New FIDE laws of chess, effective 1 July

Tim Harding

New FIDE laws of chess came into effect yesterday, 1 July 2017.
I wanted to create an MS Word file in which I could highlight the changes.

So I went to the FIDE website and found the HTML version,
https://www.fide.com/fide/handbook.html ... ew=article
and cut and pasted this into Word and started to study it.

But then I looked at the Table of Changes
http://rules.fide.com/images/stories/La ... GA__PB.pdf

and the PDF version of the new Laws at
https://arbiterschessa.files.wordpress. ... s_2017.pdf

I found some differences.

See for example:
7.2.1
and
7.5.1/ 7.5.2

In both these cases (where not just the wording but the required actions are quite different) the HTML version on the FIDE website seems to be the 2014 wording.

I think the PDF versions as indicated in the table of changes is correct?

I think it would help if an Irish arbiter can post a clarification here and on the ICU website and see if the FIDE website can be corrected a.s.a.p.

tedjennings

Hi, Tim
I have sent some info on this to the ICU.
Check out the ICU web site for:
The Laws of Chess valid 1-7-2017
Changes from previous laws
Letter from Arbiters' Commission
A few comments from myself

Ted.

mikhail

Link for the lazy.

Tim Harding

People at FIDE seem to have an obsession with this two-handed thing, don't they? I suppose it's a reflection of the fact that so much chess is played now at rapid/ blitz/ short increments so that more games get decided with little time on the clock, and so unfair behaviour is getting more focus in the rules.

It has to be pointed out, though, that many of the irregularities commonly encountered in local (as opposed to international) events are unaffected by these rule changes, but were affected in the 2014 changes, or earlier ones:

1. Incorrect pawn promotion (especially pressing the clock without putting the new piece on the promotion square) was already ruled illegal in 2014. What's new here is that two handed promotion, though not an illegal move in itself, may result in the opponent getting extra time.
2. Opponent adjusting piece(s) when it's your turn to move.
3. Opponent touching a piece when it's his turn to move but without saying j'adoube. The new rules are more explicit about a presumption of intent but it's still hard to insist on touch-and-move in the absence of a witness because the player will claim to have no memory of touching the piece.
4. Offering draws when it is the opponent's turn to move. See 9.1.2.1. It's quite common for the offer to be made after pressing the clock. IMHO there should be an explicit penalty (or extra time for you) when an opponent does this, especially when you are in the middle of a long think and the opponent speaks to you.
5. Offering a draw without making a move. I think the correct response here (unless you are happy to accept) is to write "=" on your scoresheet (see 8.1.5) and either say nothing or say "I'll decide after you move". The opponent cannot withdraw the offer.
6. Castling with the rook first.
7. Not keeping up to date with the score in classical games. [See 8.1.3]

Sometimes even more gross irregularities occur.
In a situation like a local league game, or one arbiter trying to control a whole tournament hall, it can be very hard to protest or do anything about it without disturbing the whole match.

Joedryan

Had a weird one in a recent tournament. My opponent in an endgame touuched his queens rook about to move, then changed his mind and put it down again. 5 mins later he touched the rook again, moved it across and castled queenside

Funny thing was it was not even the best move in the position. But he claimed he was unaware of the rules.