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Strange Chess & Chess Players

Spain seems an odd place to go.

They are well known for their Islamophobia; so much that allegedly nothing happened in Spanish history from about AD 700 to AD 1492.

I think there are more complexities to this story than meets the eye.
 
Kondoru said:
They are well known for their Islamophobia; so much that allegedly nothing happened in Spanish history from about AD 700 to AD 1492.
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I'm sure it's there but students I've had go there haven't had any problems.
 
Treating the other players as pawns.

It was a bold gambit by the 25-year-old Kenyan chess player to disguise himself as a woman to compete in his country's female open chess tournament.

Dressed head to toe in a burka and wearing spectacles, Stanley Omondi had registered himself as Millicent Awour. But Omondi's daring move was exposed as the organisers got suspicious by the unknown player's success.

In his defence, he later wrote in an apologetic letter seen by the BBC that he had "financial needs". He also said that he was "ready to accept all consequences". Omondi did not respond to the BBC's request for comment.

Chess Kenya president Bernard Wanjala said that while he was likely to get a ban of "several years", he would not be excluded from chess for ever.

"We didn't have any suspicion at first, because wearing a hijab is normal," Wanjala told BBC Sport Africa. "But along the way, we noticed he won against very strong players... and it will be unlikely to have a new person who has never played a tournament [being very strong]."

His footwear and the fact that Omondi did not speak added to concerns.

"One of the red flags we also noticed [was] the shoes, he was wearing more masculine shoes, than feminine," Wanjala said. ...

https://www.bbc.com/sport/africa/65280560
 
Chess World's 'Anal Bead' Cheating Saga Quietly Comes To An End
Champion Magnus Carlsen and grandmaster Hans Niemann reached a settlement
Chess.com and Carlsen reached a settlement with Niemann, who had sued them and Twitch streamer Hikaru Nakamura for $100 million over what he alleged was a “civil conspiracy” to defame him. “We are pleased to report that we have reached an agreement with Hans Niemann to put our differences behind us and move forward together without further litigation,” Chess.com wrote in an update on August 28. As a result, Niemann will once again be allowed to compete on the online chess platform, and Carlsen has agreed to play him in the future should they meet in a tournament.
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“I acknowledge and understand Chess.com’s report, including its statement that there is no determinative evidence that Niemann cheated in his game against me at the Sinquefield Cup,” Carlsen said in a statement. “I am willing to play Niemann in future events, should we be paired together.”
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https://kotaku.com/chess-com-magnus-carlsen-hans-niemann-cheating-lawsuit-1850783459
 
sherbetbizarre said:
Chess World's 'Anal Bead' Cheating Saga Quietly Comes To An End
Champion Magnus Carlsen and grandmaster Hans Niemann reached a settlement


https://kotaku.com/chess-com-magnus-carlsen-hans-niemann-cheating-lawsuit-1850783459
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What I wonder about is what made the first person to claim he was cheating by using anal beads come up with that theory. To me it seems all so random. Sort of along the lines of 'I think he's cheating. The only answer is anal beads'.
 
sherbetbizarre said:
Chess World's 'Anal Bead' Cheating Saga Quietly Comes To An End
Champion Magnus Carlsen and grandmaster Hans Niemann reached a settlement


https://kotaku.com/chess-com-magnus-carlsen-hans-niemann-cheating-lawsuit-1850783459
Click to expand...

Piers Morgan interviews the grandmaster but was Niemann talking out of his arse?

An American grandmaster who was part of a row which rattled the world of chess has denied using a vibrating sex toy to cheat.

In September 2022 Hans Niemann sat down to play Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen in chess's Sinquefield Cup St Louis, Missouri.
Niemann won, but was accused by Carlsen of cheating - a claim which sparked a huge legal row between the pair. The pair settled a $100m (£79m) lawsuit last month.

On Monday evening, Niemann spoke to Piers Morgan Uncensored about the scrutiny he has faced since being accused of cheating.

"It is very disheartening to be accused of cheating after that victory," he said. "These things happen and I managed to learn a lot during that time and it really has taught me a lot of very important lessons about life and chess."

Niemann told Morgan he believed the last year has "strengthened his resolve" as he insisted to the host he did not cheat. Morgan continued talking about claims that Niemann was getting signals from someone through the remote-controlled sex toy.

"To be clear, on the specific allegation - have you ever used anal beads while playing chess?" Morgan asked.

The 20-year-old replied: "Well, your curiosity is a bit concerning, you know - maybe you're personally interested, but I can tell you, no.
"Categorically, no, of course not."

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66921563
 
Bodhana Sivanandan, from Harrow wins the Female Blitz Chess title in Croatia; Bodhana only began playing the game aged five during the pandemic. She's one to watch in future events!

From https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-67770604

"An eight-year-old girl has been crowned best female player at the European blitz chess championships.
Bodhana Sivanandan, from Harrow, north-west London, scored 8.5/13 at the event in Croatia, finishing ahead of seasoned professionals in the process.
She defeated an international master and drew with a grandmaster, in a result described as "unbelievable".

The chess prodigy, who began playing aged five, said she was "proud" of her performance over the weekend.
The tournament was held at the blitz time control - a quick form of chess where players have just minutes on their clocks for their moves.

Chair of the board at English Chess Federation (ECF) Stephen Woodhouse said: "In essence, there are three types of timings in a chess game - standard, rapid play and blitz."
"A blitz game usually varies from three minutes to five minutes, so it's very quick," he explained.
Bodhana's opponents included grandmasters - the highest title given to the world's strongest players - international masters and experts..."

Bodhana Sivanandan playing chess

(photo credit: SIMON WALKER/NO 10 DOWNING STREET)
 
Anal beads and shitting in the bath. I wonder what his next trick is? This man is going to go down in history.
 
He has already proved he wants to win more than me by shoving a radio up is arse
:omr:
 
A mighty chess marathon.

Under the beaming lights of New York's iconic Times Square, Nigerian chess master Tunde Onakoya has broken the record for the longest chess marathon.

After playing for 58 consecutive hours he was still at the board.

Onakoya hopes to raise $1m (£805,000) for charity to support chess education for millions of children.

Hundreds of supporters from the city's Nigerian community have shown up to cheer on the chess master, including Nigerian Afrobeats star Davido.

They provided music and energised him with supplies of classic Nigerian dishes, including the beloved national staple, jollof rice.

Back home in Nigeria, people threw their support behind Onakoya as they watched him conquer the record on Twitch, a video-streaming service.

Supporters left messages on the stream commending Onakoya as an inspiration.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-68852876
 
kesavaross said:
Anal beads and shitting in the bath. I wonder what his next trick is? This man is going to go down in history.
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It seems so...

Nathan Fielder, Emma Stone Re-Team for Movie About Infamous “Anal Bead” Chess Scandal
Checkmate is based on a 2022 chess cheating scandal involving world champion Magnus Carlsen

Hold on to your butts, Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone are re-teaming for the new movie Checkmate, according to the Hollywood Reporter. It’s an adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s upcoming non-fiction book of the same name, which dives into a 2022 scandal that rocked the chess world.
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https://consequence.net/2024/05/nathan-fielder-chess-emma-stone-checkmate/
 
sherbetbizarre said:
It seems so...


https://consequence.net/2024/05/nathan-fielder-chess-emma-stone-checkmate/
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That is a weird coincidence. When reading through the later posts of this thread I only just got what @Analogue Boy meant in relation to that posting of mine and posted a reply before reading that you had replied 3 minutes ago to that very same posting of mine last December.

No one has still yet to mention how the idea of vibrating anal beads came about? As in, 'he cheating, it must be anal beads'. To me, it's the most obvious question. Why anal beads? I didn't know they even existed before that chess competition. I've led a sheltered life.
 
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The locals would prefer Snakes & Ladders tables​

Debate over £2,500 'levelling up' park chess tables​


BBC Chess table in Wallasey Central Park
BBC
Chess boards like this one in Wirral have been installed in parks across the North West

Chess tables each costing £2,500 have been installed in parks across the North West as part of the government's levelling up investment programme.

Twenty of the stone boards, which do not include chess pieces, have been placed around Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Cumbria.

Leigh-born grandmaster Nigel Short MBE welcomed the investment as "great news" which would benefit the sport.

But community groups have questioned whether the money could have been spent more effectively, and Northern Powerhouse Partnership chief executive Henri Murison said it "summed up just how tokenistic levelling up had become".

The BBC has found that, as a region, the north-west of England has benefitted most from the £250,000 chess tables project.

Local authorities which received funding under the Levelling Up Parks Fund (LUPF), were invited to apply for an additional £2,500 for the installation of a chess table and accompanying seats or benches.

The investment forms part of a wider £1m package which aims to both support primary school children in disadvantaged areas to learn and play the game, as well as fund elite-level chess.

Karl Mercer, chairman of the Friends of Central Park voluntary group in Wirral, said the board in Wallasey Central Park was a "white elephant".

"I think the £2,500 for this board probably could have been spent on something that is actually going to get used," he said. "Park budgets around here have been cut right back to the bone, now we've ended up with a chess board that's sort of a white elephant."

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cprglvj820po
 
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