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Maverick chess master Vladislav Tkachiev falls asleep at the board
The Times(UK) ^ | 09/04/09 | Philippe Naughton

Posted on 09/05/2009 3:04:51 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster

Maverick chess master Vladislav Tkachiev falls asleep at the board

Philippe Naughton

A Russian-born chess maverick has caused a stir by falling asleep at the board after reportedly turning up drunk at a grandmasters' tournament in India.

Vladislav Tkachiev, 35, who was was born in Moscow, raised in Kazakhstan and now plays as a Frenchman, had to concede a game at the Calcutta Open and could face further sanctions from the game's governing body.

Tkachiev completed only 15 moves in an hour in a third-round match against India's Praveen Kumar after repeatedly dozing off.

“Each time he fell asleep, players around would try to wake him up with a shake of the shoulder,” the Indian Express newspaper reported, alongside photos showing Tkachiev with his head resting on the table.

“Some even offered him water and Tkachiev, having briefly refreshed himself at the change-room while his opponent waited, dozed off again and eventually had to be carried off."

Tkachiev, who is officially ranked 58th in the world, is known as one of the more colourful, fast-living characters on the chess circuit.

(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: chess; dozingoff; tkachiev

1 posted on 09/05/2009 3:04:52 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
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To: TigerLikesRooster
...chess master ... has caused a stir by falling asleep at the board after reportedly turning up drunk at a grandmasters' tournament ... dozed off ... and eventually had to be carried off.

I always hate it when that happens.

2 posted on 09/05/2009 3:08:49 AM PDT by Talisker (When you find a turtle on top of a fence post, you can be damn sure it didn't get there on it's own.)
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To: TigerLikesRooster; martin_fierro; aculeus; dighton; null and void; Constitution Day; ...

Oh well, “Knight knight.”


3 posted on 09/05/2009 3:15:21 AM PDT by Ezekiel (The Obama-nation began with the Inauguration of Desolation.)
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To: Ezekiel

I guess he shoulda checked in earlier


4 posted on 09/05/2009 3:18:06 AM PDT by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: TigerLikesRooster

Oh, well. At least it wasn’t one night in Bangkok.


5 posted on 09/05/2009 3:33:27 AM PDT by BradyLS (DO NOT FEED THE BEARS!)
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To: TigerLikesRooster

For safety sake, I hope there was a dead man’s switch


6 posted on 09/05/2009 3:34:43 AM PDT by Vaquero ("an armed society is a polite society" Robert A. Heinlein)
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To: Vaquero

lolz


7 posted on 09/05/2009 3:38:20 AM PDT by happinesswithoutpeace (--Still not Halloween yet--)
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To: TigerLikesRooster

Chess puts most players to sleep.


8 posted on 09/05/2009 3:43:11 AM PDT by Drango (A liberal's compassion is limited only by the size of someone else's wallet.)
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To: TigerLikesRooster

Ah, a variation of the Latvian corkscrew countergambit. The Latvian corkscrew sleeper gambit!


9 posted on 09/05/2009 3:46:28 AM PDT by saganite (What would Sully do?)
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To: TigerLikesRooster
Tkachiev and his brother Evegeny - known as "the Blitz Brothers" - angered many chess traditionalists when they set up the "World Chess Beauty Contest"


"We're on a mission from God"


10 posted on 09/05/2009 4:50:27 AM PDT by Condor51 (The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits)
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To: saganite

Must be those Russian psychics that Bobby Fischer was complaining about when he failed to show on the 2nd game of his 1972 World Championship match against Spassky. He claimed that Russian psychics in the crowd were trying to disrupt his concentration.

I’m thinking that they must have perfected the technique.


11 posted on 09/05/2009 4:54:01 AM PDT by foobarred (VP of the Council for National Health Care for Pets and the Cats for Clunkers Program)
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To: Drango

Chess puts most spectators to sleep.

Along with tennis, golf, poker tournaments, etc.


12 posted on 09/05/2009 5:00:43 AM PDT by elcid1970
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To: Condor51
A Russian-born chess maverick has caused a stir by falling asleep at the board after reportedly turning up drunk at a grandmasters' tournament in India. ... Tkachiev completed only 15 moves in an hour ... after repeatedly dozing off.


"Do that again and
the Queen gets it!"

And who says Chess is boring!

13 posted on 09/05/2009 5:02:16 AM PDT by Condor51 (The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits)
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To: TigerLikesRooster

Vlad Tkachev is known to have a drinking problem. For a while, he was able to kick the habit, and had some very nice results in the last year - taking first in the French championship, getting into the top 50 in the world.
Unfortunately, it looks like he is in trouble again. This is really a shame, since he is said to be a nice guy.


14 posted on 09/05/2009 5:32:55 AM PDT by ubaldus
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