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Chess Sun, Apr 2, 1972 – 15 · The Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine) · Newspapers.com
It is anybody's guess where and when the World Championship match between Boris Spassky and Robert Fischer will actually take place. According to the decision of FIDE President Euwe, this match would begin in Belgrade, Yugoslavia on June 22nd and terminate in Reykjavik, Iceland after the completion of the first 12 games. Since then, Fischer has picked up a fuss about the winner only receiving 72 per cent of the $138,000 purse. The Belgrade sponsors are either withdrawing or threatening to withdraw. Read the Bangor Daily News daily to keep up with the maneuvers. The present article was written assuming the original plans would be carried out -- and they may be!
Most experts favor Fischer because of his spectacular results in last year's matches against Taimanov, Larsen and Petrosian. These victories give Bobby a 2,825 rating, nearly 100 points better than any other rating in history. (World Champions Lasker, Capablanca, and Botvinnik reached about 2,730 at their peaks).
Fischer's rating is 135 points above Spassky's 2,690 giving the American a 68 per cent of winning the match -- if the ratings are truly accurate and if both players perform to these ratings. On these probabilities, we predict a Fischer victory of approximately 12½ to 6½
Many people are surprised that such a prestigious event should be held even partially in Iceland, which has a population of only 210,000 and an area only slightly larger than Maine's (39,738 square miles to 33,215). Worse, only about a seventh of this land is productive, turnips, and hay; products not exactly unknown in Maine.
But Icelanders are intensely interested in chess, and they bid $125,000 plus expenses to have the whole match in Reykjavik…
