OLYMPIAD NEWS
Issue 1 Sunday 22 August 1999
Play the Game
Contents
Play the Game 1
Varsity Games 2
MSO Coincidence #1 2
Sword for Hire 2
Falcon Freebie 2
Play your Cards Right 2
Dates for your Diary 2
Entrants by Country 2
I've Started so I'll Finish 3
Results Section 4
Medals Table 4
Today's Events 4
The Olympiad is a great opportunity for children. When they play
Mind Sports they enter a fantasy land. It becomes a huge story, that's
what makes it exciting - Scorpio from Gladiators in The Evening Standard
Hot Tickets magazine
Two years ago, the first Mind Sports Olympiad began with Sir Brian Tovey's
cry of 'Let Battle Commence!' The start of this year's MSO, the third and
largest ever, shared the military metaphor as a group of Roman legionnaires
slowly marched onstage to a solitary drumbeat. The clarion call of an ancient
horn signalled the start of a specially made film celebrating games. Clips
from classics like The Sting, The Thomas Crown Affair, Rain Man and others
jolt us back to the present to the far more modern soundtrack of Queen's
Play the Game.
The influence of ancient tradition has been woven into the fabric of
the this year's MSO. Trompe l'oeil Olympic flames flicker in high steel
braziers around the exhibition hall. Living statues in Roman costume startle
passers-by as they suddenly snap to life.
Opening speaker Tony Buzan approaches the favourite MSO emphasis of
mens sana in corpore sano - a healthy mind in a healthy body - from a new
angle, recalling the original Greek Olympic celebrations which honoured
poetry, art and Mind Sports as well as physical competition. While we are
still surrounded by a culture centred on the physical, there are signs
that things are changing. The Internet enables millions around the globe
to link up and play, and Tony relates that there are two billion Mind Sports
players currently on the planet.
Quick question: What is the most popular pastime in the English pub?
Surprisingly, the answer is a sort of question - the pub quiz. And who
helped transport the quiz from obscurity to popularity? Magnus Magnusson,
host of the amazingly successful BBC TV program Mastermind, which kept
millions of prime-time viewers glued to their screens for 25 years.
Magnusson began his day at the MSO in good humour, posing in a chariot
with Tony Buzan, both with daggers drawn. Magnusson, too, evokes the ancient
Greeks in his speech, paying tribute to their respect for opsimathy - which
he playfully refuses (at first) to define, out of deference to the intellect
of his audience (see page 2). After an engaging address peppered with witticisms,
he then opens the games with an apt chess move - 1.c4, otherwise known
as the English Opening, and we're off - MSO III has begun.
Entries for the event are already well over last year's Mind Sports
Olympiad, and there is still plenty of time to establish an impressive
record total as the number swells with each passing day. So far there have
been 2600 entries by 1387 competitors, representing 57 countries. This
number is expected to swell with latecomers joining up each day, but organisers
have no fears that this will be a very short-lived record. Plans are already
afoot to set world records in as many separate events as possible - MSO
IV will after all be the Millennium edition.
Media interest is running high, and press from Holland, Germany, Canada,
and China are already in place. Television coverage from CNN, CBS NBC and
Sky is already booked, and crews from Brazil, China, Germany and Sweden
are expected shortly.
Varsity Games
The Millennium edition of the MSO next year will embrace a new competition
designed to stimulate Mind Sports participation at universities around
the world. Former Brain of the Year winner Lana Israel heads the new MSO
project, scheduled to begin in January 2000. A four-month season of Mind
Sports - a blend of classics and more modern games - will produce eight
teams that will win an expenses- paid trip to MSO 2000 for the Varsity
Games final. Battle will take place via the Internet, with the globe divided
into four separate zones.
One plan to guarantee excitement and maximum Mind Sport exposure is
the Versatility Games, where contestants compete in a different game every
round - without advance notice of what the game will be.
Lana, a Rhodes scholar doing research work for her doctorate in psychology
at Oxford, is uniquely qualified to promote the combination of Mind Sports
and education. Even at the tender age of 12 she attracted attention with
a school science project on Mind Mapping for children that led to international
lectures and a book contract. Since then she has continuously worked on
projects involving learning.
MSO Coincidence #1
Magnus Magnusson's choice of the concept of opsimathy was both apt and
entertaining, as he teased his audience at the opening ceremony by withholding
the definition of the word. The bulletin editor later presented Magnus
Magnusson with a document of serendipitous coincidence. On the front page
of the Scrabble Club News, on display at the Scrabble arbiters table, is
a report from the 27th National Championship includes the news that the
word OPSIMATH -someone who learns late in life -was voted the best played
at the event.
Sword for Hire
Professional Roman legionnaires? The troops brought in for the opening
ceremony of MSO III were careful to correct the suggestion that they are
actors. 'Re-enactors,' said Dan Shadrake, head of Britannia, a group that
specialises in historically accurate portrayals from the Arthurian era,
when Roman rule ended and the Saxon kingdoms were founded. Britannia have
worked on 24 film, video and television projects. They enlivened the MSO
together with the like-minded Milites. These historical groups provide
authentic combat, townspeople, horseriders and the intriguing commodity
'convincing warrior women' for those in need of historical atmosphere.
Falcon Freebie
All board games have their own particular attractions. One of the unusual
features of the board game Stratego is that every game starts from a completely
different position. UK players interested in trying out this fascinating
two-player war game will be pleased to know that they can participate in
the Stratego World Championship on Thursday and Friday free of charge.
Their entry fees will be paid by Falcon Games who market Stratego in the
UK.
Play your Cards Right
Playing cards are being used in many diverse events at the Mind Sports
Olympiad. They are fundamental to the Bridge, Poker and Cribbage events
but also play an important part in the World Memory Championship. All cards
at this year's MSO have been kindly provided by Carta Mundi UK Ltd.
Dates for your Diary
Alongside the competitive events at the Olympiad, there are also
several lectures and demonstrations. Tony Buzan will be speaking for around
half an hour from 1330 on Thursday 26th August, on the principles of memory,
some memorisation techniques and using Mind Maps as an aid to memory.
The following day Philip Chambers will be giving a talk on Specific
Memory Techniques. This will be followed by a memory demonstration by Creighton
Carvello (the original 'Memory Man' and former World Record Holder) involving
feats such as recalling Grand National winners, Middlesbrough Football
Club results and team information, names and numbers from telephone books.
Mind Sports Olympiad - Entrants by Country
Antigua 1
Austria 14
Bangladesh 4
Belgium 24
Canada 15
China 15
Croatia 5
Cyprus 2
Czech Rep. 18
Denmark 2
England 1279
Finland 9
France 5
Germany 39
Ghana 2
Greece 2
Grenada 3
Holland 37
India 12
Iran 14
Ireland 10
Israel 20
Italy 14
Jamaica 1
Japan 19
Korea 33
Kuwait 2
Latvia 3
Malaysia 4
Mongolia 21
New Zealand 1
Nigeria 10
Norway 10
Peru 4
Philippines 6
Poland 4
Russia 5
Scotland 7
South Africa 1
Spain 4
Sweden 22
Switzerland 2
Turkmenistan 1
Ukraine 3
USA 35
Wales 7
Zambia 5
I've Started, so I'll Finish...
Television quizmaster Magnus Magnusson was born in Iceland in 1929 but
has lived in Britain nearly all his life. He was brought up in Edinburgh
and gained an Open Scholarship to Oxford. From there he moved into journalism,
starting out on the Scottish Daily Express before joining The Scotsman
in Glasgow. Finally he moved into TV, becoming best known, of course, as
the presenter of the BBC's long running and highly successful Mastermind
programme. Having formally opened the third Mind Sports Olympiad yesterday,
he is today acting as quizmaster in the British Quiz Championship.
How did you get started in journalism?
When I started my first job I was a DIY correspondent. Each week
I would explain how to perform various household tasks. I had only a basic
knowledge of this, but would rely on intensive research followed by a practical
experiment, often on my mother's furniture (an activity to which she soon
put a stop). Unfortunately, the sub-editor of the Edinburgh Evening Despatch
- until that point one of my biggest fans - followed my instructions for
rewiring his house. Just as he was about to go live, he realised that flicking
the switch was likely to incinerate the premises. Not surprisingly, this
led instead to the incineration of my DIY column.
How did you get into TV?
My first break in television was the Tonight programme, which I co-presented
with Cliff Michelmore. Unfortunately the year that I joined the team turned
out to be the final season.
What is the background to Mastermind and how did you become involved?
At that time ITV had a highly successful show with University Challenge
and the BBC chiefs were looking for something to challenge it. Mastermind
was the result of their deliberations. I was doing a lot of serious television
at the time and I was appointed presenter as it was felt that I would bring
gravitas to the show. The idea was to market the product as an intellectual
quiz and not a game show.
How did the show become so successful?
We started out with a Monday night slot at the rather late time of
11.20pm. Our big break came thanks to Mary Whitehouse, who was well known
for her campaign to clean up TV. There was a programme called Casanova
73 in which the lead character was a modern day libertine. Mrs Whitehouse
objected strongly to this programme complaining, in particular, that it
appeared before the 9.00pm watershed. At the time Mrs. Whitehouse had a
great deal of influence and the BBC were keen to respond to her criticisms.
Their solution was to switch the slots of Casanova 73 and Mastermind. Consequently
we ended up on Thursday evening primetime while Casanova 73 was consigned
to the Monday night graveyard slot. To everyone's astonishment, Mastermind
actually increased on the viewing figures that had been achieved by its
predecessor. Audiences of 14-15 million became commonplace and the show
ran for 25 seasons until 1997.
Are you a keen Mind Sports fan?
I don't participate myself, although I was school chess champion.
However, I regard reading and research as my own personal Mind Sports.
I am constantly working to expand my knowledge of the world and am a very
enthusiastic researcher on many topics. I am intensely curious about history,
fascinated by the present and highly optimistic about the future.
I believe Mind Sports are very good for you. Many people enjoy jogging
to exercise the body, but exercising the mind is an equal, if not more
important, activity. Mind Sports are an excellent method of achieving this.
On Mastermind, how many answers did you know?
On the night I knew all of them, three days later - none! People
often assumed that I must be very intelligent to be the presenter on Mastermind.
What they would forget is that I was only asking the questions - the contestants
were the ones with the real intellects.
Are you surprised by the growth in popularity of pub quizzes?
Surprised and delighted. It is wonderful to think that Mastermind
may have had some influence on this development. It is encouraging to think
of people in an environment such as a pub, normally associated with darts
(incidentally also a fine game), exercising their minds. Pub quizzes do
not require a university education or a PhD, they can be enjoyed by everybody.
I would like to see quizzes taken more seriously - I think of them as a
ramble for the mind.
What are the benefits of an event such as Mind Sports Olympiad?
It enables people to meet with like-minded Mind Sports fans and pit
their wits against players both stronger and weaker than themselves. In
the same way that, for example, Bjorn Borg and Stefan Edberg inspired a
generation of Swedish tennis players, the appearance of all these Mind
Sports stars in action together will encourage a new generation of Mind
Sports participants and champions.
The British Quiz Championship will be taking place in Conference Room
1 starting at 10.00am today. Spectators are welcome.
Day One Medal Winners
Chess Sat 10-minute
1 J. Nunn (England) gold
2 L. Psakhis (Israel) silver
3 I. Smirin (Israel) bronze
Chess Sat 10-minute Junior
1 J. Mont-Reynard (USA) gold
2 S. Buckley (England) silver
3 E. Leung (England) bronze
Chess Sat 5-minute
1 J. Hodgson (England) gold
2 J. Parker (England) silver
3 M. Turner (England) bronze
Chess Sat 5-minute Junior
1 R. Kaufman (USA) gold
2 D. Tan (England) silver
3 A. Ghasi (England) bronze
Diplomacy
1 P. Hawkins (England) gold
2 V. Hall (England) silver
3 D. Hassabis (England) bronze
Draughts 10x10 Blitz
1 D. Kotin (USA) gold
2 T. Van Adrichem (Holland) silver
3 M. Durdyev (Turkmenistan) bronze
Go 13x13
1 S. Zhang (China) gold
2 M. Macfadyen (England) silver
3 V. Danek (Czech Republic) bronze
Intelligence
1 K. Loveys (England) gold
2 M. Isaac (England) silver
3 S. Gardener (England) bronze
Oware Junior Under-11
1 F. Cooper (Jamaica) gold
2 A. Sobers (Grenada) silver
3 N. Garnett-Lewis (Jamaica) bronze
Poker 5-card draw
1 A. Adams (England) gold
2 D. Staples (England) silver
3 T. Niccoli (England) bronze
Poker 5-card draw Junior
1 T. Niccoli (England) gold
Medal Table after Day 1
|
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
| England |
6 |
7 |
6 |
19 |
| USA |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
| Jamaica |
1 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
| China |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| Israel |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
| Grenada |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| Holland |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| Czech Rep. |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
| Turkmenistan |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
To coincide with the Third Mind Sports Olympiad we are delighted to
announce the launch of a very much upgraded web site. This website will
have the URL: http://www.msoworld.com/
When you visit the new site you will find, amongst other things, that
you can play other users at approximately 50 different games from six different
game categories. These games are from the 'Zillions of Games' collection
and we are delighted to be working with Zillions Development Corporation
on the creation of the site. Using the site is absolutely free!
Other features of the new site include a Mind Sports 'webzine' which
will bring you news and feature articles, regularly updated. Our news editor
is Jonathan Tisdall, an International Grandmaster at Chess and a professional
Mind Sports journalist. (Please send him news and articles to: jtisdall@usa.net).
Today's Events
Backgammon pm/eve
Chess MSO Masters pm/eve
Chess Problem Solving pm
Chess 10-minute am
Chess 5-minute pm
Chinese Chess am/pm
Continuo World Ch am
Creative Thinking am
The Times Crossword am
Decamentathlon pm
Draughts 10x10 Rapid pm
Entropy World Ch pm
Go 9x9 Ch am
Go 9x9 Beginners pm
HexDame am
Japanese Chess pm
Mind Mapping am/pm
Othello am/pm
Oware U-18 am/pm/eve
Poker Hold'Em am
Quiz British Ch. am
Scrabble am/pm
Skat am/pm
Olympiad News Team
Editor: Jon Tisdall
Production: Byron Jacobs and Andrew Kinsman
(First Rank Publishing)
Mind Sports Olympiad
PO Box 13388,
London NW3 2ZF
Fax: 01707 659080
http://www.msoworld.com/
MSOWorld.com