Here is an excerpt of the letter from Mr. Stephen Boyd to Chess Today about why GM-elect Marie Sebag, French #1 female player, and one of the top seeds in the Women’s World Championship, did not attend.
“Dear Alexander,
I think maybe you wanted more information about Marie Sebag and why she didn’t go to Nalchik…
Marie Sebag had in fact every intention of going, but with the dramatic situation in the region she went to see our foreign ministry. She was strongly warned not to go and she took their advice…
Yours sincerely,
Stephen Boyd, International Arbiter”
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
37 out of 53 players that went there are already casulties of the dramatic situation in Nalchik. They just disapeared from the tournament. I predict that until 18th of September all but 2 players will disapear from Nalchik.
So you see they were right all along. Look how many people already disapeared.
According to the rules, those who didn’t attend and don’t have a satisfactory explanation will be barred from the next cycle!!
It’s a perfectly satisfactory explanation. What were other country’s ‘foreign offices’ saying at the time?
Well, in June the U.S. State Department warned citizens from going there. And that was before the Russia-Georgia was broke out.
Maybe because the US ministry of foreign affairs somehow already in June knew that something was going to happen there…
I wonder why!
If the foreign offices warned them in June, then why did they sign to participate in JULY???
Only that Canadian player declined to participate in advance (by not signing the player undertaking). All others signed.
Why did they do that if they felt it is unsafe to go there???
So while Georgians can get away with satisfactory expalanation, the others (like Krush ans Sebag) can’t. Thats why they should be expelled from the next cycle.