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Originally Posted by XabbaRus
True but I was reading about the match he was supposed to play against Karpov and he wanted the rules changed so if he drew 9:9 he would retain his title but Karpov had to win 12:8 to gain the title. Seems he wanted it sorted in his favour so it was even harder for Karpov to win.
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Xabba, that is no single case, it was the rule with many championships. The cionstant lobbyiong of the candidates friends for influencing the codntions in their favour gave us the not less eccentric battle around the match Kortschnoi and Karpo, and it ultimately led to the split of the chess federation, FIDE, or better: the new founding of a competing federation by Kasparov, which for soem years became the far more important than FIDE. It also was a question of Moscow-friendly party politics (FIDE, president Campomenes, and Karpov), and the rebellion against that (Kasparov, Kortschnoi (who was seen as a traitor for he turned his back on the USSR) ). fisher-Spasski was a chess duel with a poltiical diemnsion, but Kortschnoi and Karpov added to that another diemnsion: personal antipathy, even hate. they disliked each other on a personal basis for what they were representing, and for what they stood.
That has damaged Karpov's reputation, which is a shame, because he maybe plays efficient only and by that: unspectacular, but nevertheless must be seen as one of the storngest players there ever were.
You will find eccentric behavior and disputed tournament conditon regarding very, very many of the great chess players. It comes as part of pushing their chess skills to the extremes, like narcissism and lust for power are the shadow of almost every major politician.
If you are interested: it is an older book stopping after Fisher became world champion and leaving our Karpow, Kortschnoi, Kasparov, but it is a very accessible biography of the great world chmapion in the hiostory of chess, from Steinitz to Fisher "Harold Schonberg: Grandmaster'S of chess". I assume their are more modern volumes as well, but cannot recommend any by own reading, only the book by Schonberg. The duels between Karpof and Kortschnoi, and Kasparov, I followed en detail during my school age, that's why I know about them as well. Soimetimes, it was a marathon concerning match numbers - the battle for influencing match conditions in one player'S favour led to these absurd constellations.