A match between two players is made up of up to 11 rounds of boxing and chess sessions, starting with a four-minute chess round followed by two minutes of boxing and so on. Between rounds there is a one-minute pause, during which the players change their gear. The form of chess played is speed chess in which each player has a total of twelve minutes for the whole game. Players may win by knocking out the other player, checkmate, a judge's choice, or if the other player runs out of chess time. If a player does not make a move in the round of chess, he will be given a warning by the referee and he must then make a move in the next 10 seconds.
The idea was started in 1992 by cartoonist Enki Bilal, and a match of chess boxing was a big story part of his graphic novel "Froid Équateur". Iepe Rubingh, a Dutch artist, was took the idea from Bilal's book and started the sport in the spring of 2001. Rubingh decided that the method of play in the book, a boxing match with a chess match after, was not very good. Rubingh made the rules so a round of chess would come after a round of boxing.
The World Chess Boxing Organisation (WCBO), keeps control of the sport. The first world championship was in Amsterdam in 2003 and was won by Iepe Rubingh, the starter of the sport. The First European Chess Boxing Championship took place in Berlin on October 1, 2005 when Tihomir Atanassov Dovramadjiev of Bulgaria beat Andreas D'Schneider of Germany after D'Schneider gave up in the seventh round.
In April 2008, the World Chess Federation, FIDE, posted a video on its website in which its president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov played a friendly chess boxing match in Elista. Also in April 2008 the UK's first Chess Boxing club was started in London by Great Britain Chess Boxing Organisation founder Tim Woolgar. In July 2008 in Berlin, a 19-year old Russian mathematics student Nikolai Sazhin won the title of "World Champion" in chess boxing by beating Frank Stoldt. Stoldt resigned in the 5th round after losing his queen.
Iepe Rubingh
Iepe B. T. Rubingh (; 17 August 1974 – 9 May 2020) was a Dutch artist who was best known for starting chess boxing in 2003. He was born in Rotterdam.
Rubingh died on 9 May 2020 in Berlin, aged 45.
Teresa Stratas
Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a Canadian soprano opera singer and actress. She was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Stratas has won 3 Grammy Awards and been nominated for a Tony Award
Beth Groundwater
Beth Groundwater is an American author who has written two novels in the Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery series, "A Real Basket Case" and "To Hell in a Handbasket". The first, published in March, 2007, was put up for the Best First Novel Agatha Award in 2007. The sequel, "To Hell in a Handbasket" was published in May, 2009. She writes in the Mystery genre, and has also written several short stories.
Groundwater first began writing fiction in the fifth grade, and in high school took an outside study in English. She went to the College of William and Mary and got a degree in Psychology and Computer Science in 1978. She worked in another job until 1999, then she chose to become a writer.
After going to a few writers' meetings, she began writing short stories. Seven were published before she met a literary agent who agreed to publish her first novel, "A Real Basket Case". It was published in 2007, and was put up for the Best First Novel Agatha Award in 2007. Of her short stories, eight have been published and one was written in Farsi. Another of Groundwater's short stories has been made into a live play.
Groundwater's writings have won several awards. Her first novel was put up for the Best First Novel Agatha Award in 2007. Groundwater's short stories have won awards also. Her short story "New Zealand" won first place in the 2003 PPW Paul Gillette Memorial Writing Contest, and was the winner of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Short Story Anthology Contest. "Flamingo Fatality" won the Great Manhattan Mysteries Conclave Short Story Anthology Contest in 2005, and her 2005 short story "Lucky Bear" was first in the Storyteller Magazine Flash Fiction Contest.
Yanina Batyrchina
Yana (Yanina) Batyrshina (Russian:Яна (Янина) Фархадовна Батыршина, born October 07, 1979 in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union) is a former Individual Rhythmic Gymnast. She competed for Russia. She was born to Tatar father and Jewish mother.
A Real Basket Case
A Real Basket Case is a fictional mystery novel that was written by Beth Groundwater. It was published by Five Star Publishing on March 21, 2007. It was later re-published in large print in January 2008. The novel follows the story of Claire Hanover who sets out to find out who murdered her husband.
It was put up for the Best First Novel Agatha Award in 2007. The sequel, "To Hell in a Handbasket" is scheduled to be published in 2009.
Even though Beth Groundwater won the Princess of Rejection prize from the Sisters in Crime Guppies Chapter for having the second most rejections for her writings in the winter of 2005, "A Real Basket Case" was put up for the Best First Novel Agatha Award in 2007.
The novel got good reviews in several large newspapers. Barbara Bibel from Booklist review said that, "This will appeal to Desperate Housewives fans and those who like cozies with a bit of spice." Kirkus Reviews called "A Real Basket Case" "A tense, exciting debut." Author J.B. Thompson praised the novel, but he also said the main character could have been written better.
Right Now (Leon Jackson album)
Right Now is the debut album by X Factor winner Leon Jackson.
Leon Jackson
Leon Jackson (born 30 December 1988) is a Scottish singer. He won the 2007 UK series of the television show "The X Factor". His singles are "When You Believe", "Don't Call This Love" and "Creative". His album is "Right Now".
Karditsa
Karditsa is a Greek city. It is in the center of Greece in the district of Thessaly. It had 35,971 people according to the 2001 census. Karditsa is build on the large plain which is named Thessaly plain. It is the second largest plain in Greece. So it is an agricultural city. Near Karditsa is the city of Trikala. The west of Karditsa is the Agrafa range. Agrafa is a part of Pindus range.
Gooloogong, New South Wales
Gooloogong is a small town in New South Wales. It is built on the banks of the Lachlan River. It is 57km south east of Forbes, 34 km north west of Cowra and 358 km west of the state capital, Sydney. There are about 250 people living in Gooloogong.
The town was established in the 1860s on what was the Pastoral Lease 'Goolagong'of Edward Sheahan from around 1840.
The town was originally built much closer to the Lachlan River, but was moved to higher ground because of floods.
John O'Meally is buried in an unmarked grave in the Anglican cemetery at Gooloogong. He was a member of Ben Hall's gang. He was shot dead when the gang tried to rob the Campbell's farm, Goimbla Station, on November 19, 1863.
Gooloogong has a hotel, shops and a park.
Boorowa, New South Wales
Boorowa is a small town in New South Wales. It is from Yass. The town is built on the banks of the Boorowa River, which flows into the Lachlan River. The town was first called "Burrowa". Boorowa and Burrowa are Aboriginal words in the Wiradjuri language meaning "birds". In 2008, there were 1350 living in Boorowa.
The first people to live in the area were the Wiraduri people. This was one of the largest tribes in New South Wales. They had several regular camping sites along the Lachlan and Boorowa Rivers. It is estimated that there were several thousand Wiradjuri people at the time of European settlement. A survey in 1851 showed that there were only 300 people left. Local Wiradjuri people were forced onto government reserves at Rye Park and Edgerton.