Moscow’s chess lovers ready to practice
by Lidia Okorokova at 06/09/2010 22:15
Source: http://www.mn.ru
Russian chess has a long and proud history, dating back to the 9th century. The game was once upon a time forbidden by Russian Orthodox Church, which used to view it as a pagan pastime, but even Tsar Ivan the Terrible played chess.
In today’s more relaxed age, Russia’s famous and not-so-famous chess players need not fear the label “heretic” – the label of “geek” may still occasionally get thrown around by those who feel threatened by the intellectual rigour of the game.
Chess in particular is viewed as a good way to develop the minds of schoolchildren, which is why tournaments are held in public schools throughout Russia.
When the weather is warm, chess is played in parks and on benches in the streets. The Shakhmatny Bulvar tournament takes place in Moscow between 24th of June and 5th of September each year.
The tournament is held at Strastnoy Bulvar, near Pushkinskaya metro, Chistoprudny Bulvar, near Chistye prudi metro, and at Gogolevsky Bulvar, near Kropotkinskaya metro.
Even though the weather is too unpredictable to play outside now, chess lovers refuse to remain idle. Many enroll in a chess school or a club in September, when the chess training season begins.
The Moscow Chess Federation combines 12 clubs and 7 schools, and there are particular ones that are worth checking out:
Children’s chess school for kids aged 4 to 12 – Prospekt 3, Universitet metro.
Phone: (495) 774 14 76
Oktyabrsky chess club – Ulitsa Bolshaya Polyanka 23, building 1, Polyanka metro.
Phone: (495) 238 88 24
Chess club No. 58 – Sirenivy Bulvar 4, sports complex Izmailovo, Cherkizovskaya metro.
Phone: (499) 166 54 26
Tigran Petrosyan chess club and school – Ulitsa Bolshaya Dmitrovka 11, building 2, Kropotkinskaya metro. Phone: (495) 694-60-49
Chess on display
Chess also has its own museum in Moscow, established in 1980, but it is currently closed for refitting and renovation.
“The chess museum may be re-opened soon with a new collection of chess that were discovered recently at a construction site in Moscow during an archaeological excavation,” chief Moscow archaeologist Alexander Veksler recently said at a press-conference at Interfax.
The museum’s collection has unique sets of chess pieces from 18th – 20th centuries, including chess boards made from jade and gems from the Urals, so one can only hope that it will be open to the public again soon.
Address: Moscow, Gogolevsky
Bulvar 14, Kropotkinskaya metro.
Phone: (495) 291-4429
So many chess clubs. Very nice.