ditzel@ssc-vax.UUCP (Charles L Ditzel) (08/08/83)
Just finished reading that Kasparov has forfeited his match against Korchnoi. Kasparov never even stepped onto American soil. The Soviet Chess Federation cited inadequate security in Pasadena as the reason for the no-show. In addition they refused to allow Vasily Smyslov to play his semi-final match against Zoltan Ribli in Abu Dhabi. They said that Abu Dhabi was too hot for chess! The Smyslov-Ribli match will be rescheduled although I think the final result of that match may not be to their liking. In any case it seems inconceivable that Korchnoi will let Kasparov off the hook by rescheduling. The split that appears to be taking place between the Soviet and International Chess Federations seems very bad for chess. There are more than a few non-Soviet chess players that have a chance at the world title.