The reality is that business knows how connected FIDE and AGON are to corrupt Russians in Putin’s circle.
“It didn’t help. The New York tournament, which hoped to attract luxury retailers and financial firms as sponsors, wound up with an odd quartet: a Russian fertilizer company, a Moscow-based asset-management firm, a Norwegian bottled-water company that sponsors Carlsen, and S.T. Dupont, whose stylish pens are being used by the two players to make notes. “People are afraid,” Makropoulos said.” As well they should be. As Karpov is quoted as saying, “Any d___head could do a better job.” bloomberg.com/features/2016 … mpionship/
Love the lead photo showing the Agon facade with the bare ceiling and sprinkler system. Kudos though to Agon for controlling the image output from the venue to this point.
The most scathing indictment of Chess I’ve read recently. In the spirit of Castalia, Chess is not played in a vacuum. What We The People think matters, as I attempted to write on my blog, and for which some ridiculed and heaped scorn. Because of Kirsan the ET Chess has become some kind of sick joke. Leaders MATTER! If people laugh at our leader, they laugh at us.