Mig Greengard just posted the following on his ChessNinja website:
“From a source very close to the Linares/Morelia organizers comes word that Radjabov was compensated by the hotel for the theft of his dad’s computer but that to stay and play he wanted additional compensation from the organizers. 100,000 euros of compensation!”
What do you think about this if true?
I faced with the similar situation last year at the Women’s World Chess Cup in Dresden, Germany. Minutes before I played my final match against IM Elizabeth Pahtz, my bag which included my one week old state of the art laptop (and all my chess data in it) was stolen when I was doing an interview with the German National TV. I took it with me because I was worried about the hotel security. The bag was placed next to the playing table.
I had 2 choices:
– Play with a big handicap of emotional stress right before the game
– Pack my bags and go home
After consulting with my coach Paul Truong, I decided to play anyway because I did not want to disappoint the fans and the organizer. They spent good money to host the event and I did not want to offend them. I won the match but my computer was never found.
Should Radjabov stay and play anyway or should he go home as he did? What do you think?
I think the two cases might be a bit different. In a hotel room, particuarly one arranged by the organizers of an event, one has a reasonable expectation of security. Out in public, this expectation is diminished somewhat. I can understand Radjabov’s frustration, given that he did not do anything even remotely careless to open himself up to crime.
That said, I think it would have shown admirable strength of character to continue on, despite the setback.
Brad Hoehne
Where can I follow the live games?
Are ICC or Chessbase relaying the games live?
If I was an organizer I would think twice before inviting him.
It is not the same case Susan: with or without your computer databases you are a GM rated 2577 and against a IM I am absolutely sure about who will win.That means you had real victory chances.
You did it well.
Radjabov did just one good tournament playing with the elite group…but I believe he plays worse than Topalov,Anand and Aronian.For him is a big handicap to play without his computer:What about to lose 30 rating points and be the last one in Morelia/Linares?
He had only one way.
This should be a lesson to all GMs:
a] Encrypt all your data. Not hard to do to make it unusable for everyone but yourself.
b] Store your laptop in the Hotel Safe and never assume it is safe elsewhere.
c] Have a back-up laptop ready that can be shipped to you (just incase of theft or breakdown) within 24 hours notice with the required files.
d] Be mentally prepared for this to happen as it has happened to others in the past.
One might sympathize with him if he had said to the organizers: “Even though the hotel has compensated us, the episode has upset me so much, and the data on the laptop is so important to me, that I don’t think I can perform well in the tournament. Therefore I am withdrawing”. If he had said this, one might have thought that he is bit of a whimp, and not quite as professional as he should be, but you could sympathize with it.
But if the story is true, and he said, in effect. “I am just so upset I cannot play. But if you pay me 100,000 euros in ‘compensation’, then I am not after all too upset to play.” That is simply trying to take advantage of the situation and is completely unacceptable.
If it is true, Radjabov has probably made himself persona non grata as far as future invitations to high level tournaments are concerned. No organizer should risk inviting him and getting held up for whatever “reparations” Radjabov decides he merits. He isn’t a must-invite player, and there are plenty of other players at around his level to invite. Too bad to have destroyed a promising professional career.
What you (Susan) did or did not do has no bearing on this. If he was too upset to play that is fine. However, if he was saying he was too upset to play unless paid so many dollars in compensation, then that to me is just greediness. However, I will not acknowledge that this is what happened until all the facts are in. Rumors like this get started quickly, and then it seems no one can see the facts due to all the fog.
I’m not saying wether Rajabov, should have left the tournament because of the theft. It would have been neat if he stayed, however I agree with Jose A Delgado that the comparison with your situation is not the same. You were only playing an IM. You should have been able to beet her with your eyes closed! Rajabov is playing the best chess players in the world.
I cannot believe the story about the 100,000 euros.
And I do not believe it because a professional in chess must be smart,probably very smart…and that story looks like the most stupid and out of ethic move I have seen if it is true.
Sorry,for me it is not possible!
I cannot believe it!
I am not a GM lol but whenever I go to Foxwoods to play in the Under 2000 section I bring my laptop. I never leave it in the room unattended. I goes with me everywhere. I will leave this as anonymous because i wouldnt want to be identified as someone with an expensive at Foxwoods.
I am not a GM lol! However,when when I go to Foxwoods to play in the Under 2000 section I bring my laptop. I never leave it in the room unattended. It goes with me everywhere. I will leave this as anonymous because i wouldnt want to be identified as someone with an expensive laptop at Foxwoods.
Monday, February 19, 2007 6:01:00 PM
is this espionage or just robbery? i would love to have teimour’s secret files!!!
The New York Giants are due to play the Dallas Cowboys at the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, the day before the event, the laptop that contains the Giants playbook is stolen from the hotel.
Because the Giants are too upset, they refuse to play.
Makes sense to me!
“Should he or shouldn’t he?”
I agree with Radjabov. For more than one reason.
1. If he had on his laptop the planned strategy for each upcoming game, and if his laptop was stolen to obtain such data (if existed), than it is a definite disadvantage.
2. The larger than above reason:if some people are willing to break in to his hotel room for his chess related items, what else may be brewing?
In relation to the Kramnik-Topalov circus, I wrote several times on this blog: regardless whether Kramnik cheated or not, regardless whether previous or later accusations against Topalov (about cheating) were true or not, the world of chess must embrace the idea that cheating in chess became POSSIBLE.
Combine that with other crimes and you got some real problems on your hand. On Radjabov’s level, nobody should put up with such potential combination.
Gabor
If the hotel fairly compensated Radjabov for his loss, that should have been the end of it. He then had no reason to demand additional money from the organizers. There’s a word for that: extortion.
SP, you were not faced with “the same situation”.
Why does everything come back to you: are you running for office or something.
Sorry, one publicity story too many.
compensated yes, 100,000 euros? lol
– Vinay
Cowboys vs Giants in the Super bowl??? 2 NFC teams??? Got to love the lousy comparisons people come up with.
I seriously doubt the chess data was compromised. Most likely the thief wiped the laptop, and resold it already. But you have to feel bad for Raja…
I think Radjabov should think twice before complaining about the police not investigating, if the area is high crime area as he suggest, I would think they have more important things to allocate their resources to than a tourist/chess player who’s laptop has been stolen and is extremely unlikely to be recovered. Just make a travel insurance claim!
As for damages,I doubt he will get anything let 100,000 euros one can hardly blame the organisers, find me a city in world where it is safe to leave your laptop unsecured and unattended, that’s just careless.
Perhaps Radjabov felt emotionally unequal to playing, so named an arbitrarily high price for doing so, not expecting it to be taken seriously. Something along the lines of “I feel so bad you’d have to pay me 100,000 euros to play.”
I suffer from emotional distress from reading about stolen computers on the chess blog. Therefore the blog owes me 100,000 euros to compensate me for my damages. I will accept cash or a bank check. If there is more profit in having a lap top stolen than in winning the chess tournament, the participants should switch careers and become professional victims.
I do not think this is good journalism. Before publishing one needs to check the sources of the information. I do not think this should have been printed without confirmation.
It is extremely unlikely to be a true story. These false stories are hurting chess. Mig needs to shut up. And Susan can join him.
Even a 5 year old would say the story was a fairy tale. But adults here believe this. It sounds to me like another story started by Danailov. Outrageous false statements that his band of fans will fight to the death to proclaim. We are in for more trolls. How long will it take for this story to die out.
Whether or not Radjabov made the demand for additional compensation is irrelevant, his stated reasons for not playing certainly seem valid. He may have been traumatized by this incident and if he did not feel up to playing, it is certainly his right to withdraw. This is especially true, if at the beginning of the tournament, his laptop, containing much of his preparation has been pilfered. Replacing the laptop seems like fairly lame compensation. I have to agree that the organizers are responsible for making sure that the participants are provided with safe lodgings. Radjabov is perfectly justified in withdrawing.
>>The New York Giants are due to play the Dallas Cowboys at the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, the day before the event, the laptop that contains the Giants playbook is stolen from the hotel.
Because the Giants are too upset, they refuse to play.
>>
You think Linares is the World Championship, then? And you think a crime against a team has the same impact as a crime against an individual? Seems pretty silly on both counts.
>>Radjabov is perfectly justified in withdrawing. >>
He’s justified in withdrawing, but the 100,000 euros, if true, is just silly. He can’t be expected to play if he can’t even feel safe against personal assault. But the money wouldn’t make the neighborhood any less unsafe.
Susan, I think the issue here is whether Radjabov should have held up the sponsors for more money. My answer is: No, he should not have. If he was too frightened to stay in Morelia and play, then more cash wouldn’t change that. If he wasn’t that frightened, this is just opportunism.
I hope this isn’t true.
According to Radjabov, the hotel room burglary was a profesional job carefully planned. He said that he and his father were concerned because they could have been harmed in some way had they been in the room at the time or had they surprsised the burglars. Radjabov also said he was disappointed at the attitude of the authorities, who seemed unconcerned for his safety.
In your case, there was a lady’s bag left unattended, presenting a crime of opportunity and some dishonest personed siezed the moment. At no time where you in any danger. Tighter security probably would have made little difference. There was little more you could do but report it to the police and probably little the police could do afterward. I’ve had thing stolen from my car overnight, although it was locked, and that was all I could do.
I’m sorry for the loss and distress it caused you. That I understand from my experiences, too.
By the way, I looked at your games and Frln. Pahtz last year and you both played exceptionally well in that match. Congratulations to you for winning it and to both of you for for good, fighting chess.
Maybe the Giants should ask for 10,000,000 million from the Networks to play?
Radjabov may well feel that the data on his machine was worth 100,000 euros, I understand he stored the backup with the computer itself, so perhaps the situation can be compared with an artist losing a portfolio of paintings not yet displayed publically.
Hard to gauge its worth.
I can well imagine he told the organisers words to the effect of what was stolen being *worth* 100k to him, and the message getting garbled in translation, Im sure the truth will come it.
Either way, if he felt psychologically that playing the tournament would have left him with no victories, a vastly diminished rating with consequently fewer tournament opportunities then dropping out was a good choice.
I do not think organisers will think badly of him for that, and if Morelias website is anything to go by, these guys could do with getting their acts together on more than one front.
If he did act like a petulant brat and demand 100k to play its another story, and an insane demand. 100k is more than the prize for first place isnt it?
Let’s read again the question:
“What do you think about this if true?”.
I don’t want definitely to form my opinion on somebody based on rumors and I don’t want to judge him based on rumors too.
Dean
Let’s see the good part in all this story:
Without Radjabov’s withdraw we coudn’t see Ivanchuk crushing Topalov in the way he did it!
Are they sure it wasn’t 100,000 pesos?
susan your situation was not the same at all. you were one game away from the end of the tournament – his hasnt even started.
his computer was intended for home study, preperation and analysis for/during the tournament. your computer would not be as much of a help to you – you had a single game left to play.
whether he was entitled to ask for a 100.000 euros is questionable. but it is quite his choice to start the tournament or not.
oh god Susan,
I do not know why you keep giving yourself as an example of Righteousness – I mean no one can be as you. You are morally above us all.
Quite frankly, laptops and so on should be have insurance – so it is the insurance company which will pay for the thefts. On the other hand, the organization whould provide that the guest feel safe.
If that’s the case – than Radja is an ASS!!
Rastamann
To those who can’t believe the story, read the following excerpt from Radja’s letter, firstly published on Chessbase; I ‘ve put significative words in caps:
“The Mexican Morelia/Linares Organizers have refused my request for FAIR COMPENSATION of incurred damages and I have been FORCED to withdraw from participating in this tournament due to the complete LACK OF ANY SUPPORT and emotional reasons. I have provided them SEVERAL OPTIONS and time to come to a reasonable decision, but to no avail.”
It’s pretty clear, isn’t it? His emotional damage could be compensated in some way… He didn’t chose to withdraw, he was forced to ! lol lol
“From a source very close….”
Rumors, rumors and more rumors. What is happening with chess press!?
“What do you think about this if true?
“
Susan, why are you even posting this?
If there was a rumour posted that you had non-consensual sex with a marsupial do you think it would serve any purpose for me to blog it and ask my readers ‘What do you think about this if true?’ ????
There is so much interesting stuff to fill a chess blog these days. why waste time on rumours? How is this any different than toiletgate? its an accusation that may or may not turn out to be true. Didnt you come out against this sort of stuff saying it was bad for chess?
whether he was entitled to ask for a 100.000 euros is questionable. but it is quite his choice to start the tournament or not.
No. It was not an open tournament. He received an invitation for one of eight berths in the tournament, and he accepted. That means someone else did not receive an invitation who might have done so. He was probably paid travel expenses and an appearance fee.
That is a contract, even if it was not in writing, which it very likely was. Radjabov is contractually committed to perform his side of the arrangement.
Fortunately for the tournament, another top-level player was available at the last minute to take Radjabov’s place. Radjabov turned not to have the organizers over a barrel as much as he probably supposed.
The organizers would be within their rights to sue him for non-performance and their inconvenience. A court would then decide whether a hotel room robbery was a force majeure excusing Radjabov from performing. I doubt it. But I also doubt the organizers will sue because of the difficulty of suing a person from another country. We don’t know what the organizers losses were: how much they had to pay Ivanchuk to step in, but it likely that the legal costs would exceed the damages they could expect to recover from Radjabov. One must also factor in the bad publicity they would receive from suing a player for non-performance. Many fans and other top-level players will automatically side with Radjabov in this sort of situation. Even though from the facts that have been reported, Radjabov is completely in the wrong and has forfeited all the sympathy that he would otherwise have had in this type of situation, there will always be people who will excuse his behaviour because he plays chess well.
>>Radjabov is completely in the wrong and has forfeited all the sympathy that he would otherwise have had in this type of situation, there will always be people who will excuse his behaviour because he plays chess well.
>>
Not sure you’ve thought this out very well. Nobody’s cited his talent as an excuse, and people have dropped out of invitational tournaments before for far less cause than this. Without having read his contract, or even knowing if there is one, you can’t possibly know what it says.
I dont blame him for dropping out, in fact its shameful tath this kind of events happen, but hey its the real world unfortunately.
good luck or as u say break a leg!
do u think Topalov is still affected by Elista´s trip, the lost to Ivanchuck reminded me of it.
SP is our chess goddess. She is morally above us who are nothing but mere mortals.
People who say they don’t blame Radjabov for dropping out do not understand the point. Of course, Nobody blames Radjabov for dropping ! The point is that he insinuated that financial compensations (what else could be understood as compensations?) could make him to play the tournament…
Opportunism to gain profit from his misadventure… I hope he’ll regret it, and be able to admit his error.
Hi,
it is hard to judge. TR has taken decision on his own risc I hope.
He had had to consider the consequences of leaving, losing invitation chances.
I can not blame him.
Regards
Pony
>>Nobody blames Radjabov for dropping !>>
Did you read the long post 4 above yours? Looks like somebody does.
>>Opportunism to gain profit from his misadventure… I hope he’ll regret it, and be able to admit his error. >>
Maybe. Assuming he did it at all. If you read Susan’s story, she said she was just passing along an unconfirmed rumor.
Even if he did, the sum is so big, it’s hard to believe he expected to get it. Probably he just wanted to leave no matter what, but wanted to be able to say he offered to stay. Maybe make an insulting offer to repay the perceived insulting behavior of the organizers.
we should just stop this discussion because we are getting nowhere. We are only discussing the ‘what if’. It’s enough.
Susan said:
I had 2 choices:
– Play with a big handicap of emotional stress right before the game
– Pack my bags and go home
After consulting with my coach Paul Truong, I decided to play anyway because I did not want to disappoint the fans and the organizer. They spent good money to host the event and I did not want to offend them. I won the match but my computer was never found.
From what I read in local newspapers (in Dresden) afterward, the organisers agreed to some generous compensation (Source: Organising Committee of the Dresden event) for Susan’s stolen laptop.
So – did you get compensated for this unpleasant episode (this is what I gathered from press statements of the organisers) or not (this what I read from your post) ? In any case, the decision to continue the tournament was appropriate. Especially if you consider that the use of the laptop minutes before the last games of a rapid tournament is limited anyway.
No, I was not compensated. I did not ask for it either.
The point is not about how the laptop could have helped me. The point is something that I just paid $3,000 for 1 week earlier was stolen and it has all my data in it. It was very upsetting.
Best wishes,
Susan Polgar
http://www.PolgarChess.com
Thanks for your reply; so seemingly the Dresden organizers only tried to make this incident appear settled.
I fairly clear remember them hinting at compensation, though. Anyway, hope you have not too bad feelings anymore. Certainly it is not a typical crime around here.
Here is the link to the original article (please note that this is a machine generated translation by “Babel Fish Translation”) in the Cambio de Michoacán.
The absence of Radjabov weighs
The third paragraph contains the outrageous claim…
Let me try again (it might work).
The absence of Radjabov weighs
Go home! Dont let sumthin like that disrupt u and then let ur fans down even more cuz u lost becuz of a laptop