Chess boxing
2843859
226174132
2008-07-17T04:13:23Z
JoshuaZ
799863
/* History */ note and ref. will do all clean up for GA tommorow
[[Image:Chess Boxing 2007 (combined).jpg|right|thumb|A chess boxing match in Berlin, 2007]]
'''Chess boxing''' is a hybrid [[sport]] which combines the sport of [[boxing]] with games of [[chess]] in alternating rounds. Chess boxing fights have been organized since early 2003. The sport was started when Dutch artist [[Iepe Rubingh]], inspired by fictional descriptions of the sport in the writing of [[Enki Bilal]], organized actual matches. To succeed players must be both skilled chess players and skilled boxers.
==Structure and rules==
A match between two opponents consists of up to eleven alternating rounds of [[boxing]] and [[chess]] sessions, starting with a four-minute chess round followed by two minutes of boxing and so on.<ref name=Time>{{cite news |author=Calhoun, Ada |title=Chess-Boxing Hits it Big |url= http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1821639,00.html|format= |publisher=Time Magazine |date=2008-07-10 |accessdate=2008-07-13}}</ref> Between rounds there is a one minute pause, during which competitors change their gear. The form of chess played is [[speed chess]] in which each competitor has a total of twelve minutes for the whole game. Competitors may win by [[knockout]], [[checkmate]], a judge's decision or if their opponent's twelve minutes of chess time elapses.<ref name=Time/> If a contestant does not make a move in the chessround, he will be issued a warning by the referee. At the second warning the contestant will be disqualified.
==History==
The concept was envisioned in [[1992]] by [[cartoonist]] [[Enki Bilal]], and a match of chess boxing was a major plot point of his [[graphic novel]] ''[[Froid Équateur]]''.<ref name=Time/> [[Iepe Rubingh]], a [[Netherlands|Dutch]] artist, was inspired by Bilal's book and brought the concept to life in the spring of [[2001]], fighting under the name, 'Iepe the Joker'.<ref name=Time/> Rubingh decided that the method of play in described in the book, a boxing match followed by a chess match, was impractical. Rubingh instead instituted alternating rounds of chess and boxing.<ref>http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hRW0gsSHajHY1eO0jrCF3RQGufrAD91V3HBO1</ref>
Chess boxing was featured in the [[1991]] [[Finland|Finnish]] movie ''[[Uuno Turhapuro - herra Helsingin herra]]'', where [[Uuno Turhapuro|Uuno]] plays [[blindfold chess]] against one person using a hands-free telephone headset while boxing another person. It is not known whether Bilal was aware of the movie.
In addition, there is a 1979 movie by director [[Joseph Kuo]] called "[[Mystery of Chess Boxing|Ninja Checkmate]]" whose [[USA]] dubbed version was known as "Mystery of Chess Boxing". It does not feature chessboxing as understood in this article. This movie is likely an inspiration for the [[Wu-Tang Clan]] song "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" from their first album ''[[Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)]]'' (1993).
The sport is governed by the [[World Chess Boxing Organisation]] (WCBO), whose motto is "Fighting is done in the ring and wars are waged on the board." The first world championship was held in [[Amsterdam]] in [[2003]] and was won by Iepe Rubingh himself.<ref>[http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=1348 Chess Boxing World Championship], ''Chessbase News'', 5 December 2003</ref> The First European Chess Boxing Championship took place in [[Berlin]] on [[1 October]] [[2005]] when [[Tihomir Atanassov Dovramadjiev]] of [[Bulgaria]] defeated [[Andreas 'D'Schneider]] of [[Germany]] after the latter conceded defeat in the seventh round.
On April 21, 2006, about 400 people gathered in the Gloria Theatre, [[Cologne]], to see two chessboxing matches. Zoran 'the Priest' Mijatovic played the [[Queen's Gambit]]. Zoran's opponent, 37-year old former [[UN Peacekeepers|UN Peacekeeper]] Frank 'Anti Terror' Stoldt, was well prepared and controlled both the chess board and the boxing rounds.<ref name=Mongrel>{{cite journal |last=Mahoney |first=Donny |title=Da Mystery of Schachboxen:Ringside at the Chess Fights |journal=Mongrel |volume= |issue=21 |url=http://www.mongrel.ie/issue21/may06pp28.php |accessdate=2008-07-15 }}</ref> In the seventh round (a chess round) Mijatovic was three moves away from being checkmated, so he resigned. <ref name=Mongrel/><ref>SportsCenter Special: Chess Boxing. Aired on ESPN 5/7/07</ref>
In April 2008, the World Chess Federation [[FIDE]] posted a video on its website in which its president [[Kirsan Ilyumzhinov]] played a friendly chess boxing match in [[Elista]].<ref>[http://www.fide.com/component/content/article/2-articles/1327-fide-videos Kirsan Ilyumzhinov As A Chess Boxer!]</ref>
Also in April 2008 the UK's first Chess Boxing club was launched in London by Great Britain Chess Boxing Organisation founder Tim Woolgar.
A 19-year old [[Russian]] [[Mathematics]] student [[Nikolai Sahzin]] won the title of "World Champion" in chess boxing by defeating Frank Stoldt in Berlin in July of 2008.<ref>[http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23979955-23109,00.html Chess boxers slug it out], The Age, Australia, Arnaud Bouvier, 2008-7-7, accessed 2008-7-8</ref><ref name=WCBO1>{{cite web |url=http://site.wcbo.org/content/e7/index_en.html |title=Nikolay Sazhin is the New World Champion (press release) |accessdate=2008-07-13 |publisher=World Chess Boxing Organisation }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=4744 |title=Chessboxing World Championship 2008 in Berlin
|accessdate=2008-07-13 |author= |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= 2008-07-03||publisher=ChessBase (press release)}}</ref> Stoldt resigned in the 5th round after losing his queen.<ref name=WCBO1/>
==Required chess skill==
World-class chess-boxers are not just good boxers but are skilled chess players as well.<ref name=Escapist>{{cite news |author=Chalk, Andy |title=World Chess Boxing Champion Crowned |url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/84863-World-Chess-Boxing-Champion-Crowned |publisher=The Escapist |date=2008-07-07 |accessdate=2008-07-13}}</ref> For example, Sahzin has an [[Elo rating system|Elo rating]] of around 1900 while European chess boxing champion [[Tihomir Atanassov Dovramadjiev]] has won multiple major chess tournaments.<ref name=Escapist/><ref name="ChessBase2"> {{cite web |url=http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3208 |title=Chessboxing on ESPN, Playboy and Maxim |accessdate=2008-07-13 |date=2006-06-27 |publisher=ChessBase}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
{{commons|Category:Chess Boxing|Chess boxing}}
* [http://www.wcbo.org/ The official WCBO site]
* [http://www.londonchessboxing.com/ Official UK site]
* [http://www.chessboxing.com/ Chessboxing site]
* [http://www.gbcbo.co.uk/ The official Great Britain Chessboxing Organisation site]
* [http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=1348 A report on the 2003 World Championship match]
* [http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/rook-beats-right-hook/2005/10/05/1128191786463.html An article about the European Championship bout]
* [http://www.mongrel.ie/issue21/may06pp28.php Account of the City of Cologne chessboxing championship fight]
* [http://www.newsback.com/forums/news-201-chessboxing-life-imitates-art.html Interview with chessboxing pioneer]
* [http://sport.guardian.co.uk/chess/story/0,15873,1637295,00.html Interview in The Guardian]
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=chessboxing ESPN chessboxing article]
* [http://chessboxing.canalblog.com/ A chessboxing's photo story by french photo reporter Cyril Cavalié]
* [http://www.lepetitjournal.com/content/view/20675/1030/ Une reportage sur chessboxing dans Lepetitjournal.com]
* [http://www.elite-ados.com/insolite/le-chess-boxing-136 Un article en français sur la box d'échecs]
[[Category:Individual sports]]
[[Category:Multi-sport competitions]]
[[Category:Chess variants]]
[[Category:Boxing]]
[[Category:Combat sports]]
[[bg:Шахбокс]]
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[[is:Skákbox]]
[[nl:Schaakboksen]]
[[ja:チェスボクシング]]
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[[pl:Szachowy boks]]
[[pt:Boxe-xadrez]]
[[ru:Шахбокс]]
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