Friday Fun: Chessboxing!

Ok, this is truly deranged. Chessboxing.

It seems that they is actually a World Chessboxing Championship. What the players do is alternate rounds of chess and boxing. The first to loose in either game is eliminated.

After carefully approaching his opponent in the first round with a Slav defence Frank Stoldt took a heavy right hand to the chin in the following round which led to a standing eight count. Stoldt then showed all his experience from three title bouts to recover and see out the next three rounds without slipping further behind.

At the beginning of the fifth, however, the contest culminated at the chessboard. Sazhin took his time, but far from being in trouble the wily youngster merely lured Stoldt into a false sense of security. With his bishop in severe danger near the centre of the board, and adrenaline running high, Stoldt made a horrible blunder, overlooking a concealed threat to his queen. Sazhin pounced, took the queen and with it victory. Realising the enormity of his mistake, Stoldt instantly resigned in utter self-disgust. The contrast between the victor and defeated champion could not have been more pronounced. Stoldt hung his head as if desperately seeking a hiding place somewhere under the glaring lights. In the Siberian corner, Sazhin leapt into the arms of his trainers and bounced around the ring, punching the air in delight.