Alexei Shirov and Viktor Laznicka played a friendly match in Novy Bor, Czechoslovakia. The match was six games at the classical time control 30 moves in 90 minutes with a 30-second increment per move. The main sponsor was Ajeto Glassworks who organized a number of parallel events as befits such a match such as simuls and more. The match was broadcast live and included two grandmasters to provide live commentary for the spectators... in Czech. Nevertheless, it was a first-class event as can be seen in the photographs. Shirov ultimately won, beating Vikto Laznicka 4-2.
The first day was devoted to sight-seeing
This included visiting the glass museum in Novy Bor
The opening ceremony was a tribute to Shirov's famus book "Fire on the Board", though
instead of a metaphor, it was the real deal.
The drrawing of colors was done with a couple of glassblowers
Shirov tries his hand at glass making
The event would hardly be complete without the time-honored signing of the board
IA Pavel Votruba starts the match
Viktor Laznicka
A view of the match from the Ajeto restaurant
The players engaged in an animated discussion after the games in the post-mortem
Shirov faced 20 opponents in the Glass Tavern in Lindava
Are those pitchers of sangria to even the odds?
GM Mark Vokac and GM Robert Cvek provided daily commentary for the audience
The beautiful trophy made for the event
Martin Sikola from Lasvits applauds Shirov's deserved victory
Alexey Shirov, the victor, holds his trophy high
After the match, autographs were requested
The match score
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