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Chess 27 Feb 1960, Sat Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) Newspapers.com
Child Chess Centers Decree Meets Opposition in Russia
By T.M. Cherington, Chess Editor
A controversy is raging in the USSR over the decree of the Union of Sports Societies and Organizations for the immediate establishment of chess training centers for children. They are enlisted in the thousands in a search for genius.
Responsibility can be laid to the door of Brooklyn's Erasmus High School student. International Grand Master Robert Fischer. It might have gone unnoticed except that Grand Master Vassily Panov challenged the propriety of the decree in an article in Izvestia. He appealed for its vacation by the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences and the Ministry of Education and Health.
SUN-TELEGRAPH chess fans will be surprised to hear that Chess Review recommends chess instruction for children in the United States. How the press will react to that idea could astonish even Pravda.
We always have thought that 20 minutes a day to master the rudiments of the piano, preferably, or other musical instrument should be required of every grade school child, Chess, our fans will agree, has no place in school curricula.
Loss of international junior tourneys in recent years has much to do with he sudden concern in Russia for the development of youthful talent.
Political conniving and unsocialistic influence also has played its part in match failures.
FOR EXAMPLE, in the 1957 World Junior championship won by American Bill Lombardy, who described his 11-game victory without loss or draw, for this column. Russia was represented by V. Selimanov.
Your chess editor Interviewed 17-year-old Selimanov to discover why an unknown player was selected for the trip to North America when there was a plethora of “powerhouse” junior chessers ready and anxious to compete. The answer was very convincing. Selimanov's step-father was Vassily Smyslov, then world champion.
Number 320
FEN 8/8/3K4/3N4/5B2/5k2/3Q4/8 w - - 0 1
Solution:
1. Bg5 Ke4 2. Ne3 Kf3 3. Qg2#
1. Bg5 Kg3 2. Ne3 Kf3 3. Qg2#
1. Bg5 Kg4 2. Kg2+ Kf5 3. Ne7#
The unsupported Black King is mated in three moves by Regal Missiles, Bishop and Knight. Composer E. Pradignat set the problem.
Solution to number 319 is King to Queen eight.
