Istanbul Olympic Report

Late Wednesday, November 1

In the evening at our hotel, in the comfortable lounge, while some were leisurely sipping beer, others juices or water, Team Canada was able to show that very Canadian quality of philosophical introspection for which we are world famous: measured naiveté!

All of us were thoroughly exhausted. Pooped out. Five rounds of tough world class opponents and more than two weeks of cynical ingratitude by those heroic bigots on chesstalk. We felt appreciated by few, loved only by our in-laws, respected sincerely by none more lofty than our dog, and exposed like smoked meat in a cheap tavern. Too tired to really care any more about what others think. Too involved to want to take the time to explain to neophytes the meaning of it all...but unwilling to throw in the towel just yet.

Dale, Alex, Pascal, Igor, David, Jack and I decided to hold our team 'tete a tete'. Who would play tomorrow? Alex and I would play tomorrow most certainly! Who cares if those vermin at chesstalk have not noticed how magnificently boards one and two have done? Igor would sit out and Pascal or Jack or David would guard our lower boards. Everything would depend on what team we would be paired against.

We drew the team from Indonesia! 2-2. Nothing very special. Certainly not enough to brag about down on the Bay Street pubs. Most assuredly not the right patriotic level of newsworthy substance for the sports section of any local radio or television station in Toronto.

But it was what we could do. In fact, it was exactly all we could do: Indonesia has seen government support for its chess programs for more than two decades running. Its Olympic team results are followed feverishly by more than one hundred million of its citizens. This is not to mention the scores of newspapers from cities as distinct as Jakarta or Deli in East Timor.

Chess may not be very important, but it is the only thing happening at this moment in time that does not involve death or crime or lust.

Alex played a brilliant game against his Indonesian counterpart: in spite of all of his efforts to make a draw with the white pieces, the Indonesian player had to (without any false dignity) defend a rook and pawn ending that was deceptively simple. Alex believes he missed a win late in the game. He may be right! But all he could show for his heroic effort was half a point: what a pity those at chesstalk are incapable of understanding the real beauty that exists in chess mastery! Vive la verite!

I succeeded in scoring the only victory of the Canadian team. Partly due to the laws of chess, and partly due to the excess of arrogance of my well-fed and portly opponent.

Igor played brilliantly! Right from the opening moves he had his opponent running about looking for some shelter. But it was not to be found: Igor fought valiantly and with courage. With less than two minutes left for some 15 moves he sacrificed a piece to continue his initiative. It was heroic. I was proud to be Canadian at that very moment!

But victory was not to be Igor's this day: with only seconds left on his clock his hand could not find the winning move.

Igor's only loss in the Olympiad.

Pascal also had his Indonesian opponent on the ropes. Not content with the win of a pawn, Pascal pressed very hard to force the issue. The final result of a draw might give him some problems when he sleeps this evening. The youngster is creating his own experience of what world class chess is all about. I wish him the best of luck in the future.

Team captain Dale Kirton is doing an excellent job! To him Team Canada is all that matters. On chesstalk few mention his name. (He is the lucky one!) He asks Alex if he could give him something...Alex replies 'Yes, a banana!'

Dale spends 30 minutes running around downtown Istanbul looking for some bananas. Eventually he is in luck: he finds 6! Returning to the tournament hall he is quickly surrounded by machine gun equipped soldiers! Was Dale so naive to think that he could outfox the best and most sophisticated security apparatus that modern Turkey could put together?

He has his six bananas confiscated! 'No bananas allowed in the tournament hall!!' He says nothing as he notices a table full of confiscated apples and oranges...and feels grateful for not having been more severely handled by the secret police.

Back beside Team Canada, Dale takes his seat. He has to intervene when he notices an arbiter harass Alex while he is playing: apparently Alex had gone, a little earlier, to take a leak while his own clock was running! The arbiter is very upset: 'You piss only when your opponent is on the move!'

Alex is confused! What right does an arbiter have to interrupt an official game for something that happened earlier? I come to the defense of Alex: I ask our team captain to complain to the head arbiter that this arbiter is harassing a player.

Dale handles the situation very adeptly. Some quiet conversations. Some pointed words. Something about the necessity to remain calm and rational.

The arbiter never shows his face for the rest of the match. Thank you Dale.

In the lounge we laugh and joke about it all. Midnight express anyone? One jokes that Dale will have to tape the bananas to his body next time!