A notable feature from the recently concluded elite tournament at Wijk aan Zee was the abject failure of former world champion Vladimir Kramnik, who finished in equal last place. I have been conjecturing that it might be time for him to put his pieces back in the box, in the style of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
Tis all a Chequer-board of nights and days.
Where Destiny with men for Pieces plays:
Hither and thither moves, and mates, and slays,
And one by one back in the closet lays.
He could evolve into an elder statesman for the new Fidé regime led by Arkady Dvorkovich and his vice-president Nigel Short. Now, at the age of 43, he has stunned the chess world by taking this dramatic step, announcing his retirement from active play. This week’s game must be one of the reasons that persuaded him the time had come to withdraw from the hurly-burly of international competitive chess.
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