12 Established 1961 Sports Tuesday, March 27, 2018 Checkmate or knockout: Chess boxing lands a punch The rules of chess boxing are simple BERLIN: With his dental guard still in his mouth and a in boxing,” said Cazeneuve, 24, a recruitment consult- slightly queasy feeling in his gut, a shirtless Thomas ant. “I held on thanks to my mental strength,” he added. Cazeneuve was exuberant after checkmating his oppo- In fact, “60 percent of the winning moves are made on nent during a chess boxing bout in Berlin, the world the chessboards and 40 percent in boxing,” said capital of the unusual sport. Rubingh, a 43-year-old Dutchman. Recalling the Just as deft in the movement of his rooks as with his sport’s gestation, chess-lover Rubingh said that it fists, Cazeneuve claimed victory against his Ukrainian began in 2002, when, after a round of chess that ended challenger after seven alter- in stalemate, he suggested to nating rounds of boxing and a friend that they go for a chess. The match played out boxing bout at a bar in before a crowd of curious Amsterdam. “The idea was onlookers drawn to the spec- born, but we were sober,” he tacle of the so-called You need to said. “Combined, the two “Intellectual Fight Club”. sports are the amalgamation Chess boxing was born 16 be good in of the most beautiful capaci- years ago when its founder ties of human beings to cre- Iepe Rubingh brought to life both disciplines ate a type of supreme a seemingly far-fetched idea being,” he said. The author from a French graphic novel, of the graphic novel, Bilal, “Cold Equator” by Enki Bilal. told AFP that he found it Today, Rubingh has set his “rather amusing that the sights on introducing chess boxing to the Olympics and idea that was potentially absurd had become reality”. even looking at sending robots into battle, as the multi- disciplinary sport gains popularity. The rules of chess ‘MORE KASPAROV THAN TYSON’ boxing are simple. Three minutes of gentlemanly chess While it was considered more a curiosity than a real played on a board in the ring is alternated with three- sport in the beginning, chess boxing has gained a minute bouts of intense boxing over 11 rounds-six of strong following, including chess fans who have crossed BERLIN: File photo shows Daniel Biman (R) and Mohamad Kadija attend a chessboxing fight during an chess, five of boxing. over to the more physical realm of boxing. Alina Rath, a amateur fight event at the Intellectual Fight Club IX in Berlin on December 15, 2017. — AFP The winner has to earn either a boxing knockout or 29-year-old German, has been a member of a chess a checkmate on the chessboard, but either chess boxer club for 20 years but only began adding boxing to the can be disqualified for taking too long to make a chess mix in August. “Chess boxing breaks down cliches of MAN VERSUS ROBOT? companies to partner him in organising a series of move or by breaking the boxing rules. the rough guy who only knows how to beat up the Regular exhibition games are organised, pitting matches pitting men against robots. weak intellectual,” said the accountant. Although Rath players of all nationalities. “Our aim this year is to cre- “I would fight against a robot with artificial intelli- ‘WE WERE SOBER’ says she feels “more like Kasparov than Tyson”, she ate a professional league financed by investors and gence and which is much stronger than us in chess but “You need to be good in both disciplines, which can said she was tempted to sign up for the dual discipline partners,” said Rubingh, who is pushing for the sport to also weaker in terms of reflexes,” he said. “Every year, I be quite complicated. But it’s true that one mustn’t be after five years of practice in mixed martial arts. be included in the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024. would challenge the best of the robots and it would afraid of being punched,” said Rubingh. The biggest Some 3,500 people are card-carrying members of 11 To gain publicity for the sport, Rubingh has another become increasingly difficult for me to win as they difficulty may be staying lucid to pull off the winning federations in countries including Britain, Iran and seemingly space-aged idea up his sleeve. This time, he improve. chess move despite the physical demands of boxing. Russia. And it is Berlin that is the undisputed headquar- is turning to science fiction guru Isaac Asimov for “The day that I lose, the machine will have overtaken “It was my toughest fight with a rival who is a total ters of the sport after the World Chess Boxing inspiration. Taking a leaf from Asimov’s series depicting mankind,” said Rubingh, who is dreaming of a million- all-rounder, and who has left me exhausted, especially Organisation was set up there in 2004. man’s fight against the machine, Rubingh wants robotic dollar fight in New York’s Times Square. —AFP Advantage Vettel, Stung Mercedes but Hamilton can vow to bounce feel confident back after ‘one LONDON: Sebastian Vettel won the first round of what could be a long and lively Formula One title fight with that got away’ Lewis Hamilton on Sunday but the Ferrari driver may be the one with more to worry about as they leave Australia. Champions Mercedes messed up in MELBOURNE: Mercedes have vowed to bounce Melbourne, their mistake denying Hamilton what had back in Bahrain next month after throwing away looked a nailed-on victory from pole position, but they Sunday’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix to also left rivals in no doubt about their pace. Ferrari, with team boss Toto Wolff admitting it was “At the moment we’re a bit worse off,” Vettel told tough to take. Sebastian Vettel got the jump on reporters after repeating last year’s opening win thanks world champion Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes blun- to a pitstop during a virtual safety car period that dered their calculations on the Ferrari ace’s pit stop wrong-footed Mercedes, whose data wrongly indicated MELBOURNE: Ferrari’s German driver Sebastian Vettel (C), second-placed Mercedes’ British driver Lewis under Virtual Safety Car (VSC) conditions. Hamilton had him covered. Hamilton (L) and third-placed Ferrari’s Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen (R) attend a press conference after Vettel went on to keep Hamilton at bay for his “Last year we had more pace at this point. If you the Formula One Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on Sunday. — AFP second straight win in Melbourne and third overall. look at the gaps the whole weekend, we’re not yet a It’s a defeat that sticks in the craw of Mercedes and true match,” added the German, who is vying with team principal Wolff, who is determined the cham- Hamilton to become a five-times champion. But rivals also pointed to Mercedes’ qualifying ‘par- tail of Raikkonen. “We are convinced that we had a pion team will not repeat the same error again. “I think if you look, and you are fair, then Lewis was ty mode’ engine setting with concern. “Mercedes is better car than Ferrari, though the Mercedes still prob- “This was one that got away and it’s a bitter pill for fastest whereas last year I think we were fastest and it playing with everyone... with that engine, no one can ably had something in hand,” said Red Bull principal us all to swallow,” Wolff said. was very, very close.” Last year, Vettel led from beat Mercedes. They’re in a different world,” Red Bull Christian Horner. Melbourne is a hard track to overtake “Following Lewis’s pit stop, we believed that we Melbourne to Monza before his challenge imploded. motorsport consultant Helmut Marko was quoted as on but Bahrain is next up and more open. Vettel won had the scenarios of both the safety car and the vir- Hamilton took pole on Saturday with one of the saying after qualifying. Despite the pessimism, and the there last year when it was the third race of the season tual safety car covered, so that Sebastian could not great qualifying laps of his career, lapping a massive absence of Red Bull drivers from the year’s first podium, but Hamilton will also fancy his chances. pit and come out ahead of Lewis on track. 0.664 quicker than Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen. The time Melbourne did not dispel hopes of a three-way team “We still got second. It feels like a dark cloud but it’s “We should have been several seconds safe, then may have flattered him, with the Briton producing a battle. Australian Daniel Ricciardo, who finished fourth not,” the Briton had said on Sunday. “We have a great suddenly saw on the TV screens that we were not. near-perfect lap while Vettel would doubtless have after starting eighth following a grid penalty, set the car, we are still the world champions and with a couple “Of course, under the VSC sometimes you benefit been closer had he not made a mistake. fastest lap of the race for Red Bull and was right on the of adjustments we can win the next race.” — Reuters and sometimes you lose out but it was clearly a problem on our side and we need to analyse that to understand what happened and correct it.” Wolff said what was particularly frustrating was that Mercedes had the pace to win the Melbourne Professionalism race.