Tweet
The Zonal Wars;
Another point of interest at the FIDE Congress this year was India’s request for zonehood, which reopened the question of zonal restructuring. Naturally Canada gets jumpy whenever this question comes up because we are by far the weakest single country zone and some would have us lumped in with other Federations.
The question of our zonal origins is one which I have been exploring since September. The current concensus is that John Prentice was one of the architects as late as the early 60s. My colleague Mikko Markkula of Finland is quite a FIDE historian and he is also looking for me. In any case the FIDE handbook discusses some predictable criteria for new zonal applications, but nothing for removals. Eventually this recurring question becomes annoying.
Considerable time was spent preparing for this battle before boarding any planes. The last piece of the puzzle was confirmed soon after arriving at the Congress – our Continent opposes any radical change to its zonal structure. That gave me a little traction for occasional counterattacks:
I was leaving the dinner hall on arrival day when I saw Deputy President Makropuolous (Makro) and Boris Kutin. Makro extends his hand.
“Ahh, the killer without a licence, 007. How are you Mr. Bond? So you are here to save the Canadian Zone?”
“Yes I am! Actually we are proposing a second Canadian Zone for east and west.”
Kutin chimes in as he reaches for a butter knife “Please, I’m eating.” We laugh.
“Enjoy your meal Gentlemen.”
Sipping his coffee, Bond turned to leave, when his left hand darted across Kutin’s throat, choking the European Continental President instantly with his own shirt collar. Boris slumped in his chair. “He’ll be fine Makro. C’mon- he went for the knife. So we’re ok with Zone 2.2 right? ” The Deputy President nodded sheepishly as the Canadian walked out. Women’s World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk looked on, a knowing smile ....
Ok maybe I made up that last part.
You get the idea. Ultimately it was our Continental position which prevailed and the highly anticipated report on zonal restructuring was effectively tabled. Given the FIDE election on the horizon in 2010 we won’t return to the issue sooner than 2 years from now. As I told the Governors, I hope this serves as a wake up call for Canada and that we embrace the challenge of raising our profile within FIDE.
Another point of interest at the FIDE Congress this year was India’s request for zonehood, which reopened the question of zonal restructuring. Naturally Canada gets jumpy whenever this question comes up because we are by far the weakest single country zone and some would have us lumped in with other Federations.
The question of our zonal origins is one which I have been exploring since September. The current concensus is that John Prentice was one of the architects as late as the early 60s. My colleague Mikko Markkula of Finland is quite a FIDE historian and he is also looking for me. In any case the FIDE handbook discusses some predictable criteria for new zonal applications, but nothing for removals. Eventually this recurring question becomes annoying.
Considerable time was spent preparing for this battle before boarding any planes. The last piece of the puzzle was confirmed soon after arriving at the Congress – our Continent opposes any radical change to its zonal structure. That gave me a little traction for occasional counterattacks:
I was leaving the dinner hall on arrival day when I saw Deputy President Makropuolous (Makro) and Boris Kutin. Makro extends his hand.
“Ahh, the killer without a licence, 007. How are you Mr. Bond? So you are here to save the Canadian Zone?”
“Yes I am! Actually we are proposing a second Canadian Zone for east and west.”
Kutin chimes in as he reaches for a butter knife “Please, I’m eating.” We laugh.
“Enjoy your meal Gentlemen.”
Sipping his coffee, Bond turned to leave, when his left hand darted across Kutin’s throat, choking the European Continental President instantly with his own shirt collar. Boris slumped in his chair. “He’ll be fine Makro. C’mon- he went for the knife. So we’re ok with Zone 2.2 right? ” The Deputy President nodded sheepishly as the Canadian walked out. Women’s World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk looked on, a knowing smile ....
Ok maybe I made up that last part.
You get the idea. Ultimately it was our Continental position which prevailed and the highly anticipated report on zonal restructuring was effectively tabled. Given the FIDE election on the horizon in 2010 we won’t return to the issue sooner than 2 years from now. As I told the Governors, I hope this serves as a wake up call for Canada and that we embrace the challenge of raising our profile within FIDE.
Comment