18 That were not afraid enough for possible consequences. I'm convinced that in a more normal situation the number would have been even higher.

Makro was not talking about the prize fund itself but only the difference in prizes between the last two championships. And then it's quite a significant amount, so some of the complaints are indeed hard to understand.

>>I really wonder how long FIDE can go on like this.

For a very long time. The current administration just got re-elected remember? Which must mean they have the support of the majority of the chess world behind them.

PS: Sarcasm alert. ;)

It seems to me that FIDE is making the Argument that the Organizers went to a lot of trouble and did not profit personally from the Event. Even if true it does not address the Complaints.
BP could have made the same Argument for the Gulf Oil Spill. To Drill at that depth was very difficult and BP didn't profit from the loss of life or from the Environmental devastation..

I can see one thing very clearly, there is no objectivity among chess enthusiasts on this site. I am no fan of FIDE and the corrupt shenanigans they pulled during the elections, but hell even I can try to be objective. It is really had to come out positive when you have just been blasted to bits in an "open letter".

If anything, that "open letter" was openly insulting to the city and its inhabitants. Not a word about that eh? You don't go to somebody's house as a guest and insult them. An "antagonize first" approach never works. I say this is bullsh*t, STFU and get on with it.

please note that the prize fund, which seems to be the main argument of mr Makropoulos, one that is supposededly strong enough in order to dismiss all arguments about overcharging, is ridiculous: 10.000 euros for the World Champion? a joke!
and 650 euros for the eliminated players? this money will not even cover their expenses (hotels, tickets etc).

Let us stop sexist remarks on the fact that it was a women's tournament, and all the complaints of the 17 players are based on the fact, that they are women.

Otherwise I think the whole story is about Turkish small-business moral. Probably the organizers should have paid much more attention to minor details, such as accomodation, catering, transportation etc. They did not, so the organization of the event was poor, regardless of the amount of money offered by the Turkish Chess Federation. I do not think any of the players directly accused the Federation by stealing their money, so the response does not make any sense.

What probably happened is that one of the organizer's friend/cousin/client/patron was the owner of the hotel.

January 2012:

'With great surprise I saw you seized our headquarters.'

blah blah blardey blardy blah

STOMP

Yours slavingly,

...you know who.

That FIDE is baffled by open letters is amazing to me.
The reason seems to be that complaints to any official in FIDE is met by reactions ranging from open hostility to just ignoring the players.
THe last time I recall a problem was acted upon was when the world Jr championship was an utter fiasco and the organizer was banned from doing further events.

The hotel was 4 star and good,.. not according to the players
If the hotel was 'good' then shouldnt the cost have been similar to the other 4 star hotels in the area?
I can understand that a minimum # of players need to participate and be in the hotel to gain special or free facilities for the tournament but the cost seems extreme.

FIDE dismisses the problems as a one day out of 25.
Would the players really have complained if this was the case?

If the organizers and FIDE want to resolve these sorts of issues in the future or currently then just have the organizers open their books from the tournament for review,....
I won't hold my breath

since FIDE is paid very well don't bother to complain but appreciate for
organizers contribution towards FIDE!!
Bottomline is they ( FIDE ) does not care about little things ( players discomfort , food , hotel charges , venue , noise ) as long as it receives its 20% share.
Well when you see 18 ( not 1 or 2 ) women signed the letter , rather than shamelessly defending/praising organizers they should have said we will investigate this or may be in future we will give more emphasis on this fundamental issue.

sick letter

So, as long as the organizers paid FIDE it is fine for them to overcharge the players.

Of course it would have been unprecedented that FIDE support the players and provide a legitimate answer to their concern, but it is still surprising to see them endorse corruption so openly.

It is very unlikely that everything was okay if so many players complained. The letter just says everything that was in that letter is not true. Unbelievable! Shameless.

I really wonder how long FIDE can go on like this.

18/64 complained. That means organizers did something wrong.
FIDE supports TCF.
FIDE's vice president is TCF's president.

The letter actually didn't answer the question: Why they paid more money than the other same level hotels'?

Wow, I did expect a defensive letter, but didn't expect such a shameless one.

The Guy who wrote this letter is no Ladies man. No mention of 'sorry, regret, or apology' Clearly the Women were not so happy.

Does anybody still bother to even read these letters that are coming out of FIDE?

"A letter with a different and positive attitude, which would first acknowledge the efforts up to now of the Turkish Chess Federation and then suggest possible improvements, would have been much more appreciated and not create such a negative image for our organisers and sponsors."

I agree with the above quote. This would have been the reasonable way to proceed.

the reply completely misses the point the girls were trying to make. ah well who wants to explain...

I am suporting the ladies side. Wenck FIDE.

SCORE:

Girls- 2
FIDE- 0

FIDE's argument that, if the organizers were intending to make money they would have simply lowered the prize fund, is silly. At least here in the US, most major tournaments are designed to make a profit for the organizers, and you can bet that hotel kickbacks and other methods are used to achieve that end. The organizers here do not and could not substantiate a denial of their profit motive by asserting that the availability of prize money is proves that they were not seeking profit. That is one kind of tournament, the most common. Of course there is another type: a rare number of prestigious events here, like the US Championship, are not designed to make a profit.

A very significant number of participants of the 2010 Women’s World Championship obviously felt that, for an event that should have been the second type, they were treated as if it were the first type. Where there is smoke there is fire.

You must be out of your mind if you think anybody cares about chess in the US.