Dutch Treat
by Hans Ree

Veterans

I have touched on the dreary subject before and this will not be the
last time. When the doping testers come into our lives, I will not
give them my blood, nor my urine. This might lead to my being
banned from official chess competitions, which would be terrible,
the worst disaster in my life. But let's look at it from the bright
side. I haven't been playing many tournaments lately anyway and
having to consider myself the kind of person that would yield to
such nonsense, would be worse. So, there is little choice.

Jan Timman once said on Dutch television that he wouldn't submit
to doping tests either, because he considered them useless and
humiliating. But what if it really came to them? He plays chess a
lot. It is his life and the source of his income. Can he be expected
to give this all up? For him the choice would be really hard.

When last year chess journalists wrote about the spectre of doping
control, the Dutch Chess Federation was not impressed. Typical
journalistic panic-mongering, they felt. It would pass away, they
said. Our federation was exempted by the government for the year
2000 from the duty of adopting doping laws and in the meantime a
report would be published by NeCeDo (Dutch Centre for Doping
Problems) that would prove once again that chess-enhancing
substances did not exist. No problem at all.

The report came and of course it did indicate several substances
that would be able to improve the functioning of the mind. What
would one expect from a centre for doping problems? Of course,
the effects were said to be small, the indicated substances might be
counterproductive, the scientific literature was ambiguous... But if
an organization like NeCeDo wouldn't find problems where they
do not exist, it might as well dissolve itself. 

So, now what? The Dutch Chess Federation finds doping
regulations senseless, but they are demanded by our Minister of
Sport, Mrs Vliegenthart. Would the federation want to do without
Timman? No, of course not, but it also would not want to do
without Vliegenthart's subsidies.

The federation is still pondering the issue. Our bridge and draught
federations have already given in. Don't give way, Dutch Chess
Federation, don't yield to the whims of the crazy witch Vliegenthart
who wants to thrust me out of the chess world! What profits can all
the subsidies of the world bring you when Timman is not allowed
to play chess?

Timman said once that it would be a nice idea to organize a
tournament where all kind of brain enhancers would be freely
dispensed to all players, who would find them in nice little bowls
on their tables in the tournament hall, courtesy of the sponsor.
Indeed an excellent idea. It wouldn't be very difficult to find
generous sponsors for the Smartchess tournament.

One candidate would be Mr Van der Wielen of Numico, a Dutch
firm that makes pills consisting of vitamins, minerals, brain
boosters and all kinds of "maximum-life-span" stuff. So enamored
is Van der Wielen of his often exotic products, that he expressed
the opinion that the Chinese live longer than the Dutch, because of
their traditional acquaintance with life-sustaining herbs and roots.

Coincidence had it that on the day I wrote this column, my
newspaper published a page-long article about three Dutch top
managers - one of them being Mr Van der Wielen - and how they
kept themselves smart and sharp, to the benefit of the economy and
all of us lesser mortals. The article was entitled "Pill Gorgers".

Of course, top managers have to stay smart, everybody understands
that. During dinner, before dessert, the three captains of industry
went together to the toilet to see if the color of their urine still
allowed for some alcohol-taking. No fear in their minds of a
sneaky doping tester, standing ready with his litle bottle, not with
them!

Every health store, drugstore and even many supermarkets
nowadays provide bottles or caskets of ginkgo biloba. It has been
all the rage for the last five years. Supposedly good for blood
circulation and oxygen supply to the brain and therefore good for
mental concentration and memory. I wouldn't know, but many
doctors say that it works even if you don't believe in it. Be that as it
may, this popular product is denied by NeCeDo to Dutch chess
players. Ironic that in an age when everyone is encouraged to
become smart, chess players are forced to stay dumb, on threat of
expulsion from their trade.

Dutch Chess Federation, when you consider your decision, think
also of the older players! Few are the senior citizens nowadays
whose general practioner does not prescribe for them one of these
memory-enhancers, it's almost standard practice. Should the senior
citizen's chess and bridge clubs become the happy hunting grounds
of the infamous drug testers? No, for supposedly they will restrict
their distasteful activities to professional chess players. But some
of these are old too.

What will be the fate of Dutch chess patron Joop van Oosterom's
yearly "Ladies against Veterans" tournament? Would there be a
drug tester so foul that he would dare to ask ex-World Champion
Vasily Smyslov (79) for his blood and urine? And would the great
man oblige? And proud Viktor Kortchnoi (69), would he? I cannot
imagine he would.

This year's "Ladies against Veterans" tournament was held in
Munich and therefore called the Schuhplattler tournament, after a
Bavarian dance that involves much shouting and wielding of axes
and saws. As far as I know, nobody was hurt.

The ladies won 27-23, but the best individual player was once
again Viktor Kortchnoi.

White: Galliamova Black: Kortchnoi, Schuhplattler, 3rd round.
1. e2-e4 c7-c6 2. d2-d4 d7-d5 3. Nb1-d2 d5xe4 4. Nd2xe4 Bc8-f5
5. Ne4-g3 Bf5-g6 6. h2-h4 h7-h6 7. Ng1-f3 Ng8-f6 8. Nf3-e5
Bg6-h7 9. Bf1-d3 Bh7xd3 10. Qd1xd3 e7-e6 11. Bc1-d2 Nb8-d7
12. f2-f4 Bf8-e7 13. 0-0-0 c6-c5 14. Bd2-c3 0-0 15. Ne5xd7
Qd8xd7 16. f4-f5 Qd7-d5 17. b2-b3 Ra8-c8 18. d4xc5 Qd5xc5
19. Bc3-d4 Qc5-a3+ On the site
http://chess.lostcity.nl/schuhplattler/ there was a daily report
written by Dutch IM Paul Boersma from which I have derived
most of the following notes. Here, according to Boersma, 19...Qa5
was much better. 20. Kc1-b1 Nf6-d5 21. c2-c4 Nd5-b4 22.
Qd3-e2 b7-b5 23. f5-f6 Be7xf6 24. Bd4xf6 g7xf6 25. Ng3-h5
f6-f5 26. Nh5-f6+ Around here people were starting to look for
White wins and finding them, one being 26. Rd2 Nxa2 27. Qd3.
26...Kg8-h8 27. Rd1-d2 Rf8-d8 28. Qe2-e3 Kh8-g7 29. Nf6-h5+
Kg7-g6 (See Diagram)

Bravely forward, avoiding a draw by repetition, but Black is taking
a big risk. 30. Rh1-h3 After the game, 30. Qg3+ was analysed to a
win for White: 30...Kxh5 31. Qg7 (threatening 32. g4+ fxg4 33.
Qxf7 mate) and among other fruitless defenses Boersma gives
31...Rg8 32. g4 fxg4 33. Qxf7+ Rg6 34. Re1,  which is still quite
complicated after 34...Nd3 35. Rxd3 Rf8, but it seems that 36.
Rd5+ exd5 37. Qxd5+ does the trick. 30...Rc8xc4 An unexpected
defense 31. Rh3-g3+ Rc4-g4 32. Rg3xg4+ f5xg4 33. Nh5-f4+
Kg6-f5 34. Qe3-c5+ e6-e5 35. Rd2xd8 Qa3xa2+ 36. Kb1-c1
Qa2xb3 37. Rd8-d2 Things have been an obscure mess for the last
few moves and after this White will be in real trouble. Much better
was 37. Nh5. 37...Nb4-a2+ 38. Rd2xa2 Qb3xa2 39. Nf4-d5
Qa2-c4+ 40. Qc5xc4 b5xc4 41. Kc1-d2 a7-a5 42. Kd2-c3 Kf5-e4
43. Nd5-f6+ Ke4-f4 44. Kc3xc4 Even here analysts thought that
the endgame might still be saved by 44. Nh5+. 44...Kf4-g3 45.
h4-h5 Kg3-f4 46. Kc4-b5 e5-e4 47. Nf6-d5+ Kf4-e5 48. Nd5-e3
g4-g3 49. Kb5xa5 f7-f5 50. Ka5-b4 f5-f4 51. Ne3-g4+ Ke5-d4 52.
Ng4xh6 f4-f3 53. Nh6-f5+ Kd4-d3 54. h5-h6 f3xg2 55. h6-h7
g2-g1Q 56. h7-h8Q Qg1-b6+ 57. Kb4-a4 Qb6-a6+ 58. Ka4-b4
Qa6-c4+ 59. Kb4-a3 Qc4-c5+ 60. Ka3-b3 Qc5-b5+ 61. Kb3-a2
Qb5xf5 62. Qh8-h1 Qf5-f2+ 63. Ka2-b3 g3-g2 64. Qh1-h3+
Kd3-e2 White resigned.

A newcomer to the veterans' team was Dutch IM Hans
Bouwmeester (70) who had not played a regular tournament for
many years, being much more involved in correspondence chess
nowadays. Understandibly he proved a bit rusty, spoiling a number
of promising games. This nice attacking game by the middle Polgar
sister was not one of these.

White: Sofia Polgar Black: Bouwmeester, Schuhplattler 3rd
round
1. e2-e4 e7-e5 2. Ng1-f3 Nb8-c6 3. Bf1-b5 Ng8-f6 4. 0-0 d7-d6 5.
d2-d4 Bc8-d7 6. Rf1-e1 Bf8-e7 7. Nb1-c3 e5xd4 8. Nf3xd4 0-0 9.
Bb5xc6 b7xc6 10. Bc1-f4 Ra8-b8 11. b2-b3 c6-c5 12. Nd4-f3
Bd7-e6 13. Qd1-d3 Nf6-d7 14. Nc3-d1 a7-a5 15. Nd1-e3 Nd7-b6
This move, removing a piece from the kingside, was blamed for
things to come and the solid 15...f6 was preferred. 16. Ra1-d1
a5-a4 17. e4-e5 d6-d5 18. Ne3-f5 c5-c4 19. b3xc4 Nb6xc4 20.
Nf5xe7+ Qd8xe7 21. Nf3-g5 g7-g6 22. Qd3-g3 Nc4-b2 23.
Rd1-d2 c7-c6 24. c2-c3 Rb8-b7 (See Diagram)

25. Ng5xh7 Kg8xh7 26. Bf4-g5 f7-f6 27. e5xf6 Qe7-f7 28.
Rd2-e2 Nb2-c4 29. Bg5-h6 The simple 29. f3 would win a piece,
but White's attack is so overwhelming that she doesn't spoil
anything. 29...Rf8-b8 30. Bh6-g7 Kh7-g8 31. Qg3-h4 Qf7-d7 32.
Qh4-h8+ Kg8-f7 33. Qh8-h7 Rb7-b1 34. Re2xe6 Qd7xe6 35.
Bg7-h8+ Kf7-e8 36. Qh7-g8+ Black resigned.

This column first appeared in the Dutch newspaper NRC_Handelsblad 
July 29, 2000. Copyright 2000 Hans Ree, All Rights Reserved.