Boxing with Brains

‘Chessboxing’ as its name reflects is the fusion of two well-known and well-disciplined sports namely chess and boxing. Chessboxing was invented by French comic book artist Enki Bilal and adapted by Dutch performance artist Lepe Rubingh as an art performance and has subsequently grown into a competitive sport. It is particularly popular in the United Kingdom, India, Finland, and Russia. The first chessboxing competition took place in Berlin in 2003. The governing bodies of chessboxing are the World Chessboxing Association (WCBA) and the World Chess Boxing Organisation (WCBO). A match consists of 11 alternating rounds of chess and boxing, starting and ending with chess. Each round lasts three minutes, followed by a one-minute break. The chess rounds are played under time control, with a total of nine minutes allotted to each player and no increment added to either player's clock after a move is made. Two combatants play alternating rounds of blitz chess and boxing until one wins by checkmate or knockout. It is also possible to win by time penalty as in normal chess, and by boxing decision, if there is a draw in the chess round. As of 2013, they take the form of professional events under the auspices of Chess Boxing Global. A chessboxer must have strong skills in both chess and boxing to be permitted to compete in a professional chessboxing fight. So, if you are an expert in both sports then you must try Chessboxing.