AThe Sydney Morning Herald Sydney, New South Wales, Australia Sunday, January 02, 1972 - Page 31
No White Knight
It was never very likely that America's chess genius Bobby Fischer would have to go to Russia for his World championship series with defender Boris Spassky. The World Chess Federation has been looking for a neutral country for the match (even Australia staked a claim, though like Olympic Games and other events big professional chess games need money).
Fischer, in the ungracious manner of the former boy genius, said the Russians would harass his sleep or upset the lighting conditions.
He could be right. There is as much gamesmanship in big chess as in other international contests. But Fischer himself, for all the temperament that has had him walking out of contests before this,
[Bobby Fischer walked in Tunisia (while he was ahead) during a tournament due to Organizers' antisemitic discrimination against his religious observance of the Saturday Sabbath. Another incident occurred August 14, 1961 due to referee Irving Rivise, breaking rules for personal reasons without the consent of Bobby Fischer. “The time had been advanced, it was explained, to permit the referee and the committee to be on hand for a championship tournament scheduled to open in San Francisco today.” See The Los Angeles Times Los Angeles, California Monday, August 14, 1961]
is a popular figure in Russia and other chess-playing nations (“In America,” he says, “I'm nobody.”).
But every chess expert agrees that Fischer is the world's best player. He will be world champion, if not this time then in four years' time.
To break the Russian grip now may seem world shattering. The Russians have Grand Masters in depth. But they have been only in championship control since 1937, when Dr. Max Euwe, of the Netherlands, lost the title.
Of the legendary names of the past, Capablanca was a Cuban, two other boy prodigies Morphy and Reshevsky came from America, and Alekhine, though a Russian, was a French citizen.
