This month, watch out for unidentified fleeing presidents. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, president of Fidé, the World Chess Federation, and a self-confessed alien abductee, seems to have a revolution on his hands. Several of his closest lieutenants, such as Giorgios Makropolous and Nigel Freeman from the Athens HQ, are insisting that Kirsan has resigned, while Kirsan himself is insisting that something has been lost in translation.
We shall know more about whether the president has been blasted into outer space after a board meeting which is due to take place soon.
This week’s game and puzzle feature Dr Max Euwe, Fidé president from 1974-1978. Oh for the days when the Fidé president was a widely respected former world champion, with no personal axes to grind or enterprises to promote.
Euwe-Capablanca: AVRO Netherlands 1938; Queen’s Indian Defence
1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 g3 Bb7 5 Bg2 Be7 6 0-0 0-0 7 Nc3 d5 8 Ne5 The pin on the d5-pawn is now unpleasant for Black.
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