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... to bring you this important bulletin.

Veselin Topalov is kicking some major ass and figuratively burning most of the current best chess players at the stake at the 2005 FIDE World Chess Championship. The raging Bulgarian is, in my opinion, far and away the most exciting chess player in the world at the moment (since Garry Kasparov retired from chess earlier this year).

I have high hopes that he will continue his swashbuckling success until he has trampled the hopes and dreams of Vlad "the Impaler" Kramnik (who must be among the biggest of chickens of all of the acknowledged Chess World Champions down through history). Kramnik beat Kasparov fair and square in a 20-game match back in 2000 and then, as far as I could tell, did everything possible to avoid a rematch until Kasparov finally hung up his Sicilian and headed off to pursue political reform in Russia. (Here's hoping he isn't murdered before Topalov beats Kramnik.)

An interesting factoid is that Topalov beat Kasparov at this year's Linares tournament in the last game Kasparov played before he announced his retirement from chess. At the time I was hopeful that that game signified a true passing of the torch of the style of uncompromising chess greatness embodied by Kasparov to Topalov. Topalov's current results at the present FIDE event make me optimistic this might be the case. It would be fun to have a chess player to root for again after Kasparov. (The situation in the professional chess world is similar to the situation in the NBA in some ways. After Michael Jordan retired, it was difficult to get excited about watching the sport. I am optimistic that LeBron James will make it interesting again in the same way I am hopeful Topalov inherits Kasparov's dominance and guts and competitiveness.)

Gotta love the Bulgarian so far!