Win with Grace, Lose with Dignity
Every year I travel to countless places across the United States to promote chess, especially for young people. In each lecture, I always discuss the issue of sportsmanship. “Win with grace, lose with dignity” is my motto, as well as the motto of the Susan Polgar Foundation. Our children need to be taught proper etiquette.
One of the common complaints from many parents and coaches is that kids are being taught “dirty tricks.” The following is just one example:
One player is losing badly, so he reaches out and offers his hand. The opponent is under the impression that the player is resigning. Therefore, he also reaches out his hand. All of a sudden, the losing player yells out: “Draw.” When the other player disputes it, the losing player says that it is too late. They already shook hands.
I am even more horrified to learn that there are parents and coaches who actually teach things like this. They believe in winning at any cost. Other tricks include constant pretend coughing, offering a draw on each move, kicking opponents under the table, etc.
These are not good examples to learn from. I hope that all parents and coaches will steer their kids in the right direction by teaching good sportsmanship. Winning is great, but I believe that teaching our kids right from wrong is far more important.
Other topics can be read in my monthly column here.
The constant annoying coughing and moaning happened to my daughter once at a big tournament. She was totally distracted and lost the game and was devastated but since then she has gained 300 rating points and her opponent has lost 200 rating points. Cheating will only get you so far.
It’s the parents. Some of them will do anything for a perceived advantage. When we were in Denver for the Nationals, I had to go to tournament directors twice because fathers (not from New York) refused to let my daughter use her own digital clock when she was black. Other parents told me of stories of their kids going to the bathroom and returning to the board to find that the pieces had moved.
These parents and coaches are only doing their kids a grave injustice by promoting cheating. They will never actually learn the skills required to make real acheivements instead looking to the shortcuts.
Don’t ask your opponent what the time controls are: they’ll lie and you’ll flag.
Watch out for opponents who adjust the clock so that you have less time when you’re not looking.
I suppose one can program a chess clock so that your opponent’s time clicks faster and your time clicks slower. Perhaps you should bring a wrist-watch to make sure everything is ticking correctly.
Would that be a draw if they shook hands?
What other examples can you tell us to watch out for?
Cheating in chess? No, it’s a myth.