Three Scottish GM norms...

[Geoff Chandler]

...are just waiitng to be handed out.

We run a closed shop a tournamnt with all the Scottish GM's and three chosen candidates.
The GM's lose all their games to the chosen candidates.

The beauty of it is it won't cost a penny to run. We make up the games....
...infact we won't even have to bother doing that. We will just nick already played games.

To far fetched?

The Don Cup, Azuv, Russia, 2010 handed out 3 GM norms and 3 IM norms. (Congratulations)
Apparently The tournament is to be the subject of an investigation due to one or two (or six) things that have come to light.

Six games from each event match up 100% move for move. Here is just one.
Yes you can get duplicate games in well known GM prepetual/draws but six identical games from two tournaments?
Six long identical games that produce a positive reuslt in each one? I don't think so.

D. Yamnov - V.Eryomenko, Don Cup, Azov, Russia 2010

and…

Mobile Chess - Sjeng, 16th World Computer Chess Championship Beijing, 2008

White hanging on letting Black get two Queens to mate him is clear computer play.
A human at that level would resign. They should have used a different game or tampered with the ending.

[pos]8/5p1k/p2P2p1/5q2/6K1/6P1/7q/8 w - - 0 47[/pos]

[pgn]1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.Bg5 e6 7.Qd2 a6 8.0-0-0 h6 9.Be3 Bd7 10.f4 b5 11.Bd3 Be7 12.Rhe1 0-0 13.Nxc6 Bxc6 14.Bd4 b4 15.Nb1 e5 16.fxe5 dxe5 17.Bxe5 Qa5 18.Bd4 Rfd8 19.c3 Rac8 20.e5 Rxd4 21.exf6 Bxf6 22.cxd4 Ba4+ 23.Bc2 Bg5 24.b3 Bxb3 25.axb3 Qa2 26.Re8+ Rxe8 27.Qxg5 hxg5 28.g3 Rc8 29.Rd2 Qxb3 30.d5 Qa2 31.Kd1 Rxc2 32.Rxc2 Qxb1+ 33.Kd2 b3 34.Rc8+ Kh7 35.d6 Qa2+ 36.Ke3 Qxh2 37.Kf3 g4+ 38.Kxg4 Qe2+ 39.Kh4 g6 40.Kh3 Qe6+ 41.Kh2 Qxc8 42.Kg2 b2 43.Kh2 Qc2+ 44.Kh3 b1Q 45.Kh4 Qh2+ 46.Kg4 Qf5[/pgn]

You can get the 2010 Azov games here:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://ratings.fide.com/tournament_details.phtml?event=49234">http://ratings.fide.com/tournament_deta ... vent=49234</a><!-- m -->

...and the 16th World Computer Chess Championship 2008 games from here.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.grappa.univ-lille3.fr/icga/tournament.php?id=178">http://www.grappa.univ-lille3.fr/icga/t ... php?id=178</a><!-- m -->

[Alex McFarlane]

But you would need a FIDE licenced arbiter to run it!!!

Where would you get one of those willing to sanction this deception? Not in Scotland.

[Matthew Turner]

Where would get enough money to pay the GMs to throw all the games? I'm not sure, but I wouldn't want to put you off from looking

[andyburnett]

But you would need a FIDE licenced arbiter to run it!!!

Where would you get one of those willing to sanction this deception? Not in Scotland.

Who was the arbiter in charge at Azov? Is there a way of checking this?

[Matthew Turner]

The arbiters are listed in Geoff's link.

[andyburnett]

The arbiters are listed in Geoff's link.

Thanks Matthew - I should have thought of that, but unfortunately last time I followed one of Geoff's links I ended up watching a bizarrely dressed man playing chess to a background of bells chiming? =o

[Geoff Chandler]

We don't have to pay the GM's to throw their games.

They won't know. I can run the tournament from my bedroom.

Mathew if your grade takes a minor unexpected tumble and me, Keith Ruxton and Andy Burnett get GM norms.
Then I hope you will understand. (you can come 4th if you want.)

I got all this info from here: (a genuine link Andy)

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://rjlipton.wordpress.com/2013/07/27/thirteen-sigma/">http://rjlipton.wordpress.com/2013/07/2 ... een-sigma/</a><!-- m -->

Ken Regan is one of the high heid yins investigating cheating in Chess.

[andyburnett]

Cheers Geoff, I read that one via the ECForum before I saw your post here. Bit too much on the mathematical side for me to fully follow, but got the gist of it.

[Andy Howie]

The only problem is for a titled tournament, FIDE insist it has to be a titled licensed arbiter. I can't see too many of them wanting to lose their licenses for something like that.

[Patrick McGovern]

Mathew if your grade takes a minor unexpected tumble and me, Keith Ruxton and Andy Burnett get GM norms.

can I get another GM norm? 8)