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[QUOTE=Nigel Hanrahan;2222]It turns out that Socko's appeal will stand - despite the fact that the game ended with K & N only for both players on the board!
Bindi - It was simply a strict application of the rules. It is POSSIBLE that a mating position could be reached (Black K at h8, Black N at h7, White K at f7 and White N at g6 delivering checkmate), [note] in what for all intents and purposes would be a HelpMate, with only K&N for both players on the board. The key here is that mate does not have to be forced, but rather that it must be possible as noted above. That's the rule.
One would think that if the players played on for a number of moves with K&N on both sides, the player in the most time trouble could claim that his/her opponent was not trying to win by normal means, and argue for a draw on those grounds. This is what the Romanian player claimed she did. Problem is, this doesn't apply in Armaggedon games.
This rule that was used also seems to violate the spirit of good sportsmanship in chess; natural justice would suggest that the game end in a draw. This is what bothers most of us about the decision, I think.
The Swiss pairing rules that are used in most tournaments are good for establishing a clear winner in as few rounds as possible. Those pairing rules aren't good for much else. What exists with Armaggedon games in knock out tournaments is just a quick method for determining a clear winner. It's not good for much else.
I just hope nothing like this happens in the final round.
[note] a mating position can be constructed with K&B on both sides PROVIDED the bishops are of opposite colours. It is impossible to construct a mating position with K&B on both sides when the bishops are the same colour.]
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
It's 1988 all over again. At the World Chess Festival at Saint John in early 1988, Florencio Campomanes, "the Philippines' first Chess Master" (in-) famously was allowed to play in the World Amateur Championship as an unrated. In one of his games, he had NPP vs N and was trying to win. His flag fell and he said "Draw", but the arbiter, Henry Chiu, ruled a win for the opponent. Although I was not an arbiter at the World Amateur (doing the Candidates' Matches instead), I was called in with the agreement of all parties--and confirmed Henry's ruling. That is exactly what the Appeals Committee ruled in 2008 in stating that Socko won.
I thought that FIDE had amended that rule in the interim, but maybe the amendment was removed later!
There should be a rule, even if just a tournament rule, which allows obvious draws to be claimed. Most Blitz rules assume that an arbiter won't be watching the game, but for Armageddon playoffs in a World Championship they must have had several arbiters for the task. It's painfully clear with N vs. N, but should also be the case with R vs R (after a certain number of moves is made, to make sure it isn't a study-like position). You don't really want the spectre of blitzing somebody in a dead drawn position to run them out of time in a World Championship. For an Armageddon game, it should not even be required to make a claim. Of course Black is going to claim a dead draw (or a position that cannot reasonably be lost, say N vs R, see rule 10.2) at the first opportunity.
There are also enough resources at a World Championship to enforce the 50-move rules.
I suppose that a complicating factor is that the rules of Blitz allow a game to be won by claiming that the opponent made an illegal move. That is the realistic reason for playing on N vs N. The opponent isn't going to sui-mate, but she might accidentally make an illegal move! Again, not good advertising for a World Championship.
In 1988 I was the Chief Arbiter at the FIDE World Active (Action, Rapid) Championship in Mazatlan, 10 months after Saint John. It was a long Swiss, with 8 (?) players qualifying for elimination matches. As players reached the level that would probably be needed for qualification (I think it was +4), they just started taking quick draws against each other!
In my Arbiter's report (to Campomanes!), I stated that Swisses were good to find a winner, so if you had 8 separate Swiss events (around the world perhaps) with the winner of each advancing, you'd avoid the draw problem. I recommended elimination matches with 1 vs 64, 63 vs 2 and so on. You will remember that FIDE continued to hold big Swisses (izt's for example) with multiple qualifiers but eventually shifted to elimination. And that at first they did the elimination pairings randomly--but eventually adopted this seeded method.
in an Armageddon game, only one side would ever want to claim a draw. So, if you think the rules should allow an 'obvious' draw claim you are shifting the balance of power to Black. Not to mention forcing an arbiter to rule that Black does /does not win the match because the draw is / is not 'obvious' with all the problems that that entails. (Is R vs B with the K in the right corner an 'obvious draw? etc...)
Is as much Armageddon games are only about forcing a decisive conclusion to a match, not about 'quality' chess or even 'sporting' chess, why are you even concerned about the appearance of players playing on in N vs N? It's already not reasonable chess. Tinkering with the rules so as to allow draw claims for N vs N doesn't make it more reasonable.
Russian Svetlana Matveeva has defeated 2006 World Champion Yuhua Xu, so there will definitely be a new Women's World Champion in Nalchik.
The Polish player that won the somewhat controversial K&N vs. K&N ending, Monika Socko, has been defeated in the second round by Hoang Thanh Trang of Hungary. The Hungarian player won with K,R&p versus K&R. One good endgame lesson deserves another one that is 500 years old, eh? :D Hoang Thanh Trang will face Indian Koneru Humpy in the next round, however. The Hungarian will need more than good endgame technique to advance to the fourth round.
Five of the 16 pairings will require a playoff tomorrow, including the lone American remaining, Katerine Rohonyan, who sacked a bishop in an opposite-colored bishop and pawn ending for the win against Gaponenko that forced the playoff. Whoever wins the playoff will face a rested Alexandra Kosteniuk in Round 3.
There will be no more byes due to players not having shown up from the opening ceremony.
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
It's all over but the shouting and Kosteniuk looks to be the next Women's World Champion. Kosteniuk is up 1.5 - 0.5 in the 4-game match and has a winning endgame in the 3rd game, with the extra pawn, on the 7th rank, in a rook and pawn ending.
Edited to add: Hou Yifan carries out a miracle save and prolongs the match!
Last edited by Nigel Hanrahan; Tuesday, 16th September, 2008, 11:55 AM.
Reason: typos and a miracle save by Hou Yifan
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
It's all over but the shouting and Kosteniuk looks to be the next Women's World Champion. Kosteniuk is up 1.5 - 0.5 in the 4-game match and has a winning endgame in the 3rd game, with the extra pawn, on the 7th rank, in a rook and pawn ending.
With a draw in the 4th game, Alexandra Kosteniuk becomes WCh
Kosteniuk is the new Women's World Champion with a draw in the fourth game of her match against Yifan Hou. She is the first Russian to win the title since Elisabeth Bykova, who was Champion from 1953-56 and again in 1958-62.
Dogs will bark, but the caravan of chess moves on.
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