Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Top German players boycott 2010 olympiad

Sports and games everywhere is controlled by officials not the players themselves. Most players will not risk antagonizing any official of the federation. Sadly, this is especially true in Malaysia. For example, I write about the right and wrong that is in the local chess environment. Everyone hides in a corner and nods in agreement. Some will voice out under the cloak of anonymity. None have actually supported me publicly. But in private they will tell me how I am doing the right thing. Recently I begin to ask myself why I even bother. At times I have to write negatively about people I have known for a long time and some I even consider my friends.

A very strong German chess player have voiced out the problems he has with his own chess federation. I just read an open letter here by Arkadij Naiditsch (current top player in Germany). All the German top men's players will not be in the team to the forthcoming 2010 Chess Olympiad.

Naiditsch is either a very brave man or a desperate one or maybe both. The abundance of sarcasm in his letter could drown quite a few German officials. I found his open letter very funny at the same time also sad. Do read it and compare with ourselves. Note that Malaysians have to pay (mostly) for the privilege of representing the country.

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