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Forget the image of chess players
being weedy, bespectacled nerds
hunched over a board for hours at a
time. Rather, insert a pair of sweaty,
ripped boxers battling it out between
rounds of fierce punching.
Chess-boxing takes two very different
worlds and smashes them together into
a fascinating and fast growing sport.
The concept is simple. This is a sport
that does what it says on the tin. The
match commences with a four-minute
chess round. One reason for the boxing
coming second is the disorientation
that inevitably follows heavy blows to
the head.
This opening round of chess is followed
by a three-minute round of boxing. Then
it is gloves off for four more minutes
of chess. And so on, until the end of
the match. The winner is decided by
knockout, checkmate or by judges’
decision.
On the surface, this hybrid sport seems
full of paradox. But dig deeper and the
parallel lines of the two competitions
become clearer. This is no gimmick, as
the growing international interest in the
sport takes hold.
The World Chess Boxing Organisation
boasts clubs in Berlin, London and Sofia
and is growing, as you would expect,
aggressively and strategically. WCBO
spokesman Andreas Dilschneider says
it will become “the biathlon of the 21st
century.”
Explaining the complimentary nature of
the sports, he says, “If you don’t know
anything about chess-boxing it might
seem a strange combination, but if
you think about it, in both sports there
are many parallels. Just as you can be
knocked out in boxing, you can be in
front in chess for 10 or 20 moves. You
can build up a very strong position. You
can be a very good player. But if for one
moment you are not aware, and you
make one bad move, the whole game
is over.”
By Timothy Mottram
Looking at a chessboxing
fight is looking at the future.
- Iepe Rubingh
By Timothy Mottram
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