Olympiad for People with Disabilities: The link between chess, football and Royalty
It’s not every day that a world-famous footballer comes to follow a chess event, but that’s just what happened in Belgrade on the fourth round of the first Olympiad for People with Disabilities
The first move ceremony in chess is a peculiar affair. A lot of things need to come together: the honorary guests need to be there on time and in the right place; if they’re not chess players, they need to be told how to make the first move and what to do; and everything needs to happen right when the round is due to start or, otherwise – and this also happens sometimes – if the guest is late, the round starts late.
All of this somehow amplifies the already present tension ahead of the round, especially for those players on top boards where the first-move ceremony usually takes place. While many players will often brush this off and say they don’t mind, for some, it’s not pleasant.