THE INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE PRESS ASSOCIATION Editor: John Carruthers This Bulletin is published monthly and circulated to around 400 members of the International Bridge Press Association comprising the world’s leading journalists, authors and editors of news, books and articles about contract bridge, with an estimated readership of some 200 million people BULLETIN who enjoy the most widely played of all card games. www.ibpa.com Bulletin No. 571 August 4, 2012 President: PATRICK D JOURDAIN Editorial 8 Felin Wen, Rhiwbina Cardiff CF14 6NW, WALES UK Bridge organisation such as the WBF, the EBL and the ACBL are struggling with the (44) 29 2062 8839 issue of nationality as it pertains to eligibility for Zonal and World Championships. [email protected] Recently, the EBL first denied Pierre Zimmermann et al the right to represent Monaco Chairman: in the Europeans, then reversed itself to allow their participation. The new Monégasques PER E JANNERSTEN responded by dominating the Open European Team Championship and qualifying for Banergatan 15 the Bermuda Bowl next year in Bali. The USA has had quite a few non-citizens represent SE-752 37 Uppsala, SWEDEN them over the years, as have a handful of other nations. Some countries insist on (46) 18 52 13 00 [email protected] citizenship to be allowed play for them in World Championships, others just have residency requirements. Executive Vice-President: JAN TOBIAS van CLEEFF The Monégasque initiative is not a new idea. Thirty years ago, Alberto Calvo hired Jeff Prinsegracht 28a Hand of the USA and Drew Cannell of Canada to move to Panama and play bridge for 2512 GA The Hague, NETHERLANDS them. That team just did not have the high profile or the impact that the new (31) 70 360 5902 Monégasques have had. Before that, in the late 1960s, Ira Corn tried unsuccessfully to [email protected] entice Sami Kehela to leave Toronto to join the Dallas Aces. Organizational Vice-President & Bulletin Production Manager: Other sports organisations have similar issues. The difference is that most have ‘stricter’ DILIP GIDWANI eligibilty standards than the WBF. The IOC, for example, demands that representatives 401 Mariden, 16th Road Bandra West of all nations have citizenship and be required to prove it with a passport of the Mumbai 400 050, INDIA country they represent. Lest you think this is a purer method, it has resulted in countries (91) 22 98205 47150 Fax: 22 26002241 that crave Olympic glory dangling passports for elite athletes who have a chance at [email protected] Olympic medals. Nexus, the University of Toronto Faculty of Law magazine Secretary: (www.law.utoronto.ca) has an incisive article on this issue in their latest number. In it, HERMAN DE WAEL they cite that Ethiopians running for Bahrain and Canadians playing hockey for Italy Michel Willemslaan 40 B-2610 Wilrijk, BELGIUM are but two examples of this shift in the meaning of citizenship itself and the citizenship (32) 3 827 64 45 Fax: (32) 3 825 29 19 market unwittingly created by the IOC and the Olympics. [email protected] Perhaps the strictest requirements are FIFA’s; strict in the sense that once one represents Treasurer: a country in Open competition, one may never play for another. However, the RICHARD SOLOMON determination of which country one initially represents is quite liberal - one grandparent 308 Kauri Road, RD2 with citizenship is enough to qualify. With football players living all over the world, Tuakau 2697, NEW ZEALAND (64) 9 232 8494 residency is not even an issue. Unlike in the past, when one had to declare one’s [email protected] national affiliation even if playing the Under-17’s, now the rule is that one can play for one country in the age-limited events and another in Open competition. Membership Secretary: JEREMY DHONDY However, bridge is a rather special case. One could in theory represent one’s country 50 Great North Way for seventy years or more. Whereas a football player’s or Olympian’s international London NW4 1HS, ENGLAND UK career might last twenty years if he is truly exceptional, a bridge player can play from (44) 7967 475925 [email protected] puberty to senility. So it is quite reasonable in this day of increased mobility to allow Honorary General Counsel: players to represent different countries at different times in their lives. We know of one WILLIAM J. PENCHARZ international who was born in France of Polish and Tunisian parents, and subsequently Lacourarie, Barthelemy de Bussière lived in Canada, the USA, England, Switzerland and Australia, making her eligible to 24360 Piegut Pluvier, FRANCE represent a potential eight different nations. +33(0)5 53 60 30 60 [email protected] Zlatan Ibrahimovic plays football for Sweden, Ajax Amsterdam, Juventus, Barcelona, AC Milan and Paris St. Germain and no one so much as blinks. So why should Zimmermann- Awards Secretary: BARRY J. RIGAL Multon, Helness-Helgemo and Fantoni-Nunes not play for Monaco or Romain Zaleski Apt 8E, 22 West 26th Street, for Italy or Zia for the USA? They are simply either following their careers or, as Glaser New York NY 10010, USA and Abramovich have done, indulging their passion with their wallets. (1) 212 366 4799 [email protected] Address all IBPA Bulletin correspondence to: JOHN CARRUTHERS Presidents Emeritii: 1322 Patricia Blvd., Kingsville, Ontario, N9Y 2R4, CANADA TOMMY SANDSMARK (NORWAY) Tel: +1 519-733-9247 HENRY FRANCIS (USA) email: [email protected] 1 From the Textbook (BR) This deal was played in the first qualifying session of the von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs. See if you can find the textbook defensive play produced by at least two defenders. Dealer East. Neither Vul. [ K J 10 3 2 ]7 3 {K 3 } 8 6 5 2 [Q 4 ] Q 9 6 5 4 {5 Barry Rigal, NYC } K Q 7 4 3 Brent Manley, Memphis, TN West North East South Phillip Alder, Hobe Sound, FL — — Pass 1{ John Carruthers, Kingsville, ON 2[ Pass Pass Double Winners of the major titles were: All Pass Spingold KO Teams You (North) start with the king of diamonds. The singleton diamond in the East hand is not a welcome Fulvio Fantoni, Tor Helness, Geir Helgemo, Franck sight. How do you proceed? Multon, Claudio Nunes, Pierre Zimmermann At least two defenders – Billy Eisenberg and my Grand National Teams partner, Glenn Milgrim – found the play to collect the Mike Becker, David Berkowitz, Gary Cohler, Jeff maximum penalty: the king of spades. Meckstroth, Eric Rodwell, Warren Spector Declarer could win the ace, but if he ruffed a diamond Wagar Women’s KO Teams with dummy’s queen, the trump trick the defenders Mildred Breed, Hjordis Eythorsdottir, Jill Levin, seemingly gave up would come back. On a low spade Shawn Quinn, Valerie Westheimer, Jenny Wolpert switch, declarer could put up the queen, ruff out the Truscott Senior Swiss Teams ace of clubs, then ruff a diamond low and take a discard on the queen of clubs to finish two down. Robert Fendrick, Larry Harding, Bob Heller, John Herriott At my table and Eisenberg’s – and likely a few others – the end result was plus 500, good for 44 out of 51 Freemen Mixed Board-a-Match Teams matchpoints. Karen Cumpstone, Joan Eaton, Nader Hanna, The full deal: Michael Roche [ K J 10 3 2 Roth Open Swiss Teams ]7 3 {K 3 John Diamond, Fred Gitelman, Eric Greco, Geoff } 8 6 5 2 Hampson, Brad Moss [ A 9 8 7 6 5 [ Q 4 Collegiate Team Championship ] J 8 ] Q 9 6 5 4 The University of North Carolina - Patrick Domico, { 10 9 8 7 2 { 5 Xiyuan Ge, Ovunc Yilmaz, Jensheng Zho } — } K Q 7 4 3 [— Von Zedtwitz Life Master Pairs ] A K 10 2 Alan Osofsky, Alan Sontag { A Q J 6 4 }A J 10 9 Wernher Open Pairs Whither the Queen? Who Cares! (BM) Robert Lebi, David Lindop On this deal from the Morehead Grand National NABC Fast Pairs Teams, Championship Flight, Michael Schreiber played Tom Kneist, Ed Schulte expertly to land a vulnerable game that was defeated 2 at the other table. In the end, the queen of spades was as South at trick two? a key card, but Schreiber didn’t care which opponent Board 11. Dealer South. Neither Vul. had it. If the layout was as he figured it, the queen’s [8 5 2 location was immaterial. This was the deal (spots ]5 4 2 approximate): { K J 8 5 Dealer West. NS Vul. }5 4 2 [ K J 8 2 [ A 10 9 7 6 4 [ J 3 ] J 9 7 2 ] A 10 9 8 3 ] Q 7 {A 10 { — { A Q 10 9 4 3 2 }8 7 3 }Q 8 }K J [ 10 7 5 [ Q 9 [K Q ] Q 8 ] 10 4 3 ]K J 6 { K Q 9 8 6 5 { 7 3 2 {7 6 } K 6 } Q J 10 9 2 } A 10 9 7 6 3 [ A 6 4 3 West North East South ] A K 6 5 ———1} {J 4 1[ Pass 2{ Pass }A 5 4 2] Pass 3NT Pass West North East South 4] Pass 4[ All Pass 2{ Pass 3{ Double A trump shift may look superficially attractive, but is Pass 4{ Pass 4] partner going to produce the goods in hearts for you? All Pass Maybe, but at the table Glenn Milgrim returned a club Schreiber was playing with Jim Munday. West started to dummy. Declarer played the queen of hearts next, with the diamond king, taken in dummy with the ace. covered all around, then he tried to sneak a heart Schreiber cashed his top hearts, dropping West’s queen, through to the seven.