The Los Angeles Times Los Angeles, California Saturday, February 12, 1972 - Page 12
Chess World Hit by Flap on Match Site by Murray Seeger, Times Staff Writer
Moscow — It appears that Americans and Russians can negotiate such things as agreements on health research (signed Friday), rights for Berlin and perhaps even a limit on strategic arms development.
But chess? Nyet. Or at least not yet.
Five leading members of the important and large Chess Federation of the Soviet Union called a press conference Friday to charge that agreements negotiated with both the International Chess Federation and the U.S. Chess Federation over the site for the world chess championship match had been violated.
The Soviet chess experts were upset because they had just learned that the American challenger for the world title, Robert (Bobby) Fischer had rejected Reykjavik, Iceland, as the site and June 25 as the date for the match.
Russian Agrees
Both these details had been agreed to by Boris Spassky of Russia, the long-time reigning champion.
The Icelandic city had been agreed to also as the location in talks here Wednesday between Viktor Baturinsky, director of the prestigious Central Chess Club, and Col. Edmund Edmondson, director of the U.S. Chess Federation.
It was one of the four cities nominated for the match by Spassky who insists the play be held in the “moderate climate zone” like his native city of Leningrad. His other proposed sites were Dortmund, Germany; Amsterdam and Paris.
Fischer suggested five cities—Belgrade or Sarajevo, Yugoslavia; Chicago, Montreal or Buenos Aires.
Perspiring heavily under the light of a movie camera and a huge heater in the old, blue chess club, Baturinsky said “the situation is very complicated and it is difficult to see all that could happen.”
The Soviet chess leaders believed that the president of the International Chess Federation, Dr. Max Euwe of the Netherlands, would set the final site Thursday for the long-awaited match and that neither of the temperamental chess champions could veto it.
The private talks here this week also convinced the Russians that Fischer had agreed to the Icelandic locale.
Prerogative Cited
The Russians made clear that they felt Spassky, as the champion of the world, had some superior rights to selecting the conditions for defending his title over Fischer, the challenger.
“It is worth reminding that three matches of claimants between European chess players and Fischer were held in the Western Hemisphere in places mostly favorable for the American grand master,” the Russian federation said in a statement.
“The Soviet chess players respected the religious and other customs of Fischer though it sometimes violated the rhythm and order of the game habitual to them.”
Climate vs. Cash
The Russians claimed that Spassky asked only for a moderate climate to play in while Fischer was interested in the city that offered the highest cash prize. Belgrade made the best bid—$152,000.
Spassky did not accept Yugoslavia, Baturinsky said, because “in July and August it is hot in Belgrade.”
The international federation has declared that the world championship must be played by July 1. Apparently, new negotiations on a playing site will have to begin.
