Players have been arguing about the essence of chess, perhaps, since its inception in India about two thousand years ago. Some consider chess to be an intellectual game of chance. Others are for entertainment and leisure. Someone - art, and on a par with theater or science. And still others give an analogy with a military battle. But the most popular opinions, especially now, are two. First, chess is a professional sport. Second, they are just a hobby.
Chess as a sport
Once a story happened, which is sometimes cited as a clear example of a different attitude towards chess. A young Canadian player with a Russian surname Kuznetsov asked the head of the sports department of his province to help him compete in the junior world championship, allocating a certain amount. And I received the answer that the department could not do it. After all, he has not yet decided what chess is - a sport or an empty pastime, and he is not sure whether Kuznetsov can be considered an athlete.
Undaunted, the chess player sarcastically replied: “If Mikhail Tal plays, then this is a great art. If I play, then this is a sport. But if you sit down at the board, it will be just spending time. After that, the future FIDE (International Chess Federation) master and the 54th Canadian player proudly came out.
International Grandmaster Mikhail Tal is a famous Soviet chess player. In 1960, he became the eighth world champion. He was distinguished by a sharply attacking combinational play, often making beautiful deliberate sacrifices of pieces.
The advocates of chess as a sport have other arguments as well. Among them are the existence of state-funded children and youth schools, the holding of Russian and world championships both among individual players, namely professionals, and among clubs and even national teams. As well as international tournaments with a large prize pool.
The sports orientation of chess is supported, in particular, by their inclusion in the list of game types and in the Unified classification with the assignment of titles such as master of sports of Russia, master of sports of international class and grandmaster. Chess is also included in the annual calendar of competitions held under the auspices of the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation.
The following argument is also curious: by professionally practicing any kind of sport in the hall or at the stadium, a person builds up his muscles, muscle mass. And by spending many hours at the board with figures or at the computer, developing openings and endings, he actively increases his level of intelligence. Isn't it a sport?
By the way
On one of the social networks, its visitors were asked to answer what chess is to them, offering a choice of seven options. 2538 people spoke out. 792 (31, 21%) of them chose sports as an answer, 751 (29, 63%) preferred art, 360 (14, 18%) preferred the “hobby” option, 292 (11, 51%) consider this game a way of life … Finally, 195 visitors (7, 68%) are sure that chess is precisely a science. By the way, only 88 (3, 47%) voting participants found it difficult to answer.
In 2010, the Center for the Study of Public Opinion surveyed 1,600 Russians, also asking them to answer: "Is chess a sport or a hobby?" And the overwhelming majority of respondents - 69% - spoke in favor of sports.
Chess as a hobby
The main argument given by the supporters of this version is that even an ordinary child can learn to play and practice in the future. That this is a very simple game, to master which it is not at all necessary to visit any specialized sections. Yes, and you can move the figures even on the beach or park bench, at any time and without attaching serious importance to the result.
They are also supported by those who are sure: with the advent of the Internet and computer developments among grandmasters, chess has grown into an intellectual, precisely scientific game. And only the competitive principle remained from the sport.
