparov said the match signified a victory for the Professional Chess Association, which he and Short formed in February when they refused to play their title match for the long-dominant World Chess Federation. They said the federation did not consult them as required over arrangements for the match.
Newspaper Details
European Stars and Stripes
Darmstadt, Hesse, DE
Sun, Sep 05, 1993
Page 45
Full Page
Clipped by
Los A.
CA, USA 29 Nov 2022
Other Publications Near Darmstadt, Hesse
Allgemeine Kirchen Zeitung
European Stars and Stripes
