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Meet the New Chess Boxing Champion of the World
Posted by
timothy
on Mon Jul 07, 2008 03:09 AM
from the milda-shibonis dept.
from the milda-shibonis dept.
Attila Dimedici writes "A Russian man has just been crowned world champion in the sport of chess boxing. Apparently the idea originated in a French comic strip from the early '90s. In 2003 a Dutch artist decided to bring the 'sport' to life. The 'sport' is played by starting a chess match in the middle of a boxing ring. After four minutes, the chess board is cleared and the opponents box for three minutes. A match consists of six rounds of chess and five rounds of boxing. A match is decided by knockout, checkmate, or points."
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That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard (Score:5, Funny)
Actually, this may not be as idiotic as it sounds. (Score:5, Interesting)
Gotta say, not for me, to say the least, but I'll be very curious to see how this evolves and what kinds of people end up getting into it.
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Re:Actually, this may not be as idiotic as it soun (Score:5, Interesting)
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Re:Actually, this may not be as idiotic as it soun (Score:5, Interesting)
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Re:Actually, this may not be as idiotic as it soun (Score:5, Interesting)
That is best, but you don't always have the leisure to pick your shots from a position of rest. When you're doing sprint drills across a field with an assault rifle in your hands and you have no chance to catch your breath before taking your shot and continuing to sprint, you need alternative techniques that will accommodate the physical condition you're in.
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Who is tougher? (Score:3, Interesting)
In my experience, I would say that a disproportionate percentage of the people I've known who played chess avidly were bright guys from less educated backgrounds who simply weren't aware of as wide a range of intellectually stimulating activities as the average person I've known wit
Re:That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever hea (Score:5, Funny)
They can't televise it!
The First Rule of Chess Club is You Do Not Talk about Chess Club!
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Re:That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever hea (Score:5, Funny)
They can't televise it!
The First Rule of Chess Club is You Do Not Talk about Chess Club!
Oddly enough, The First Rule of Date Club is also You Do Not Talk About Chess Club.
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Re:That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever hea (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't think it's ridiculous at all. Anyone trained in any martial art (not just eastern, count boxing, fencing, etc. as well) will probably agree.
Keeping your senses and your ability to think during a fight is anything but trivial, and requires a lot of training.
Most regular people would probably have trouble just remembering how the pieces move after a few minutes of fighting, with all the adrenaline pumping and your whole body in "I have no time for thinking" mode.
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Re:That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever hea (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't think it's ridiculous at all. Anyone trained in any martial art (not just eastern, count boxing, fencing, etc. as well) will probably agree.
Keeping your senses and your ability to think during a fight is anything but trivial, and requires a lot of training.
Most regular people would probably have trouble just remembering how the pieces move after a few minutes of fighting, with all the adrenaline pumping and your whole body in "I have no time for thinking" mode.
Perhaps ironically for a geek, I don't know what it's like to be good at chess, but I do know what it's like to be good at fighting.
A lot of intelligent people aren't good at fighting because they overanalyze a fight. It's helpful to watch other people fight and analyze, but in a fight you have to be in the moment. I knew an architect who was very physically powerful, but never able to fight well because he tried to think strategically during a fight. He was always thinking, if I do this, then he'll do that, then I'll do this etc. A cunning fighter is one who reacts in the moment, in a way that is both appropriate and unpredictable.
"Thinking" in a fight -- if it can be called that -- is not sequential, nor is it analytical. It's more wholistic and intuitive. Even a swift reasoner cannot project future scenarios fast enough to keep up with the present, and being in the moment is critical. The reason the average person can't remember the details of a fight is that he isn't paying attention. He's thinking about the past ("that punch hurt") or the future ("I'm going to get murdered.") An experienced fighter is aware of every detail without being stuck on any one.
Although I can't say from experience, I wonder if this means being good at chess isn't a little like being good at sparring. My faults as a chess player are like the faults of my architect friend as a fighter; although I have formidable analytical skills, they aren't a match for somebody who moves with the swift assurance of being familiar with the scenario. I spend too much time dealing with the shambles of my "strategy" to take advantage of the opportunities my opponent's moves create.
As far as silliness is concerned, all sports are silly if you look at them the right way. Chess and barehand fighting are individual sports pared down to the minimally interesting essentials: two individuals striving to gain advantage over each other. Perhaps arm wresting is more basic, but not sufficiently complex to invite tactical analysis.
In any case, Chess Boxing is clearly a sport tailor made for Russia.
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Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Well I was once competing pretty seriously in martial artist and chess tournaments (During the same several years oddly enough) I think there is more commonality to the approach than you would expect. (Ignoring the fact that I would have loved to lay the smack down on a few of my more obnoxious chess opponents)
In both chess and martial arts you memorize a large number of moves and counters and execute the basic opening with no need for thought. My favorite chess opening I had anywhere from the first 12 t
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
I believe the study you are referencing is actually discussing a different phenomenon. (I.e. The fact that some chess grandmasters can play many simultaneous matches based on glancing at the board as they walk playing many different opponents.
Basically they learn to rapidly recognize opportunities that average chess players might miss. However if you put a couple good players in the crowd you easily beat the grandmaster by forcing them into a early bizarre gambit and playing off of them being distracted.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Think Rani Yahya vs. Kid Yamamoto, or for more proof go back and watch Jeremy Horn's second fight with Ch
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
But punch strength doesn't determine most fights. A lot of fights are over before the first punch is thrown. And boxers learn one vitally important thing: To take a hit and go on.
I (remotely) know a guy who used to do professional boxing. He's in his 40s now. Some time recently a gang of early 20s made some rude comments about his wife on the street. He was in the middle of them and had the "lead" guy by the shirt before they were quite done. He had no fear and made it clear that if they wanted a fight, sin
Re:Nikopol Trilogy (Score:4, Insightful)
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Other Media (Score:3, Informative)
There's also the movie Immortel (ad vitam) [wikipedia.org], also written and directed by Bilal himself, roughly based on the same story as the Nikopol trilogy.
And Benoit Sokal's Whit Birds Productions [whitebirds...ctions.com] have a point'n'click adventure game called Nikopol, based on this series in their pipeline.
new sport.. (Score:5, Funny)
Hmmm....
I have come up with a new sport come April
Tax-Sex
You sit in the middle of the Kitchen and agonize over deductions for 10 minutes, then do it doggy style on them thar reciepts.
Re:new sport.. (Score:5, Funny)
Certainly not at the H&R Block....
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Re:new sport.. (Score:5, Funny)
I've been getting fucked on my taxes for years.
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Re:new sport.. (Score:4, Funny)
God that's sad - your post just reminded me to pay a late credit card bill, and now my finances are square for the month! Now where are the nipple-clamps?
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Re:new sport.. (Score:5, Funny)
This sport, combining complicated tax work with being fucked hard, already exists: they call it "getting an audit".
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I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't see a problem. Fighers don't fight outside their class, so why would they do it when chess-boxing. Bruiser vs. nerd would be a very odd matchup. This is a game for intellectual pugilists.
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Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:4, Funny)
Mike Tyson would bite the other player's pawns heads off.
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Re: (Score:3, Funny)
-b
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:5, Informative)
The chess part is speed chess, which can be quite difficult and heavily favors those who are well practiced in strategy and able to make decisions faster.
Players are given 1 - 5 minutes each to win a game, which generally does not result in a checkmate outcome. Rather, the person whose time expires first loses. The best strategy is to set up complex positions on the board that require ample thought on the part of your opponent and watch his or her time expire.
I would put my money on the chess player who can roll with the punches and make effective 1 second moves on the board. You can do rope a dope sometimes by letting other players move very quickly and eating up their major pieces when they make a mistake.
M
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Much more than 5 minutes of chess (Score:3, Informative)
It's stated that there are 6 rounds of chess with 4 minutes per round. That works out to more than 20 minutes of chess, not "1 - 5 minutes to win."
I've played competitive Lightning (5 mins) and Speed (15 mins) chess before. Ample time to win a game in both modes.
Most difficult part here is probably trying to remember your plan after the boxing.
Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:5, Informative)
> Players are given 1 - 5 minutes each to win a game, which generally does not result in a checkmate outcome
Do you actually play chess ? Blitz games often ends in checkmate, because the player with the biggest time pressure will blunder.
I have seen my son give otb (=over the board) checkmate in rapid chess to someone 300 ELO higher than him with 3 seconds vs 5 seconds left and 8 moves.
Of course, the player with worst position can choose not to move and lose on time, but it is the stupidest thing to do, because in chess, you can think on the opponent time
Just look at the tie-break in US women championship [chessbase.com]. 11 seconds vs 2 seconds. Wanna bet who won ?
Lurk around playchess.com. You'll see 1 minute bullets games (ie: 1 minute for each opponents). The average rate of play is higher than 1 move per second, and they generally finish in checkmate.
PS: slashdot formatting is borken for me. Can' do proper paragraphs. Such is life
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Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:4, Interesting)
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Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:5, Interesting)
I thought the same thing, and figured they must have rules against this type of play.
But then couldn't a boxer like Mike Tyson immediately win the world champion title in the second round of the fight?
No, the WCBO's statutes foresee a minimum ELO ranking of 1800 in chess. Each competitor has to fulfil this minimum standard in order to participate in an official chessboxing fight. Someone like Mike Tyson would need years of training to reach this standard...
In addition, there's also the zugzwang rule. When a chessboxer doesn't make a move and the referee has good reason to believe that he or she is doing this deliberately, a warning is issued. When the chessboxer still fails to make a move, a second warning is issued whereupon he or she is forced to make a move. If no move is made upon the second warning, the player is immediately disqualified.
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Re:I'd put money on the boxer any day (Score:4, Funny)
I, for one, am 100% behind any sport that has anything called a "zugzwang rule".
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Why is this not on TV? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Why is this not on TV? (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:Why is this not on TV? (Score:5, Funny)
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Afterwards in a rare exhibition match..... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Afterwards in a rare exhibition match..... (Score:5, Funny)
Post Fight Interview :
"Yeah I came out throwing hard. I was pretty much gassed with only a minute left in the round. He got me in that guillotine choke and I only barely got out. But then at the start of the next round, I hit him with a "QUOITED" on a triple word score, pretty much sealed the deal, I really want to win with a knock out, but I'll take the win on points."
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Re: (Score:3, Funny)
I would so play in the "Counter Strike / Kick Boxing" league...
"Pwnwhat? Damn sniper. Come here! I'll tear your head off."
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Codeboxing (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, we have something like that at my company called codeboxing.
Developers receive documentation and go off to work on something. The moment they run into an ambiguous or poorly defined requirement, they jump into the ring with the person who wrote it for up to 6 rounds of boxing. Between rounds, they refine the language of the requirement. The match is decided by a panel of managers, agreement between the two parties, or knock out.
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Battle Chess Nostalgia (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Battle Chess Nostalgia (Score:5, Informative)
Whereas archon, just because you move the piece to a spot doesn't mean you get to eliminate the piece - what it does is it starts up an arcade battle between the two pieces.
The two pieces could be a knight versus a dragon, and if you are really good at the knight you could actually kill the dragon, it helps of course if the dragon was badly injured in previous battles and was not healed by the player (it costs a move to heal, so heals are rare).
Also in the first archon, white pieces and black pieces get health bonuses depending on whether the square is black, dark gray, gray, light gray or white.
Overall there was some strategy involved but it's typically overshadowed by arcade skills.
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I'm not sure Enki Bilal would be proud... (Score:4, Informative)
There is also a hockey game in the first book which ends with something like 3 goals and 5 kills for each team.
BTW : In the book, the chess-boxing match ends with the main protagonist (possessed by a god) killing his opponent with some kind of laser shot from his eyes during a chess round.
Fucking Awesome (Score:4, Interesting)
I want to see No Holds Barred Halo Boxing. Then I get to beat the crap out of the guy who thinks hes so cool with the sniper rifle.
Let's see you pwn me now!
Seriously though, this is really awesome. I have never really been into boxing or UFC, but if that dude also had to beat the guy at Chess or some other game of skill, then that makes it very very interesting.
Not just brute force.
I can see some little nerd being undefeated in the ring since he could never lose the match within 4 minutes... but going to the hospital the day he does.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
The UFC is not "Just Brute Force" you ignorant jackass. If that were the case Brock Lesnar would be destroying everyone and Sean Sherk would have torn BJ Penn apart for the lightweight title. Skill, strategy, the ability to think and act under pressure are all more important that brute force.
Please do not propagate ignorant stereotypes.
french comics author is Enki Bilal: details (Score:3, Informative)
a sample of the original comics series: http://www.darkshire.net/~jhkim/archive/freerpgs/heritage/mobworld.htm#Chess%20Boxing [darkshire.net]
Article Logo (Score:3, Interesting)
Is this some new way of cashing in by directing links to websites?
1. Sign advertising agreement with other news website
2. Post article to idle.slashdot.org (?????)
3. Profit!
Self desturcting sports (Score:5, Insightful)
Prior Art (Score:5, Funny)
Sort of. 20 some odd years ago my room mate considered combining rugby and chess and called it "full contact chess".
We played beer chess instead. Somebody had a 4'x4' chess board. Pawns were Mickey's, rooks were Fosters, queens were a bottle of wine etc. Every time a chess piece was taken you had to drink it. We rarely lost; against the beer drinker types we just out played them, against the chess player types we'd trade down pieces early and out drink them.
Simpler times ...
Belthize