Licensing players, A Context.

Ref: Here.

Sometimes we may feel that we are personally under attack when we are unable to see the context of an action or argument. So for today let us try to find some context for this action. For this thinking exercise let us just make the following assumptions.

Let us assume that Fide believes that sports is something that is meant to unite rather than to divide. And so Fide believes that politics has no place in sports. Let us also assume that Fide as the world body sees that it's success as a whole is also dependent on the performance of its parts ie the National Federations.

Lets us also say that Fide thinks that they can get big and long term sponsorship for the sports of Chess if it can clean up it's act. And if this happens, Chess may also be included in the Olympics.

Many assumptions I know and we have no experience of Fide other than our own experience with MCF. And so we look at Fide as an extension of how MCF conducts it's actions. But for today, I ask you not to make that connection. For today, lets just say that MCF is the child that has gone astray and the parent wants to bring the child back into the fold.

To help in this visualisation process, let us say that Nicol David was found to have cheated her way to the World Championship. Very difficult to imagine because we are all so proud of her. But lets just try this for a little while. What would happen to the game of squash? What would happen to the really good sponsors that want to ride on her reputation as a fierce and clean fighter? What would happen to their branding?

If we can see that, then maybe we can also see that the Licensing of officials and players may make some sense if there is indeed match fixing on a serious scale. Peter implies that this is a plot by Ignatius to destroy Chess. Ref: Comments here. And some may believe him because we have no other examples except that shown to us by Jimmy, Peter and MCF. And so the whole world must be like them. In Malay they say that view is "macam katak di bawah tempurung". Ergo, missing the context.

Those few supporters of Jimmy and Peter have never been overseas to fight in a tournament. They have not invested heavy time and money and trained like our National Juniors. They may not even be able to see suspect games as their level is around club level and not at the level where they are able to do so.

And so they assume that Fide also cannot see suspect games just like themselves. And Jimmy and Peter is able to ask them to get angry with Fide. Just like they ask them to get angry with the Juniors and other strong players who want a shot at selection for the senior squad after they have invested in expensive lessons and playing overseas for Malaysia on their own dime. You see, in Malaysia, at the Age group and Junior level the parents pay. At the senior level the sponsors pay.

This is not the situation overseas. Overseas the Federations help their Juniors get sponsors. Overseas they think of this concept which in Malay is described as "berlapis". In Malaysia the seniors have been playing for Malaysia without challenge for donkey years. If challenged they attack the Juniors and anyone else who dares to try to protect them. In Malaysia we find that we only support the age groups in terms of organising International Tournaments for them but the parents pay for everything. Then at the Junior level we only send one out at a time so they may be destroyed by our overseas competitor.

And still it is the parents that pays for that too.

And then the seniors remain to get their free holidays without selection although they may not be able to play chess anymore. How? Even if you stop for one year as we have found, others will overtake. That is the game of chess. What happens when you have not played for 20 years in Open Tournaments or Selection? But still they refuse to give others a chance.

And so the suspect games and suspect tournaments come out together with their PR campaigns. And they rely on many people's ignorance to continue playing for Malaysia without selection.

So maybe, just maybe, there are people in Fide who can see this and the licensing is one way not to let this get out of control and destroy chess in whole Countries. Some of us know that there have been Countries in the past that sold Fide ratings and were punished by Fide. How is this different? So maybe this is just another way for Fide to police the situation.

Maybe in Fide, they take action when there are genuine complaints in distinct contrast to MCF who uses their authority to support the gangster type behaviour of attacking the training of Juniors by a GM, of attacking the players when they dare to train for a selection etc etc etc.

Just maybe yes? If we can understand the context.

Authority is given to the police to catch the criminals. And not for the criminals to use the police to attack innocent people who are just doing their own work according to the law. So how do we know that Fide is not exercising their authority legitimately? On the word of Peter, who follows and respects no laws? Who can ban without any legitimate grounds? Context.