21st February, 2003

THE game of chess has had a long and chequered history in Iran. Along
with India and China, it can lay claims to the games origins nearly
2,000 years ago.

Even the first mention of chess in literature appeared in a Persian poem
some fourteen hundred years ago, and the object of the game,
"checkmate", derives from the Persian "shah", for king, and "mat",
meaning helpless or defeated.

Yet, despite this long connection with the royal game, Iran holds the
distinction of being one of the few countries in the world to have
banned chess, as Ayatollah Khomeini, during the Islamic Revolution of
1979, outlawed the game. However, much like alcohol, gambling, sex and
opium, chess didn't really disappear; it simply went underground to
avoid detection.

It's only recently under a more moderate administration that the game
has been allowed to flourish again - Tehran being the surprise venue in
2001 for the final of the FIDE World Championship match between Vishy
Anand and Alexei Shirov. However, there still remain pockets of
opposition. Hardline ayatollahs in the city of Kashan very publicly
imposed a "fatwa" a couple of years ago reaffirming the ban on the game,
as they burned chess boards in protest.

A six-game match between Iran's sole grandmaster Ehsan Ghaem-Maqami and
Britain's Nigel Short recently ended in Tehran. The match was staged as
part of the 10-Day Dawn celebrations to mark the victory of the Islamic
Revolution, with former world championship challenger Short comfortably
winning the match 4-2 (two wins and four draws) to take the $5,000
winners purse.

E Ghaem Maghami - N Short
Tehran match, (4)
Reti's Opening
1 Nf3 d5 2 c4 d4 3 b4 Bg4 4 Qb3 Bxf3 5 Qxf3 c6 6 e3 e5 7 Qg3 Nd7 8 Bb2
Nh6 9 Bd3 Qf6 10 c5 a5 11 a3 Be7 12 0-0 0-0 13 f4 Rfd8 14 exd4 exd4 15
Nc3 Nxc5 16 bxc5 dxc3 17 Bxc3 Bxc5+ 18 Kh1 Bd4 19 Rab1 b5 20 Be4 Nf5 21
Qh3 g6 22 Bxf5 Qxf5 23 Qxf5 gxf5 24 Rfc1 Ra6 25 Rb2 Bxc3 26 Rxc3 b4 27
axb4 axb4 28 Rc1 c5 29 h3 Ra5 30 Rc4 Rb5 31 Kg1 f6 32 Kf2 Kf7 33 Rbc2 b3
34 Rb2 Rd4 35 Rc3 Rxf4+ 36 Ke3 Re4+ 37 Kf3 Reb4 38 Re3 c4 39 Rc3 Rd5 40
Ke2 h5 41 d3 Rxd3 42 Rxc4 Rxc4 43 Kxd3 Rb4 44 Kc3 Rb8 45 Kd4 h4 46 Kd3
Kg6 47 Ke3 Kg5 48 Kf3 f4 49 Ke4 Rb7 0-1

JOHN B HENDERSON