CHESS#1280

The World Blitz and Rapid Championships kick off this weekend in Riyadh against the backdrop of a controversy. The Saudis don’t have a chess profile, and some mullahs believe the game is haraam.  

But the Saudis offered a massive fund of $2 million plus and the King Salman World Rapid & Blitz is part of the Kingdom’s modernisation drive. So much so, the Saudis will apparently let women play in the same hall as men, without wearing hijabs.  But of course, women players must be accompanied by “male guardians” if they go out in public.  

Will the KSA grant visas