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Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
Hmm.
At the request of many I decided to not manipulate the poll. Luckily, the person for whom I am cheering - Hansen - was in first anyway.
Until someone who supports Shiyam set up an AUTOMATED VOTING SYSTEM.
There is no way that someone could POSSIBLY receive 28 votes in a three-minute span at 3 in the morning. It's just not possible. From where is this sudden cache of voters? He received a bunch of votes at the beginning which brought him to about 200. Today he has received more than 300. He's been receiving votes at a fairly CONSTANT rate for the past few minutes. He's received another 16 in the time it took me to type this post.
AUTOMATED VOTING. Only possibility.
everytime it hurts, it hurts just like the first (and then you cry till there's no more tears)
At the request of many fools I decided to not manipulate the poll. Luckily, the person for whom I am cheering - Hansen - was in first anyway.
Until someone who supports Shiyam set up an AUTOMATED VOTING SYSTEM.
There is no way that someone could POSSIBLY receive 28 votes in a three-minute span at 3 in the morning. It's just not possible. From where is this sudden cache of voters? He received a bunch of votes at the beginning which brought him to about 200. Today he has received more than 300. He's been receiving votes at a fairly CONSTANT rate for the past few minutes. He's received another 16 in the time it took me to type this post.
AUTOMATED VOTING. Only possibility.
Maybe it's the same robots the political parties use to call radio talk shows and demonstrate, by waving picket signs and yelling, just to get approval from people like me.
I notice that out of twenty entries there is not a single nominee from Atlantic Canada. As consolation, I see the West gets at least one entrant...
Yes, but just one. Apparently merely qualifying for the Women's Olympiad is a greater accomplishment than winning the Grand Pacific Open, winning the Keres Memorial (ahead of two IMs) and slaying a slew of titled players in Philly. Or finishing top ten at the World Youths. Or becoming the youngest ever BC Junior Champion.
It's also peculiar that a non-citizen who represents another federation and lives out east qualifies, but a non-citizen who represents another federation and lives out west does not. Even though the latter won a tournament with Ivanchuk, Carlsen and Radjabov in it.
I was also disappointed (but not surprised) by the fact that not a single chess journalist from Alberta was chosen, though they have undoubtedly the best chess infrastructure in the country, which includes a (bi-?)monthly newsletter, a website replete with articles and a newsgroup with mind-bogglingly quick tournament updates.
everytime it hurts, it hurts just like the first (and then you cry till there's no more tears)
Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
This online poll is a fan vote. Currently there are about ten times as many Canadian members on the world site chess.com as there are serious tournament players who have current CFC membership. At mid-summer they had about 12,000 but have grown by another third since then.
Chess has really taken off in popularity, partially from the successful kids program but also because the huge "baby boom" demographic of the post-war years is beginning to retire. Because chess helps prevent Alzheimer's, it automatically attracts new elder players. But obviously the tournament aspect of the game is not their major interest: they just want to play. The 18,992 Canadians is 5.04% of the chess.com membership, 4th highest behind U.S., U.K. and India. Avg rating (online) is low: 1304.
This online poll is a fan vote. Currently there are about ten times as many Canadian members on the world site chess.com as there are serious tournament players who have current CFC membership. At mid-summer they had about 12,000 but have grown by another third since then.
Chess has really taken off in popularity, partially from the successful kids program but also because the huge "baby boom" demographic of the post-war years is beginning to retire. Because chess helps prevent Alzheimer's, it automatically attracts new elder players. But obviously the tournament aspect of the game is not their major interest: they just want to play. The 18,992 Canadians is 5.04% of the chess.com membership, 4th highest behind U.S., U.K. and India. Avg rating (online) is low: 1304.
That is because these sites cater to the 'average' chess player. The CFC only caters to higher rated players. When you focus on the minority, the majority will just go elsewhere. Considering that i had no idea that this site even existed, can you imagine how many people play chess online in Canada when you add the other main sites?
Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
I see you are badly in need of an ethics course. You are an admitted cheat on this poll but you object to others cheating the same way you did. Or perhaps what bothers you is someone is better at cheating then you are ? Here's a heads up it's still cheating there are no degrees of cheating to debate here and you were the first person to advocate cheating on the poll.
I followed the poll at one point it was Thavandiran 190 Hansen 160. The next time I looked it was Thavandiran 210 Hansen 500 ( all figures rough ). Then you claimed no one had manipulated the polls. Perhaps used car sales, politics, or preaching is a career beckoning for you. It's a ridiculous sales pitch but something about you makes you think you can snow people on silly premises.
Last edited by Duncan Smith; Monday, 8th December, 2008, 12:39 AM.
I see you are badly in need of an ethics course. You are an admitted cheat on this poll but you object to others cheating the same way you did. Or perhaps what bothers you is someone is better at cheating then you are ? Here's a heads up it's still cheating there are no degrees of cheating to debate here and you were the first person to advocate cheating on the poll.
I followed the poll at one point it was Thavandiran 190 Hansen 160. The next time I looked it was Thavandiran 210 Hansen 500 ( all figures rough ). Then you claimed no one had manipulated the polls. Perhaps used car sales, politics, or preaching is a career beckoning for you. It's a ridiculous sales pitch but something about you makes you think you can snow people on silly premises.
Your figures are not rough, but incorrect and at times misleading. Here is an accurate rendition of the relevant events:
1. Panjwani started off with 50 of the first 60 or so votes to take a quick lead.
2. I voted for Hansen for the first and only time. I suggested moving to an email vote because of the incredible ease with which one can manipulate a Pollhost poll. I claimed that I would manipulate the poll if this were not done.
3. Hansen and Shiyam both received a stream of votes making them and Panjwani the clear leaders.
4. Hansen and Shiyam kept receiving masses of votes until they both had about 150 and distanced themselves from Panjwani.
5. Shiyam then received about 100 votes and held a 250-150 lead over Hansen.
6. I announced that I would not manipulate the poll in any way. I considered this a peace offering - so to speak - to Cohen, to show that I really did want the poll to be fair. I again urged him to move to an email vote. I also stated that I had been made aware of plans to manipulate the poll. Although I did not state it at the time, I was referring to manipulation that would benefit Shiyam. As far as I know, no one other than Micah Hughey and I have rallied on behalf of Hansen, and Micah has informed me that he does not know how to manipulate Pollhost polls.
7. Hansen then received about 250 votes to take a 400-250 lead.
8. You accused me of manipulating the poll. I denied this unfounded claim.
9. Shiyam received about 400 votes from what appeared to be a voting script to take a 650-400 lead. As I stated before, at one point I measured his votes in a three-minute span. He received 28. This was at 3AM Shiyam's time.
10. For the first time since casting my initial (and only) vote, I attempted to affect the poll. Up until this point, I had not even mentioned the poll to chess players with whom I speak on a daily basis and who read ChessTalk. I rallied support over the Internet and got 400 people to vote for Hansen. None of them play chess, but Cohen has not just condoned but urged tapping into such a demographic. After restoring the lead that Hansen had before Shiyam received 400 very suspect votes, I immediately ceased rallying votes. Hansen had an 800-650 lead.
11. Hansen now has an 850-700 lead.
I will number my queries, which will make your irrelevant rhetoric more blatant when you inevitably reply without addressing the majority of my questions.
1. What exactly have I done that is "unethical"?
2. Have you had heated disputes with me for more than seven years? Have I made innumerable offensive comments to you during this time? If so, is it not likely that your judgment of whether or not I have behaved unethically is clouded?
3. You insist that Hansen receiving 250 nearly consecutive votes was the result of manipulation but have made no such claim regarding Shiyam's prior 100 nearly consecutive votes or Panjwani's 50 nearly consecutive votes. Did you arbitrarily draw the line between what constitutes manipulation and normalcy? Are you assessing based on previous observations of manipulated and non-manipulated Pollhost polls or is your evaluation without reference?
4. If you think I am cheating and I want Hansen to win, which he is poised to do, why would you say that someone else is better at cheating than I am? Is it because you, a computer programmer who has publicly endorsed Shiyam, were able to cheat more effeciently than I by writing a script? Your history of making argumentative posts on ChessTalk well past midnight has been noted countless times and is a frequent point of attack for those with whom you argue, so the timing of your action would certainly have precedent. It is also peculiar that the script was enacted the day after you definitively claimed that I manipulated the poll to put Hansen in the lead.
everytime it hurts, it hurts just like the first (and then you cry till there's no more tears)
Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
PRESS RELEASE
2008.12.08
2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year - Mark Bluvshtein, Toronto, ON
Mark Bluvshtein is the 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year in a poll of Canadian chess journalists. The Toronto, Ontario grandmaster is a 3rd year student in the Faculty of Science and Engineering, York University. Mark's accomplishments for 2008 include winning a Grandmaster tournament in Hungary; Top Canadian at international tournaments in Edmonton and Montreal; and representing Canada on Board 1 at the Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany.
Fans also voted for their favourite player, resulting in one ballot being cast according to the results. The winner of the fan voting is Shiyam Thavandiran of Toronto, Ontario. Shiyam's accomplishments for 2008 include winning the Canadian Under-16 Chess Championship with a perfect score; 1st place in the Toronto Labour Day Open Chess Tournament; 1st place in the Toronto Thanksgiving Open Chess Tournament including a win over a grandmaster; and 1st place in the UMBRA Olympiad Fundraiser Blitz Tournament.
The purpose of this 6th annual poll of Canadian Chess Journalists is to recognize the achievements of a Canadian chess player in 2008; and to gain some publicity for Canadian chess. A permanent plaque, with the names of all of the past winners, is on display at the offices of The Chess Federation of Canada in Ottawa.
Each journalist had up to 3 votes:
1st place vote - 5 points
2nd place vote - 3 points
3rd place vote - 1 point
It was not necessary to vote for 2nd or 3rd place. Responses were received from 9/11 invited journalists. Again this year was the results of fan voting counting as one ballot.
Here are the results of the fan voting:
Shiyam Thavandiran (47%) 914
Eric Hansen (44%) 862
Raja Panjwani (3%) 62
Kelly Wang (1%) 24
Mark Bluvshtein (1%) 19
Yuanling Yuan (1%) 11
Dina Kagramanov (1%) 10
Kevin Spraggett (0%) 9
Irina Barron (0%) 8
Pascal Charbonneau (0%) 7
Christopher Knox (0%) 7
Thomas Roussel-Roozmon (0%) 7
Igor Zugic (0%) 7
Anton Kovalyov (0%) 5
Nikolay Noritsyn (0%) 5
Jocelyn Coté (0%) 2
Wayne Hynes (0%) 2
Yelizaveta Orlova (0%) 2
Leonid Gerzhoy (0%) 1
Artem Samsonkin (0%) 1
1,965 votes total
Therefore, a ballot is cast as follows: 1st place, 5 points, Shiyam Thavandiran; 2nd place, 3 points, Eric Hansen; 3rd place, 1 point, Raja Panjwani.
Results of voting from all ballots (fans plus Canadian chess journalists):
Mark Bluvshtein (Toronto, ON) 19
Eric Hansen (Calgary, AB) 18
Yuanling Yuan (Toronto, ON) 8
Shiyam Thavandiran (Toronto, ON) 6
Wayne Hynes (Oshawa, ON) 5
Anton Kovalyov (Verdun, QC) 5
Thomas Roussel-Roozmon (Montreal, QC) 5
Igor Zugic (Toronto, ON) 5
Jocelyn Coté (Charlesbourg, QC) 3
Raja Panjwani (Kitchener, ON) 1
Kevin Spraggett (Portugal) 1
Bluvshtein, Mark (Toronto, ON) - won a Grandmaster tournament in Hungary; Top Canadian at international tournaments in Edmonton and Montreal; and represented Canada on Board 1 at the Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany, scoring 5/9.
Charbonneau, Pascal (New York, USA) - 2nd place, Marshall Chess Club Championship, New York, USA (February); Olympiad (Board 2) 6/9.
Coté, Jocelyn (Charlesbourg, QC) - Canadian Correspondence Champion (tied).
Gerzhoy, Leonid (Toronto, ON) - Top Canadian, 3rd Edmonton International; =2nd 7/9 Jessie Gilbert Celebration Int Coulsdon (ENG); =1st Toronto Thanksgiving Open.
Hansen, Eric (Calgary, AB) - World Open 5/9 International Master Norm; World Youth Championship Under-16 =2nd 8/11. Qualified FIDE Master title by 2300+ rating. Canadian Grade 10 Champion; won Alberta Closed, Open and Under-16 Championships.
Hynes, Wayne (Oshawa, ON) - Canadian Correspondence Champion (tied)(3rd year in a row).
Kagramanov, Dina (Richmond Hill, ON) - Women's Olympiad (Board 3) 5.5/9.
Knox, Christopher (Richmond Hill, ON) - Grade 5 Champion (5th year in a row winning National Scholastic Championship for his grade!).
Kovalyov, Anton (Verdun, QC) - =5th/204, XXI Open Internacional de Ajedrez Villa de Benidorm, Spain, 3rd and final Grandmaster Norm; =2nd Top Canadian at Canadian Open Championship.
Lee, Jonah (Richmond, BC) - British Columbia Grade 2 and Under-8 Champion; World Youth Championship Under-8 =6th 7.5/11.
Noritsyn, Nikolay (Richmond Hill, Ontario) - 9/9 1st 2008 Toronto Closed Championship. Olympiad (Alternate) 6/8.
Orlova, Yelizaveta (Toronto, ON) - Canadian Junior Girl Champion; World Youth Championship Under-14 Girls =9th 7/11. Canadian Girls Under-14 Champion (5/5), Ontario Girls Under-16 Champion.
Panjwani, Raja (Kitchener, ON) - 9th North American Invitational, Chicago (USA), =4th; =5th, 5/9 Top Canadian, 3rd Edmonton International (Aug), International Master Norm.
Roussel-Roozmon, Thomas (Montreal, QC) - 5/9, =3rd, 6th International Nancy Festival, France; 8/13; =1st Grandmaster tournament, Budapest, Hungary; Victor Ciocaltea Memorial, Bucharest, Romania 6/11 =4th; Olympiad (Board 4) 6/8.
Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
Who are the jounalists who voted? They should be named.
Pascal Charbonneau scored the top performance rating on the mens team at the Olympiad, 2500, and he didn't make the final placings.
Kevin Spraggett is simply the best player this country has produced in at least the last 50 years and plays in events, for which the majority of those who collected more votes than he did, probably don't even qualify. Not only that but he normally places quite high. The Jounalists gave him one lousy vote!
Is this a serious vote by the journalists or a popularity contest?
Re: Vote for 2008 Canadian Chess Player of the Year!
Hi Gary:
Canada's top players have received the award over the years, when they happen to have excelled:
Past winners:
2008 Mark Bluvshtein
2007 Nikolay Noritsyn
2006 Kevin Spraggett
2005 Mark Bluvshtein
2004 Mark Bluvshtein
2003 Pascal Charbonneau
( from David Cohen's current press release )
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