AThe Sydney Morning Herald Sydney, New South Wales, Australia Wednesday, January 05, 1972 - Page 4
Yugoslav Bid For Spassky-Fischer Duel
New York, Tuesday. — A record $US 152,000 in prize-money has been offered to chess giants Boris Spassky of Russia and Bobby Fischer of the United States if they hold their world championship contest in Yugoslavia.
According to the U.S. Chess Federation, the bid from Belgrade topped 14 others from eleven countries.
The U.S. Chess Federation's spokesman, Mr. E. B. Edmondson, said Argentina had offered U.S. $150,000 [(Argentina corrected this, stating the offer was for 100k)] Iceland $US 125,000, and Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, $US 120,000.
Spassky is the reigning world champion and Fischer, the young American chess genius, is the first non-Soviet challenger in nearly 25 years.
Fischer had said he would prefer to play in the United States or Canada, but the only North American bids were from Chicago and Montreal. Each was believed to have offered $US 100,000 — the minimum bid admissible.
Fischer is a hero in Yugoslavia and Spassky is reportedly not keen to play there.
Fischer has already said he does not want to play in Russia.—Derryn Hinch.
