Chennai: Viswanathan Anand may have failed to retain his title but the world chess championship in Chennai was a success in terms of organisation and the interest it generated. Countless people worked hard to ensure that the big match passed off smoothly. It's time to raise a toast to volunteers -young and old, men and women -for their selfless contribution to one of the important global events in chess in recent memory .
The fact that the volunteer force was drawn mainly from the well-rounded chess community was a shot in the arm for the tournament. A majority of the foot soldiers had taken leave from work to contribute their bit to the meeting of the mind game champions. R. Srivatsan, an international arbiter, is on a month-long leave to carry out various tasks related to the world championship. S.Manikandasamy, Vellore district secretary and an employee of the state transport corporation, is on leave to be a member of ticket counter along with Srivatsan.
T.T. Lakshmi Priya, a former player, has come to Chennai from Bengaluru exclusively to serve as a volunteer. She was thrilled to get in touch with her old friends. “The experience is amazing. I'm enjoying every moment of my stay here,“ she said during the 10th round of the world championship on Friday .
The bonus for serving as a volunteer was getting access to all areas of the venue.
S. Shrinidhi, a member of the ticketing committee like Priya, said she wouldn't forget the experience of watching the world championship live.
“I was over the moon after catching a few moments of the first round live,” she added. Shrinidhi’s company, Citadel Chess World, sells chess books at affordable prices.
K. Thirukkalathy, an official of the state chess body, said around 50 volunteers had given their heart and soul for the world championship without expecting anything in return.
“All of them are here only for their love of the game.
District administrators have also taken a keen interest. Most of the volunteers know the game.
Banumathy, who is in charge of issuing visitor’s pass, is a full-time chess coach at Pammal with 200 trainees under her care,” he added.
Manikandasamy said he was proud of getting involved in an historic event. “It’s a boon for us that the tournament is happening in Chennai,” the former national ‘ A’ player added.
M. Muthu Alagappan, the youngest member of the ticketing crew, is an engineer. Taking a photo with Garry Kasparov was the highlight of his stint at worlds.
Rajashri Muralidharan, the lady manning the baggage counter in front of the playing hall with an everpresent style, said the last few days had been hectic for her. “I’m also an arbiter.
I come to the world championship venue after officiating in tournaments that are held to celebrate the Anand-Carlsen match. But I don’t mind the hard work because the occasion is special,” she added.
Fide press officer R.R.Vasudevan “soaked in the unique atmosphere of the world championship”. The banker is also a coach, arbiter and journalist.
Vasudevan, who was very much in demand for bytes from TV channels throughout the event, has the distinction of attending the world championship final, which was won by Anand, in Tehran 13 years ago.
With so many people attending the chess match, the volunteers weren’t short of some memorable moments. Funny photos sent by online buyers amused Manikandasamy.
“We had only asked for mug shots for identification but we ended up getting all sorts of strange photos,” he laughed.
Srivatsan said Canadian chess fan Michael van Keitz impressed him with his sense of history. “Midway through the 10th round, Keitz bought five tickets to present them as souvenirs to his friends in Canada.
Spending '10,000 didn’t bother him because the tickets were part of chess history for the fan,” he added.
Priya narrated the plight of a chess fan. “He attended one of the first few rounds.
After going inside the playing hall using the free visitor’s pass three times (each visit was about 15 minutes long), he apparently found the game between Anand and Carlsen interesting. So he came to us and bought a ticket for ' 2,000. Filled with enthusiasm, he entered the hall in the hope of watching the game seated, only to find the players agreeing for a draw immediately,” she said.
