The Central New Jersey Home News New Brunswick, New Jersey Thursday, January 20, 1972 - Page 4
Chess Summit Is Threatened
Belgrade, Yugoslavia (AP) — Belgrade threatened Wednesday to cancel its offer to host the Fischer-Spassky chess summit in protest against “flagrant violation” of the bidding terms.
The Export and Credit bank of Belgrade and the Chess League of Serbia—sponsors for the city of Belgrade—outbid all other world and Yugoslav would-be organizers of the match. The contest pits challenger Robert Fischer of the United States against world champion Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union.
But a second round of bidding ensued when other potential candidates pitched in with offers to relinquish income expected from television and film royalties in connection with the match—something Belgrade organizers calculated on keeping for themselves.
In a statement here Wednesday the Belgrade sponsors said bidding should have terminated Jan. 3, when Belgrade was proclaimed the top bidder in Amsterdam.
However, FIDE (the world chess federation) was reported seeking a possible share of television rights income for itself and the two players. The Yugoslav Chess Federation lodged a protest charging “flagrant violation of the initial terms of bidding.”
