Dear Taylor,
Recently I browsed some of the ChessCafe archives and came across that
interview you took from grandmaster Yuri Averbakh. It was really a good
job! However, there is one question I would like to ask you.
You know quite well that some years ago ChessCafe posted the letter
that Averbakh had sent to FIDE soon after Viktor Korchnoi's defection
requesting FIDE not to allow Korchnoi to participate in the FIDE World
Championship matches.At that time Averbakh was Vice-President of the
Soviet Chess Federation.It was, in my view, and I am sure in your view,
Hanon Russell's view, the most disgraceful document in the history of
chess.If the letter were written by some bureaucrat like
Rodionov,Postnikov,Sevastianov etc., I wouldn't have been amazed. But
Averbakh was a top-class grandmaster, one of the world's best experts
on the endgame, the author of many chess books. Besides, for many years
he was, so to speak, rubbing elbows with Korchnoi in the same
tournaments.
Another thing is also important.Certainly, Averbakh was acting under
pressure knowing what country the Soviet Union was.But, to tell the
truth, the epoch of Stalin, with arrests, deportations was already
behind. The worst that could have happened to Averbakh, had he refused
to sign that notorious letter, would be the loss of his high position
in the Soviet Chess Federation, fewer trips to Australia, New Zealand
and the USA. So, actually he wouldn't have been a great loser.By
refusing to sign this 'document' he would have only won - as an honest
human being.
Botvinnik who had a strange habit of breaking off relations with his
friends by writing in his diary such things as, "from now September
2nd, 1955 and until October5th, 1960 I won't shake hands with
Grandmaster X." well, Botvinnik wrote that he would never unbtil his
dying day shake hands with Averbakh! I don't know how that
characterizes Botvinnik, but it gives you the idea of Averbakh...
So, my question is: how did you and Hanon Russell feel about when you
decided to interview Averbakh, knowing that he had written that letter
castigating and boycotting Viktor Korchnoi?
Although, I am not much surprised. Today Korchnoi shakes hands with
Karpov, Roshal and certainly...with Averbakh!
Lev Khariton

wrote in message
ups.com...
Although, I am not much surprised. Today Korchnoi shakes hands with
Karpov, Roshal and certainly...with Averbakh!

Dear Lev,

Thank you for your interesting post.
Times are changing and nowadays deadly enemies from the past are no longer
deadly enemies although I don`t believe that they are close friends :-)

Regards,

Jerzy

Lev Khariton:

Today Korchnoi shakes hands with
Karpov, Roshal and certainly...with
Averbakh!

Which shows that Korchnoy is a nice
guy. He is temperamental, even
quarrelsome, but not hateful. He
doesn't keep his grudges long.

BTW, Lev, somehow your posts do
not help the participants, who didn't
experience the Soviet system, to
understand it. On the contrary, you
are quite often contributing to a
confusion. I was thinking for some
time to write a few general comments
to assist others in this respect, since
there is no way to understand certain
historical situations without the proper,
general understanding of those places
and times. Instead, we often see
simplistic statements, which only
hurt the undestanding.

One of these days I may write down
a few thoughts.

On the other hand, it is great that
you are a fountain of concrete
stories from the past Soviet chess
world.

Best regards,

Wlod (Volod' :-)

wrote:
Dear Taylor,
Recently I browsed some of the ChessCafe archives and came across
that
interview you took from grandmaster Yuri Averbakh. It was really a
good
job!

Thank you. It could have been better -- it was rather hastily arranged
and I had little time to prepare.

So, my question is: how did you and Hanon Russell feel about when you
decided to interview Averbakh, knowing that he had written that
letter
castigating and boycotting Viktor Korchnoi?

Your question involves some untrue assumptions. I was, and still am,
not familiar with the letter you mention, nor of Averbakh's connection
with it. Frankly, the Korchnoi defection is not a subject I have
studied much. That is why the interview dealt little with it compared
to, say, questions about Keres and Botvinnik.

Dear Wlod,
I think you are absolutely right. Sometimes I am absolutely
stone-walled by my readers who do not precisely imagine what kind of
life we were living in the Soviet Union. And it rests with people like
you who have the knowledge and talent to bring it home to hosts of
readers all the whys and whats of the past.
Also, many thanks for the nice words!
Regards,
Lev Khariton

Dear Taylor,
Thanks for your reply.
I am just wondering why you do not know about the existence of
Averbakh=92s letter to FIDE at ChessCafe. I copied it, may be, 5 or 6
years ago from ChessCafe Archives. And I am sending it over to you.
Possibly, I did not put my question to you in the appropriate way. It
did not actually concern Korchnoi,or the Korchnoi-Averbakh
relationship. Rather, I was wondering how you could have interviewed
Averbakh knowing that he had written such a letter (now I see that you
did not know about this letter), but Mr.Russell knew about it! It seems
to me that Averbakh simply betrayed Korchnoi when he wrote that letter.
It is just unforgivable that a top-notch player like Averbakh knowing
the chess strength and potential of Korchnoi wanted to bar himtotally
from chess. How can anyone trust any views and opinions of Averbakh on
chess history or anything? If I were the editor of a chess site or a
chess newspaper, I would have never invited Averbakh to give any
interview or write any article.
Best regards,
Lev Khariton


Here is Averbakh=92s letter:
In the period between the end of the Second World War and
the collapse of the Soviet Union, the USSR wielded enormous
influence in the International Chess Federation (FIDE). When
one of their superstars, Viktor Korchnoy, defected in 1976,
they were outraged. The Soviet authorities ordered
Grandmaster Yuri Averbakh to do whatever he could to
impede Korchnoy's road to a championship match. The
darling of the Soviet system, Anatoly Karpov, had acquired
the title by default the year before; it was not acceptable to
have his title challenged by a defector. This letter was the
result of the anger in Moscow...

From: Yu. Averbakh, Moscow (USSR Chess Federation
letterhead)
To: Max Euwe, Amsterdam, FIDE President
Date: September 6, 1976

Dear Mr. President,

In accordance with the decision of September 3rd, 1976 the
USSR Chess Federation disqualified Victor Korchnoy for his
indecent conduct and in view of this requests to exclude him
from the number of participants of the 1977 Candidates'
Matches because he will not be delegated to this competition
by our Federation and may not represent the other Federation.

Our request is based on Article 2.1 of the FIDE Statutes
according to which the FIDE Members are the National Chess
Federations which govern the chess activity in their countries
and delegate their chess players for participation in the official
and unofficial competitions held under the aegis of the FIDE.

This is also confirmed in the decision of the last FIDE
Congress of 1974 that the organizers of the International
Tournaments should send invitations to players via their
National Federations or at least inform these Federations by
the copy of the text of the invitation. The Tournaments, where
take part the players not recommended by their Federations,
are not considered while awarding the International Titles
(Annex 25, point 2).

Points 13, 21, 23, 38, 39 of the Regulations for the Candidates'
Matches for the 1977 Men's World Championship provide that
a number of functions while organization and holding of the
competition should be realized with participation of the
National Federations of the participants of the Matches with
taking into account their opinions.

Thus, though the right to take part in the competition for the
World Championship is won by the player as a result of his
sports performances, however, each participant of such
competition should represent a certain National Federation -
the FIDE Member and compete as a member of this
Federation.

At the same time we believe it necessary to take a decision on
holding in due time (before the end of the current year) the
Match between the players who took the fourth places in two
Interzonal Tournaments to determine the player for the vacant
place in case of non-participation of Korchnoy in the 1977
Candidates' Matches.

Please inform us of the decision made.

Yours sincerely,
Yu. Averbakh
President of the USSR Chess Federation

But we are all aware, no? that there is considerably dissent to Averbakh's
views, even very strong refutations? I am sure I wrote on it. Why not admit
the doubt and resist championing this single source, who was himself 'a
player' in several senses of that term. Phil Innes

"Taylor Kingston" wrote in message
ups.com...

wrote:
Dear Taylor,
Recently I browsed some of the ChessCafe archives and came across
that
interview you took from grandmaster Yuri Averbakh. It was really a
good
job!

Thank you. It could have been better -- it was rather hastily arranged
and I had little time to prepare.

So, my question is: how did you and Hanon Russell feel about when you
decided to interview Averbakh, knowing that he had written that
letter
castigating and boycotting Viktor Korchnoi?

Your question involves some untrue assumptions. I was, and still am,
not familiar with the letter you mention, nor of Averbakh's connection
with it. Frankly, the Korchnoi defection is not a subject I have
studied much. That is why the interview dealt little with it compared
to, say, questions about Keres and Botvinnik.

wrote:
Dear Taylor,
I am just wondering why you do not know about the existence of
Averbakh?s letter to FIDE at ChessCafe.

I make no claims to omniscience, about chess history or anything else.
One has only so much time, and cannot read everything.

How can anyone trust any views and opinions of Averbakh on
chess history or anything?

Without knowing the full circumstances surrounding the letter in
question, I cannot make any judgement about Averbakh's part in it. As
far as trusting his view and opinions, as with anything else the
careful historian must weigh them against known facts and others'
testimony.