World Championship News

Since 1993, there have been two independent world championship titles, and despite reunification rumblings since 1996, the titles have remained divided. The Prague Agreement in 2002 offered some hope for a while, but with the apparent collapse of the Kasparov-Kasimdzhanov match a few weeks ago, it was back to square one. (See this post for details and links.)

But now, something new. According to the 2/28 issue of Chess Today, relaying information from Russian chess sites like this one, FIDE has proposed a double-round robin event with the following eight players: Kasimdzhanov, Adams, Kramnik, Leko, Kasparov, Anand, Topalov and Morozevich. The event, IF it happens, is scheduled to occur in October of 2005 in a country yet to be determined.

I like many aspects of the idea, but I suspect Kramnik won't, for at least three reasons. First, I think Kramnik's style is best suited to matches, not tournaments, so this probably hurts his chances for success. Second, while Kasimdzhanov (or Kasparov, were he to play and defeat Kasimdzhanov) as the FIDE champion would be plausibly seeded to face Kramnik on an even playing field, it's not as clear that the other players deserve such a privilege. Third, Kramnik, like Kasparov before him, has expressed a desire to maintain the classical world championship in its traditional form - qualifiers leading to a final match with the champion. If the follow-up to this event is going to be more knock-out events, then that too will serve as a deterrent to his participation.

In sum, we have reason for some optimism - but it's best to keep the bubbly on hold.