Last Wednesday, an Iranian chess grandmaster took the record for most chess games played simultaneously away from an Israeli grandmaster who had previously taken the record from another Iranian grandmaster.
This is not a record that is enshrined in the great history of chess; it is a record that is played only for the pages of the Guinness Book of records. The Islamic Republic does not seem to mind that Guinness is a brewing company.
Back in August 2009, Iranian Morteza Mahjoob, 30, set the record for most games played simultaneously. He played 500 matches, winning 397, losing 13 and drawing 90.
But the record stood for barely a year before Alik Gershon, also 30, played 523 games over 19 hours, winning 454, losing 11 and drawing 58.
Now, Iran has taken the record back from Israel. Last Tuesday and Wednesday, Ehsan Ghaem-Maghami, 28, played 614 games over 25 hours, winning 590, losing eight and drawing 16.
Such marathons are as much athletic events as chess competitions because the grandmaster must stay on his feet and keep moving for so long that it becomes a test of endurance. The grandmaster has to work out like a long-distance marathoner to prepare for the grueling competition. Ghaem-Maghami said he covered 55 kilometers while walking from one game to another over 25 hours.
“Now, I have to think about setting a sleeping record,” he joked after he finished.
The sponsor of the event awarded Ghaem-Maghami a Mazda-3 car for setting the record.
Guinness, the Irish beer company, must still certify the record. It sets certain requirements. The players all must meet certain minimal requirements of chess knowledge and not just be gathered in off the streets. Also, for the record to be considered by Guinness, the grandmaster must have won 80 percent of the games, which the last three record-setters all did easily.