World Chess Championship 1975
The 1975 World Chess Championship was never played due a dispute over the match format. Champion Bobby Fischer (USA) was to play Anatoly Karpov (Soviet Union) in Manila, commencing June 1, 1975.
Fischer refused to play the standard "Best of 24 games" match, instead asking for the old-style "First to win x games" format. He also requested that the champion retain the title in the event of a 9–9 score. As a compromise, FIDE offered a "Best of x games and must win y of them" format. Fischer refused and telegrammed his resignation as FIDE World Champion. FIDE then agreed to a "First to win 10 games" match, but did not concede the 9–9 score request. Deadlines were extended for Fischer's reconsideration, but he did not respond, so Karpov was named World Champion by default on April 3, 1975.
Read more about World Chess Championship 1975: 1973 Interzonal Tournaments, 1974 Candidates Tournament
Famous quotes containing the words world and/or chess:
“The cycle of the machine is now coming to an end. Man has learned much in the hard discipline and the shrewd, unflinching grasp of practical possibilities that the machine has provided in the last three centuries: but we can no more continue to live in the world of the machine than we could live successfully on the barren surface of the moon.”
—Lewis Mumford (1895–1990)
“But compared with the task of selecting a piece of French pastry held by an impatient waiter a move in chess is like reaching for a salary check in its demand on the contemplative faculties.”
—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)