It has been several days since all Armenians and the Armenian diaspora are celebrating the brilliant victory of the Armenian men’s chess team in the World Chess Olympiad in Istanbul. The champions are rewarded, and the Armenians celebrate the chess players’ glorious victory and meet them as heroes.
Chess mood is indeed inviting. A number of countries merely live by chess (https://www.inlobby.com/en/countries.html). The analysts say that the interest towards chess is in continuous growth. Chess schools, hotels in form of chess figures, communities, cities – the tendency keeps growing.
The Russian media sources cite that yet in 2007 FIDE announced of its intention to build chess hotels throughout the world. 165 countries were noted in the list where chess-like hotels could be built. For example, up to now the Russian Kalmykia operates a large complex devoted to chess. FIDE has held three major international tournaments here: in 1998 – XXXIII Chess Olympiad, in 2004 – Women’s World Chess Championship and in 2006 – the International Chess Tournament.
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One may stroll over a line of chess thematic sculptures, artworks, spaces designed for competition. In the nearest future suchlike chess towns are going to arise in a number of other cities as well.
Chess mentality
The chess helps to develop strategic and analytical thinking, improves brain concentration, scientists claim. The study results showcased that chess players are more patient and better concentrate.
The scientists believe that public needs to be constantly infused by love towards this game, and get engaged in chess at least at the amateur level, thus facilitating the progress of one’s own clarity of mind, stability, and health.
As per their studies, chess also helps students to advance in education and showcase more vivid progress. The results of experiments also say for that. It’s worth mentioning that in number of countries, such as Armenia, Brazil (https://www.inlobby.com/r/rio_de_janeiro.html), China (https://www.inlobby.com/r/countries.html), Venezuela, Italy (https://www.inlobby.com/r/rome.html), Israel, Russia, Greece and elsewhere chess has been included into the list of mandatory subjects.
Nutty facts about chess
The history of chess has witnessed cases, at least one, when in fact the chess game proceeded without capturing the enemy’s soldiers. In the course of 94 steps, no soldier was captured and thus the game ended in a draw.
The chess board is known to have a «black hole», a notorious point where most of the chess soldiers are captured.
Chess historians claim that live-chess was first practiced in Spain (https://www.inlobby.com/r/madrid_hotels.html) as a result of cruel and malicious execution by famous inquisitor Pedro Arbues. The prisoners were executed directly on the chess board, where prisoners embodied chess soldiers. Each time the figure was captured, the prisoner was executed.
This powerful mind game is worth watching over a glass of whisky too. Well, German chess player Emanuel Lasker proved it by a chess match with grandmaster Geza Maroti. Each chess soldier was merely a glass of alcohol drink. When capturing any figure, the player drained the content of the drink. This game was lost by Maroti, as he drained 200 grams of whiskey after capturing the enemy’s chess figure.
Chess is also associated with a relatively new kind of sport, started in 2003. Here it goes about chessboxing, a unique hybrid of chess and boxing. Quite in a short lapse of time this sporting won the accolade of worldwide audience. The match consists of 11 rounds: in odd matches competitors play chess, in even matches – keep boxing. The motto of the chess-boxing speaks for itself – “Fighting is done in the ring and wars are waged on the board.” The first tournament of the games was held in Amsterdam (https://www.inlobby.com/r/amsterdam_hotels.html) in 2003.