Excitement in the chess scene
Important deal or rather weak for chess? The world association has landed a sponsorship deal that is causing a stir.
The company “Motiva” is now a partner of the world chess federation FIDE. Specifically, the company should specifically support the women's area of board sports. Problem: The company is a company that generates its income with breast enlargements. Managing director Juan Jose Chacon said of “Bild”: “Our sponsorship of women's chess underlines our central commitment to respect and the promotion of self-confident and independent women.” The main aim of the sponsorship deal is to advertise breast operations for cancer patients.
But that doesn't go down well everywhere. “The Guardian” quotes a prominent player who wants to remain anonymous: “I find it demeaning and humiliating that an activity like chess, which is so cognitive, is sponsored by a company that primarily benefits from the insecurity of women. I very much doubt FIDE would sponsor a penis enlargement company to sponsor the Men's World Cup. “
Another says, “I've seen comments online from people saying they hope the prizes for women's competitions now include breast augmentation. I've seen jokes mentioning the names of certain top female players whose looks could be improved . The game of chess has struggled with sexism in the past. But that has done nothing to prevent it now. “
There are also positive voices in the discussion. For example, the Norwegian Sheila Barth Stanford, currently ranked 12,083 in the world rankings. “We urgently need a sponsor,” she says. “We play for less money than the men, which makes it harder to bet fully on chess. I hope this will make it easier for women to play professionally.”
The problems for women in chess are obvious. Out of more than 1,600 grandmasters, only 39 are women. FIDE Managing Director Dana Reizniece-Ozola says about “Bild”: “For me as a woman it was very important that I only felt respect for women and chess in every communication with Motiva or from Motiva. As a world association, we particularly support your research activities for the health and wellbeing of women. I am glad that our marketing colleagues have succeeded in gaining a sponsor who will enable us to raise the prices at women's events and to promote women's chess in general. “
