Enter Your Reply The Comment You're Replying To George Duke wrote on Fri, Feb 19, 2010 06:26 PM EST:Twelve-year-old Canadian Pranav Sharma beat grandmaster Shirov this week. http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=6132 Excuse: jet lag. Among the simul boards were 9 Draws, perfectly understandable and agreeable in this day and age. [Karoly Szalay beat Shirov too, but that is not so significant for Szalay's being 16 years old.] However, what about the other 25 losers? Are only super-Grandmasters entitled to rationalize? Each of 26 should be permitted offering reasonable explanation for the outcome. You name it. Mitigating circumstance might be any number of things. Possible alibi for one or another may be shown in having sustained a ski injury, or been working crossword puzzle, lighting at the table, had check delayed, to face an examination tomorrow, or just gotten indigestion or seen recent visit from a prodigal aunt. Anyway, instead of simuls by Grandmasters religiously all the time, like handing out communion, why not play blindfold versus sighted for a change, or give odds of Pawn or Knight for advantage, as in day of Philidor or of Alexandre or Morphy or Bird. Edit Form You may not post a new comment, because ItemID Fischer-Spasski does not match any item.