Bastia, 31st of October 2005
During
its quarterly meeting in Bastia, the Board of Directors of the French Chess
Federation has unanimously approved the candidacy of Leo Battesti in the upcoming
FIDE Presidential elections.
These elections will be held in Turin in May 2006 and will be an opportunity
to propose an alternative to the conservatism and standstill that currently
prevail in FIDE.
New ideas, aimed at a mass development of chess in general and among younger
players in particular, will be offered to national federations and enable a
true promotion of chess.
Leo Battesti, who is the organiser of one of the most important international
chess events (the Corsican Circuit) and is also the Vice-President of the French
Chess Federation, will strive to unite the men and women who work for chess
on the five continents, and who place the sporting activity of chess above all
other considerations. This new impulse will be directed towards finding mainstream
sponsors and partners who are seduced by the worldwide appeal of our sport,
and eventually, will allow both professional and amateur chess players to be
better served by an institution made by them, and for them.
