World Chess Championship - Reunification Match
 

Any chess fans?

This gets underway today in Elista, Kalmykia, between the Kasparov-toppling Vladimir Kramnik of Russia and the Bulgarian eccentric Veselin Topalov.

This match is all the more fascinating, since it is the reunification match that finally brings together the chess world's two factions. Garry Kasparov left the governing chess body FIDE in 1993, taking the World Champion title with him. Vladimir Kramnik famously beat Kasparov in 2000, becoming the 14th Classical World Chess Champion. FIDE of course established a rival title after Kasparov left (the FIDE World Championship), which is currently held by Veselin Topalov.

The championship site.

Direct link to live coverage of game one.

I like playing chess, but I haven't followed the news in years.

Now's a great time to get back into things.

I think this will be close, but not quite so close as some suggest. Once the early games are dispensed with, and despite the remarkable skill of Veselin Topalov (whom I admire greatly), I do suspect that the Kasparov-toppling Kramnik will wmerge victorious. And I will add that it will be fully deserved. That said, it'I'd add firstly that it's a great shame that Kasparov himself isn't involved in this battle, and also that Veselin Topalov will hold the unified title in the future.

Have they played eachother alot? Who won most of them?

I used to follow it, when Anatoli Karpov and Bobby Fischer played in their days. Remember the incident at the japanese airport on 2004, when Fischer apparently used a revoked U.S passport. He's also the first and as yet only american to win the World Chess Championship.

Chess had headline coverage in those days, didn't it, as a result of the Cold War and all of that. Some of the allegations of foul play from those days were incredible, for instance:

Thus the little episode in which there is an argument about the chairs on which the players will sit actually took place in Reykjavik. The Russians claimed that the chairs must have had some kind of ray, or something, that was beamed at Spassky and addling his brain. The Icelanders gravely took X-rays of both chairs, taking them apart in the process, and found no foreign substance except wood filler. The Icelanders and the press were enchanted; the whole episode was howlingly funny, and even the Russians themselves were embarrassed.

Game Result Moves Year Event/Locale Opening
1. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 11 1993 It E86 King's Indian, Samisch, Orthodox, 7.Nge2 c6
2. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 39 1994 It (cat.18) B56 Sicilian
3. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 36 1995 Novgorod RUS B65 Sicilian, Richter-Rauzer Attack, 7...Be7 Defense, 9...Nxd4
4. Topalov vs Kramnik 0-1 40 1995 Belgrade (Yugoslavia) B57 Sicilian
5. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 45 1996 It (cat.19) E97 King's Indian
6. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 36 1996 It (cat.17) A15 English
7. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 79 1996 It (cat.18) A16 English
8. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 39 1996 Las Palmas E92 King's Indian
9. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 44 1996 It (cat.19) B57 Sicilian
10. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 34 1996 It (cat.19) B57 Sicilian
11. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 80 1996 Las Palmas E97 King's Indian
12. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 29 1996 It (cat.18) D44 Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav
13. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 45 1997 04 C11 French
14. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 21 1997 It (cat.19) B57 Sicilian
15. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 36 1997 It E97 King's Indian
16. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 28 1997 It (cat.19) D45 Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav
17. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 41 1997 It (cat.19) E94 King's Indian, Orthodox
18. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 39 1997 04 A38 English, Symmetrical
19. Topalov vs Kramnik 0-1 33 1997 It (cat.19) D43 Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav
20. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 46 1998 Tilburg Fontys C42 Petrov Defense
21. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 52 1998 It (blitz) C01 French, Exchange
22. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 55 1998 It (cat.21) A34 English, Symmetrical
23. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 28 1998 Monaco E32 Nimzo-Indian, Classical
24. Topalov vs Kramnik 0-1 48 1998 It (cat.21) D58 Queen's Gambit Declined, Tartakower (Makagonov-Bondarevsky) Syst
25. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 25 1998 It (cat.17) A34 English, Symmetrical
26. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 48 1998 Monaco A04 Reti Opening
27. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 40 1999 It (cat.19), Dortmund (Germany) D15 Queen's Gambit Declined Slav
28. Topalov vs Kramnik 0-1 40 1999 Ch World FIDE (play-off), Las Vegas (USA) A32 English, Symmetrical Variation
29. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 39 1999 Hoogovens 5' A30 English, Symmetrical
30. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 29 1999 Ch World FIDE, Las Vegas (USA) D26 Queen's Gambit Accepted
31. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 35 1999 It (cat.17), Wijk aan Zee (Netherlands) C67 Ruy Lopez
32. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 28 1999 Amber-rapid 8th A40 Queen's Pawn Game
33. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 60 1999 Ch World FIDE (play-off), Las Vegas (USA) D26 Queen's Gambit Accepted
34. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 49 1999 Cat. 19 A04 Reti Opening
35. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 33 1999 It (cat.20), Linares (Spain) A35 English, Symmetrical
36. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 29 1999 Amber-blind 8th D58 Queen's Gambit Declined, Tartakower (Makagonov-Bondarevsky) Syst
37. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 50 1999 Ch World FIDE, Las Vegas (USA) C42 Petrov Defense
38. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 31 1999 XVI Ciudad de Linares 99 C42 Petrov Defense
39. Kramnik vs Topalov 0-1 33 2000 Amber-rapid 9th A43 Old Benoni
40. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 39 2000 Amber-blind 9th B66 Sicilian, Richter-Rauzer Attack, 7...a6
41. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 56 2001 Amber Blindfold D37 Queen's Gambit Declined
42. Topalov vs Kramnik 0-1 47 2001 Sparkassen Cat XXI A17 English
43. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 60 2001 Amber Rapidplay A79 Benoni, Classical, 11.f3
44. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 42 2001 Sparkassen Cat XXI A79 Benoni, Classical, 11.f3
45. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 26 2001 Corus D37 Queen's Gambit Declined
46. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 32 2002 Amber Rapidplay A04 Reti Opening
47. Topalov vs Kramnik 1-0 49 2002 Amber Blindfold E21 Nimzo-Indian, Three Knights
48. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 39 2003 Amber Blindfold B54 Sicilian
49. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 51 2003 Cap D'Agde FRA B90 Sicilian, Najdorf
50. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 57 2003 Wijk aan Zee A58 Benko Gambit
51. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 45 2003 Amber Rapid E21 Nimzo-Indian, Three Knights
52. Kramnik vs Topalov ½-½ 23 2004 Wijk an Zee Corus Chess B92 Sicilian, Najdorf, Opocensky Variation
53. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 20 2004 21st Linares B30 Sicilian
54. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 30 2004 13th Amber Rapid C78 Ruy Lopez
55. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 37 2004 21st Linares B90 Sicilian, Najdorf
56. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 41 2004 13th Amber Blindfold E15 Queen's Indian
57. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 51 2005 14th Amber Tournament: Blindfold C88 Ruy Lopez
58. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 52 2005 MTel Masters C42 Petrov Defense
59. Kramnik vs Topalov 0-1 20 2005 Corus Chess Tournament B90 Sicilian, Najdorf
60. Kramnik vs Topalov 1-0 41 2005 Dortmund Sparkassen 2005 E00 Queen's Pawn Game
61. Topalov vs Kramnik ½-½ 21 2005 14th Amber Tournament: Rapid E32 Nimzo-Indian, Classical
62. Kramnik vs Topalov 0-1 34 2005 MTel Masters B90 Sicilian, Najdorf
63. Kramnik vs Topalov 19 2006 Kramnik-Topalov World Championship Match E04 Catalan, Open, 5.Nf3

It looks like Kramnik has won it more times, but it could go both ways.

A quick look at that suggests that Kramnik is four up for games played in the last five years, but Topalov is the most recent winner.

bishop to kings prawn four!

i can play chess but havnt for years. i like the idea of two eastern european types battling it out ina game of wits like this.

I love playing Chess, but my family or friends never want to play. I'm not as good as I used to be because I haven't practiced in a while...

We should have an online chess game here...

Well of course I picked the Russian.

I must mention I don't follow this at all. I did however hear about it on the shortwaves last night. Thank you Radio Habana Cuba.

I haven't yet found a mention of it at the Voice of Russia site. The ever-reliable International Herald Tribune have this article:

A schism in the chess world that began in 1993 in London will be healed this month in Elista, the capital of the poor and barren Russian republic of Kalmykia on the Caspian Sea.

Thirteen years ago, Garry Kasparov, the undisputed world chess champion, broke with the World Chess Federation, the governing body of the game, over how the federation was organizing a match for the title.

At the time, Kasparov and his challenger, Nigel Short, an English grandmaster, staged their own match in London, which Kasparov won.

In retaliation, the federation declared that Kasparov was no longer champion and organized a match between Anatoly Karpov, Kasparov's predecessor, and Jan Timman, a Dutch grandmaster. Karpov won and the federation proclaimed him champion.

Since then, there have been at least two rival claimants to the title of world champion and efforts to resolve the dispute have fallen through.

Until now.

Beginning Saturday, in Elista, Veselin Topalov, 31, a Bulgarian grandmaster who is the top-ranked player in the world, will play a 12-game match against Vladimir Kramnik, a Russian grandmaster who is also 31 and is ranked No. 4.

The players will divide $1 million, but the winner will go away with something arguably as valuable: He will be the one, true world champion.

The competitors offer a contrast in styles.

Topalov, a physically fit man of average size, is the federation's champion by virtue of having won a world championship tournament in Argentina last year. He plays aggressively and uncompromisingly, much like Kasparov did before he retired last year.

Kramnik, who is 1.95 meters tall, or 6 feet, 4 inches, and has a cool demeanor at the board, bases his claim to the title on having beaten Kasparov in a match in 2000. His style of play has been described as minimalist, much like Karpov in his prime.

After beating Kasparov, Kramnik's play deteriorated and he slipped to No. 7 in the world rankings. But earlier this year, he revealed that he had a rare form of arthritis that had been bothering him for some time. Since seeking treatment, he has played better and he seems to be approaching his peak form.

Veteran insiders in the chess world are excited about the match and relieved that there will once again be one champion. They said they believed that the split has hurt the prestige of the game.

"The title has been cheapened," said Yasser Seirawan, an American grandmaster who lives in the Netherlands. "It really affected sponsors much to the detriment of the game. If Mercedes- Benz or General Motors wanted to sponsor the world chess championship and there is another one going on down the street, then they end up asking, 'What am I sponsoring?'"

So the chess world has gone to Elista to settle its differences. Why Elista? That has to do with the vision, or as critics say, the hubris, maybe even lunacy, of one man: Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the president of Kalmykia who is also the president of the World Chess Federation.

Ilyumzhinov, 44, who has been president of the republic since 1993 and president of the federation since 1995, has spent tens of millions of dollars trying to turn Elista into a modern metropolis.

Among the signature elements of his master plan is the largest Buddhist temple in Russia or Europe whose roof rises 60 meters above the parched steppe and a four-story glass dome called Chess City that has been the site of a number of federation-sponsored tournaments since it was completed.

The source of the money for his projects is a matter of some conjecture, with his supporters saying that it came from his years as a businessman in Moscow. Needless to say, his critics are not so sure.

What is certain is that Elista is a strange choice for a match as important as the one that will start Saturday. Last year, there was an offer from a German organization to stage the match in Germany with a prize fund of €1.3 million. Topalov, at the federation's urging, rejected the offer.

That the match will now be played in Elista, for less money, is a failure of the leaders of the federation and is emblematic of the decline of chess since the split, Seirawan said.

"It is an embarrassment," Seirawan said. "Arguably you have the most important event in chess today, or for that matter for the last few years, and nobody" - especially the world's millions and millions of chess fans, he added - will be going to Elista.

Short, who won the European Union championship last week, put it more succinctly. "Elista is a nice place," he said. "They are nice people. But Elista is not Paris." Still, he said, at least there is going to be a match. That is preferable to other formats that the chess federation has tried to generate interest in chess.

He mentioned the 2004 championship, which was held in Tripoli, Libya, and which used a knockout system like that used at the Wimbledon tennis championships. Partly because of the location and partly because the format created more opportunities for upsets, only five of the world's top 20 players participated in the tournament. It was won by Rustam Kasimdzhanov of Uzbekistan, who was ranked No. 47 at the time.

Short said, "In Libya, the world championship final was watched by two men and a dog."

This time the whole chess world will be watching, if only online.

No luck at the radio Bulgaria site, either although I did learn that the Bulgarian actress Pepa Nikolovahas died, aged 60.

I thought this was a curious venue. Are they always held here??

Funny bit at the end there.



Is that Gadaffi?

It moves about. There's been a lot of questions directed towards the Bulgarian Topalov about a Russian venue not suiting him, but he insists that he's fine with the situation. It was weird but great when the Kasparov - Short match was on, held in London, because UK television (Channel 4) were showing it live.

That certainly looks like Mr Gadaffi.

Kramnik has taken the first match.

Exciting action from today's game. Kramnik decides to check Topalov's honesty by looking away from the table to 'check something'. Topalov did not attempt to move any pieces whilst Kramnik's back was turned.



(note Mr Topalov's very nice tie)

The only person I ever played chess with was my dad...neither one of us is a good loser at that, so we don't play anymore.

I honestly can't see the point in chess tournaments, but maybe I'm too into physical competitons (NFL football and such)...

Kramnik is now 2 - 0 up after the first two games. A great start.

Topalov desperately needs to turn things around, but Kramnik is white in the nest game and given Topalov's eccentric style and his willingness to take gambles, the wins for Kramnik could really start piling up; even when under the greatest of pressures, he's always calm and calculated.

Today is a rest day, of course, but there's been an intersting press conference with our two combatants:

– Vladimir, did you notice after 31...Bxf8 that it loses in two moves because of 32.Rxg4+ Bg7 33.Qc7?
Vladimir KRAMNIK: (thinks for several seconds) No I didn’t (shakes his head).

– A question to Mr. Kramnik. Grandmaster Inarkiev said that you could lose in two moves in today’s game. I wrote out a few lines from Olesha’s novel «Three fat men»: «How to fly from the earth to a star… knows our doctor Gaspar». Do you agree that in this poem the word «Gaspar» can be substituted by «Kramnik»?
V.K.: Well, yes, that’s maybe true… To be honest, I did not see Qc7… I started overlooking White’s resources earlier. Initially I wanted to play 29…Nxg6, but then White gives fantastic mate: 30.Qxg6! If 30.Rxg6, then 30…Kh8. And after 30.Qxg6+ hxg6 31.Rxg6+ Kh7 he has 32.Rg3! I have an extra move and an extra queen, but there is no defense against mate. And after that it seems I had no choice. Maybe I have some other move instead of 28…Rxb2, like 28…Qc4, it has to be checked.

– The engine gives 31…Kxf8 instead of 31…Bxf8 drawing.
V.K.: Drawing? It looked very dangerous to me… I also overlooked 33.f5! – I considered only 33.Ng5. And it turned out that after 33.f5 exf5 34.Ng5 Black is helpless! First I thought that 33…Re7 draws, but then White just checks and calmly moves Rf1, and there is checkmate. Well, I got lucky I am not losing at once. Generally it was a very nervous game. It is in principle difficult to play after such games as we had yesterday, but it can’t be helped. On the other hand, it was probably quite emotional for chess lovers.

– Veselin, what did you prepare to 31…Kxf8?
Veselin TOPALOV: I calculated a lot, but could not find anything promising... First I thought it is winning, but then I found 35…Bg5. The position is very interesting, and I probably have to make a draw.

– Veselin, did you come to the game itching for revenge, or there were other plans?
V.T.: No, I just wanted to play good chess. But when you don’t see mate in three, there is something wrong... However, 32.Qg6 was also winning, although not in three moves. I didn’t see the mate and didn’t look for it. I figured that after 31…Kxf8 there is no win. Therefore when I saw 31…Bxf8, I was so happy that almost instantly gave a check.

– On the move 41 you could force a draw by playing Ng5 instead of f5 – did you see it?
V.T.: Yes, I did. However, I kept playing for a win. Even after 41.Вxа3 the position is objectively drawish... I thought I can take a pawn by brining the king to d6, but – I got into a time trouble...

– Vladimir, could you imagine before the game that you’ll have two points after two games?
V.K.: Of course I could not think about it. My task was to get into the match, to catch my form. It is nice that I took solid lead, but there is a lot of struggle ahead; it is obvious that my opponent will try to strike back.

– A question to Veselin – how do you plan to spend the day-off? The main task is probably to forget everything?
V.T.: Generally I am good at forgetting (laughs). I stand losses well. I just need to have some rest.

– Every player makes plans for a match, especially for such a short match. Will you have to readjust your strategy to the new situation, or you’ll keep following the initial plan, despite such a poor return?
V.T.: I won’t make any changes. I play strongly, and get good positions, but one just has to convert them.

– Vladimir, while Veselin was developing his kingside attack, you moved very quickly and confidently. How much bluff was in your quick reactions? Or did you really see a defensive plan?
V.K.: Actually I just miscalculated, thinking that 29…Nxg6 is good. Of course, I rushed with 28…Rxb2: it was necessary to calculate the line, and I just roughly evaluated it, 30.Rxg6 Kh8, Black wins... I thought I am just winning, to be honest. And when I spotted that 30…Nxg6 runs into 31.Qxg6, I started feeling bad, and slowed my pace down.

– Veselin, on several occasions you moved too quickly in key positions, was it an attempt to display confidence?
V.T.: Bearing in mind my time troubles at every control, I don’t think I played quickly.

– I meant your quick reaction at critical moments of the games...
V.T.: But in those games every move was critical, and I could not spend 20 minutes on each of them...

– A question to both players: during these two games, how many times it occurred to you to offer a draw?
V.K.: We are playing such positions that there is little chance for such offers! Actually, I offered a draw yesterday, but it was based on wrong positional assessment. I thought the game is close to a draw, and started the negotiations when Veselin repeated the moves... And today’s game was so sharp that draw offers were out of question. Of course, had White abstained from 20.g4, one couldstart thinking about draw, but after that move the position becomes really sharp.
V.T.: I never offered a draw – I liked my positions in both games. I could force a draw in the first game, but I had an advantage. In the second game White had a strong attack after 20.g4, even if this move is risky.

– Veselin, I am looking at you, and you do not look like Schwarzenegger. What makes you such a superb fighter? What makes you keep fighting and never offer draws?
V.T.: One has to win games in order to win matches, and how can you win games by offering draws in better positions?

– Veselin, in my opinion you made a mistake going for immediate revenge in today’s game. One must not throwing oneself on the opponent like that!
V.T.: I see no connection between today’s and yesterday’s games. Each game has to be considered separately. And I wanted to play chess, especially having White.

Two drawn games have taken place since then, with another rest day due tomorrow.

Topalov's problems have only intesified though: 3 - 1 down to a great player who can afford to play his naturally sensible game all the more, and with just eight games to try and tuen things around.

I would like to watch these games: Am I being a spazz in not being able to get them to work? I've got Java installed, but it's still being wrong.

The live stuff isn't working for me either. I'm looking through the cards when the games are over.

From ChessBase.com:

Topalov threatens to abandon the World Championship Match
28.09.2006 Breaking news:

Veselin Topalov, through his manager Silvio Danialov, has cast suspicion on the behaviour of Vladimir Kramnik, who is leading 3-1 in their world championship match. The Bulgarian team has examined the video recordings from the rest rooms and notes that Kramnik is visiting the bathroom, which has no video surveillance, unreasonably often. Press release.

Press Release

To the Organizing Committee
of the match Topalov vs Kramnik

To the Appeals Committee
Mr. Makropoulos
Mr. Azmaiparashvili
Mr. Vega

To all mass media

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The careful study of the video recordings from the rest rooms done by the technical experts of the Bulgarian team revealed the following facts which we would herewith like to bring to your attention:

1.After each move Mr. Kramnik immediately heads to the rest room and from it directly to the bathroom. During every game he visited the relaxation room 25 times at the average and the bathroom more than 50 times – the bathroom is the only place without video surveillance.

2.Unlike Mr. Kramnik, the World Champion Veselin Topalov spends his time mainly at the playing table. The average number of times he visited the rest room and the bathroom is 8 and 4 respectively.

A short statistical sample derived from the camera recordings in the rest room during the third game shows:

15.54 – Kramnik plays move 15
15.55 – Goes into the bathroom
15.56 – Goes out of the bathroom
15.57 – Goes into the bathroom
15.59 – Goes out of the bathroom
16.03 – Goes into the bathroom
16.04 – Goes out the bathroom
16.07 – Comes out for move 16

The behavior of Mr. Kramnik is very similar to the above during all games played so far.

The logical question arises: How many times during a game does a player need to go to the bathroom and with what regularity? The logical answer is: between 5 -10 times at the most, but not 50 as the statistics from the games played so far shows.

We would like to once again remind you that the bathroom is the only place without video or audio surveillance.

In our opinion these facts are quite strange, if not suspicious.

In relation to the above, and to ensure the best conditions for fair play and rule out all suspicions we demand:

1. To stop the use of the rest rooms and the adjacent bathrooms for both players.
2. If a player needs to go to the bathroom, he can use the public bathroom, but only with permission from the Arbiter and accompanied by an assistant arbiter.
3. The Organizing Committee should present the video tapes from the rest rooms to all journalists accredited in the press-center so that they can verify for themselves the facts described by us.

Should this extremely serious problem remain unsolved by 10.00 o’clock tomorrow (September 29th, 2006), we would seriously reconsider the participation of the World Champion Veselin Topalov in this match.
28.09.2006
Elista Sincerely:
Silvio Danailov
Manager of the Bulgarian team

I am not sure I understand this bit. Or maybe I understand, but it's just too crazy.

And what could he actually be doing in the bathroom?

The bathroom is the only place that's not covered by either audio or video surveillance. So it's possible that this could be abused - messages or advice on moves could somehow be relayed to someone wishing to exploit the situation. The top-level chess world is traditionally full of paranoia, suspicion and allegation.

It does sound silly at first, but he is going to the toilet a lot, I suppose.

The whole saga can be followed here and also on news services.

Some would ridicule this as nothing more than the machinations of the unpopular Mr. Danailov, Topalov's manager, but maybe there is an issue here that needs to be fully addressed?

Anyway, Topalov won a game today, playing black.

But it seems so risky (the risk of being caught) to have some device to communicate with someone outside or to arrange some other sort of communication with outside when in the bathroom (especially if it is very obvious that you go an awful lot to the bathroom), that I am bit puzzled as to how this can happen. Or maybe it's just that I do not have a big experience in cheating, so all of this is too confusing for me.

Maybe all this bathroom-going is just a way to make the opponent lose his concentration, but i would assume not everything is allowed to distract your opponent...

Is it not possible he's got "dietary problems"? I realise that's making excuses a bit, but then, surely there's wouldn't be anyone to give advice in this situation? Surely 'Mr Squits' is the only person who can advise him on his own game?

People have died over these sort of allegations though, haven't they...

I want to learn how to play chess.

Nothing can be proved, but the potential for exploitation is there, and in the world of chess suspicions are aroused rapidly and allayed rarely. My personal view would be that merely to spend so much time away from the board is a little ungentlemenly, if not against the rules. Certainly, the comment can be made that to visit the toilet quite so often is highly unusual - there's no apparant medical justification, so the explanation presumably lies elsewhere.

All in all, I suspect that you are absolutely right - if these visits are not for the purposes of cheating then in all likelyhood they are a form of gamesmanship designed to distract the opponent.

In their findings, the Appeal Committee, they state four conclusions, the first of which is: (a) To close both the toilets in the players’ rest rooms and to open another toilet that will be available only to the two players.

We now have the situation where Topalov may quit because demands are not being met, and Kramnik threatening to quit because his rights are being infringed by the above ruling: Mr. Kramnik will stop playing this match as long as FIDE is not ready to respect Mr. Kramnik’s rights, in this case to use the toilet of his own restroom whenever he wishes to do so..

Yes, I have just read that in the link that you gave. Dietary problems or not, they will be sharing the same toilet.

Now, what I want to find out: has Kramnik an habit of going a lot to the toilet during games? Did he act the same way during all the previous games against Topalov?

In any case, there seems to be a lot going on during this championship.

Today just gets better and better:

"The issue of the bathrooms" has been resolved

Today the representatives of the two teams agreed on the allocation of the restrooms between the players. The rooms will be assigned to each player on a permanent basis until the end of the match. After this, the representatives of Topalov’s team made a thorough inspection of the room allocated to Mr. Kramnik. A detailed report of the inspection was prepared. It was signed by the Bulgarian side and the representatives of the Organising Committee.

The parties remained satisfied with the inspection.

Full story, with pictures, here.

With all the problems apparantly sorted today saw another drawn game, which makes it

Topalov 3 - 4 Kramnik

with five games to go.

Well well well. Topolove has taken today's game, leaving the score

Topalov 4 - 4 Kramnik

with four games to go.

...

4-4 hmmm... It's getting exciting. The journey to the toilets was humorous.

It's the same as the recent ball tampering incident in the cricket; some say that these things bring the game into disrepute, but really the intricacies and suspicions serve to add even more interest to proceedings.