World Chess Championship 2018 'Kamasutra-esque' logo baffles everybody

The logo which shows two chequered bodies swaddled around each other, with a chessboard placed at the center – has sent every chess follower into a sense of amusement and comparing it to the world-famous Kamasutra images.

Courtesy: worldchess.com

New Delhi: German chess Grandmaster Robert Hubner once said, "Those who say they understand chess, understand nothing." Well, the papyrologist's words finally make sense after the brand new unveiled logo of 2018 World Chess Championship which has left Grandmasters and everybody else bewildered.

The logo which shows two chequered bodies swaddled around each other, with a chessboard placed at the center – has sent every chess follower into a sense of amusement and are comparing it to the world-famous Kamasutra images.

The 12-game Championship (November 9-28, 2018) will be held in London, between reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen and winner of the 2018 Candidates Tournament.

The design has been created by Moscow-based studio Shuka Design, and the organizers were prepared for the controversy it would create. According to the organizers, "The key visual for the 2018 World Chess Championship is controversial and trendy, just like the host city. As organizers of the match, we've been busy for over a year working with artists and designers to develop a perfect key visual, the image that will be associated with the 2018 match and which will find its way onto mugs, posters, outdoor displays, venue design, media, broadcasting graphics and more."

Even Hungarian-born American chess Grandmaster couldn't control her confusion and expressed her concerns on Twitter.

2018 World Championship Logo - Appropriate to promote to kids? @FIDE_chess @WOMChess @EuropeEchecs @chessdom @MarkTWIC @USChess pic.twitter.com/rKw6KbHgFU — Susan Polgar (@SusanPolgar) December 19, 2017

Five-time World Champion Vishwanath Anand, when questioned by ESPN about the new logo said, "Finally, a position where DeepMind will have to do more than just calculations. If you're in this position you can definitely count yourself off Santa's good list!" The Indian Grandmaster's reply perfectly summed up the baffled puzzlement of everybody else. Even the board in the logo hasn't gone unnoticed as it has only 6x6 squares. "As a chess player, I wish the board was 8x8 and the pawn not on the back rank. In the end, people watch chess for the games. I'm hoping this doesn't end up pushing us into late night TV," Anand quipped.