Talk:Jonathan Sarfati

Is this man a fraud? I ask because if you study the chess game he is apparently playing you will see the position of the pieces is very unlikely and perhaps impossible.--MarkusR (talk) 12:19, 5 May 2017 (EDT)

The picture is pretty small, and I can't tell if is a real position - I can't even tell where the bishops are, to make sure they're on different colors. Either way, the lack of another player makes it seem like he just set pieces on the board however for a press photo, which doesn't make him a fraud.--Abcqwe (talk) 12:25, 5 May 2017 (EDT)

"Dr Sarfati is also a keen chess player. He is a former New Zealand Chess Champion, and represented New Zealand in three Chess Olympiads, and drew with Boris Spassky, world champion 1969–1972, in a tournament game (those interested in the game score can see this chess site). In 1988, F.I.D.E., the International Chess Federation, awarded him the title of F.I.D.E. Master (FM). Dr Sarfati regularly accepts challenges from multiple players where he plays ‘blindfold’, i.e. from memory without sight or any physical contact with the board, so moves are communicated via a recognized chess notation (See an example at the Croydon Chess Club). Twelve is the most played simultaneously to date—see photo, above right."[1] Conservative (talk)

If you're talking about this image, it could easily be a press or promotional photo. Why would someone take a photo like that, especially from that angle, in the middle of an actual chess game? --1990'sguy (talk) 17:01, 5 May 2017 (EDT)

I was a good chess player even though I was merely an infrequent player of chess. For example, I won about half of the chess games against my relative who was the chess champion of his high school. At Yahoo chess, if memory serves, I believe my highest ranking was 2200 which is ranking of FIDE Candidate Masters (CM), most national masters.

The picture is obviously meant to be a promotional picture as there is no opposing player featured. To call him a fraud based on this picture is unreasonable given the other data we have at our disposal such as this video: Jonathan Sarfati playing 12 people simultaneously.

Lastly, setting aside the promotional picture aspect of the photo, although it is hard to tell from the picture, I wouldn't say the position of the chess pieces is impossible. But again, you are completely missing the purpose of the picture in my estimation and jumping to a poor conclusion. Conservative (talk) 17:39, 5 May 2017 (EDT)