Kas takes gambit on Fide post

MANILA, Philippines - Visiting former world chess champion Garry Kasparov always has a soft spot for Manila, the vibrant city that provided the venue for one of his many achievements in a stellar career.

Back in 1992, Kasparov led a powerhouse Russia team that included future world champion Vladimir Kramnik in ruling the 30th Chess Olympiad the Philippines hosted.

“It was the first time the Russian team was there after the collapse of the Soviet Union and I was the leader of the Russian team. Vladimir Kramnik played his first Olympid there and he made his debut in international chess stage. We did well, we won the Olympiad and I really had great memories,” said the chess legend.

Kasparov was on a whirlwind visit to Phl as part of his campaign tour in his bid for presidency of the International Chess Federation.

He described Phl as a “very important chess country” and cited the contributions of the late Florencio Campomanes who served as Fide president.

“Governing chess and carrying out reforms require the support of countries with rich tradition and expertise in chess and definitely, Phl belong to this group,” he said.

Kasparov was met by National Chess Federation of the Philippines officials, led by president Prospero Pichay, and Asia’s first grandmaster Eugene Torre when he arrived with Fide secretary general Ignatius Leong yesterday.

The 50-year chess legend took the opportunity to do his share in ongoing aid efforts for victims of super typhoon Yolanda, pledging $10,000.

“I felt oblige to do something as a gesture, I’ll be donating privately, $10,000 to relief funds,” he said.

Torre’s provided this visit with nostalgia.  They played four games in the past with the Russian pulling off three victories (the 1988 Greece Olympiad and GM Invitationals in Baku and Moscow) and one match ending in a standoff (tourney in Brussels).

“It was a pleasant surprise to see him again because the first time we played was in Baku and that was 33 years ago. It’s always great to see somebody you know for so long,” he said.