Carlsen, Radjabov, Dvorkovich, and Kramnik on the Candidates Stoppage
Here. (For those who don't know, Arkady Dvorkovich is the FIDE President.)
Here. (For those who don't know, Arkady Dvorkovich is the FIDE President.)
It was a close race, won by Arkady Dvorkovich over de facto incumbent Giorgios Makropoulos, 103-78. What about Nigel Short? He gave his final speech and then withdrew, endorsing Dvorkovich (and receiving a VP appointment after Dvorkovich won). Is this a good thing? It may depend on whether one thinks that FIDE's many sins are primarily due to Russian corruption (in which case you'll worry about Dvorkovich) or Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and his team (in which case you'll be delighted that Makropoulos is out). Of course, the two possibilities aren't mutually exclusive. But let's hope for the best and see what Dvorkovich does. At least his track record with the Russian Chess Federation has been promising, so there are some grounds for hope.
More on the election here.
For those who are new to the party, here's a brand spanking new article on outgoing FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, rehashing some of his old shenanigans (both those he admits and those which are only alleged) and offering en passant a little information about tomorrow's (Wednesday's) Presidential elections.
HT: Ross H.
The Russian Chess Federation has voted on their candidate, and it's not the outgoing/already gone FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov. Instead, it's Russian economist, political office-holder, and billionaire Arkady Dvorkovich who will throw his hat into the ring against Giorgios Makropoulos and Nigel Short.
I'm not aware of anything weird or scandalous in his background, and his chess connections are legitimate (his father was an arbiter, and he has been involved with the Russian Chess Federation for years). So unless there's a good general reason to distrust any Russian who would be in charge of FIDE, I'd imagine that he would be a big improvement over Ilyumzhinov and most likely over Makropoulos as well. (Short is to me a wildcard: I could imagine his presidency being anywhere from brilliant to a disaster.)
But I will defer to those who know these people and their work better than I do. European readers especially, do you have any strong opinions based on your knowledge of these men?
**UPDATE** The Russian vote didn't officially eliminate Ilyumzhinov from being able to run, though it had that effect from a practical perspective. However, it is official that Ilyumzhinov isn't running, and he is throwing his support to Dvorkovich. (Pretty much a given, considering his feelings towards Makro and Short, so I wouldn't hold it against Dvorkovich.)
HT: Chess Today.