Questions Surround Kamsky Match
By Macauley Peterson
May 16, 2008
In the past week the deadline for FIDE to receive additional bids to hold the Kamsky-Topalov match was extended for the fourth time since April 11, this time from Monday, May 12, to Thursday, May 15. That is about the only thing that is certain. On Thursday FIDE published a PDF document of a bid from Mr Oleksandr Chernenko, one of Kamsky’s managers. Chess Life has been unable to independently confirm any of the details in the bid, and neither has FIDE. ChessBase inaccurately reports that the match has been “confirmed” to occur in Lviv, Ukraine.
ChessBase cites an interview with Chernenko (in Russian) by Moscow-based journalist Yuri Vassiliev, for ChessPro.ru, and concludes, “Chernenko has stated that the financial guarantees have now been received by FIDE, at their Swiss bank account.” Both Chernenko himself and FIDE’s Athens headquarters rebut that account.
I reached Chernenko by phone in Accra, Ghana, who in fact stated that a wire transfer to a FIDE account in Lausanne, Switzerland, was initiated yesterday, but that the funds would not arrive until at least Monday afternoon.
“I don’t know all [the] details, because I am in Africa,” said Chernenko on Friday, “but it is definitely in the system.”
George Mastrokoukos, a FIDE official reached by phone in Athens, said that FIDE had received no information to confirm the details of the bid. “The only person we have been speaking to is Mr. Chernenko — I mean not myself personally, but the President [Kirsan Ilyumzhinov],” he said, adding, “These companies that are listed in their bid, we have not reached a point to check this because first of all we are waiting for the original documents and the bank transfer.” FIDE also does not know the name of the bank originating the funds transfer. According to Mastrokoukos, “the only information we have is that in two business days, the money will appear in our bank account.”
Here is the full story.
Special thanks to Macauley Peterson for sending me the information and link.
Mig has some links where it says the money has been transfered. I wonder why it was such a large amount
– Vinay
I hope the money is there but this smells rotten. I also wonder why so much money? Money laundering?
There is only one explanation why in today’s world with today’s technology they couldn’t make the transfer:
Because THERE IS NO MONEY!
Much much much much….much higher sums get transfered around the world everyday.
Heck, Chernenko couldn’t even answer from which bank it is supposed to be transfered. It is not his area, yeah right.
Every reasonable request from Kamsky’s representatives was met, now FIDE should stop this charade.