Israeli Chess Fest
In a whirlwind affair, 30 year-old Israeli grandmaster Alik Gershon broke a world record Thursday when he played 523 people simultaneously. The display took place in Rabin Square in Tel-Aviv and lasted over 19 hours.
According to the New York Times, Gershon needed to beat at least 80 percent of his opponents and easily topped that, beating 458, drawing with 58 and losing to 11 for a 92 percent winning record. To add to his impressive feat, Natan Sharansky was reported to be one of Gershon’s opponents. The previous record was set last year by Iranian grandmaster Morteza Mahjoob, who played 500 people. Gershon was happy to have beaten a record held by Iran but added, “Hopefully this is the only war we are going to have with this enemy, ever.”
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!