Yes! Chess boxing is a real sport and it is exactly what it sounds like it is. That is, it is a combination sport where participants compete in alternate rounds of speed chess and boxing.
The rules of Chess boxing are as follows. Each match consists of 11 rounds, 6 chess and 5 boxing, and the contest starts and ends with a chess round. Each round last 3 minutes and breaks between rounds are 60 seconds.
Competitors may win before the end of the match by KO or TKO in boxing or checkmate, resignation, or time usage: each player receives a total of 9 minutes to make all moves, in chess. If the contest goes all eleven rounds and the chess match ends in a draw, the fighter with more boxing points wins. In the case of a draw in boxing points, the player who started with the second move (black pieces) wins.
Chess boxing is very popular in Europe where it was birth. While, for a few, the origin of the sport is a topic of contention, most agree that it was invented by French comic book artist Enki Bilal. Later, it was adapted into performance art by Iepe Rubingh, a Dutch performance artist and is now a competitive sport. There are also Chess boxing competitions held in India and Russia. In addition, there have been a few charity matches exhibited in North America.
Chess boxing is definitely a sport on the rise. There are multiple professional organizations, like the World Chess Boxing Organisation (WCBO), and leaders in the chess world have expressed desire to include Chess boxing in future Olympic Games.
Get
6 Tips on How to Improve Your Chess Game
or learn,
How to Get Into a Boxing Stance.
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