The Underwater Backgammon World Championship

A seemingly strange thought occurred to us after playing countless joyful hours of riveting backgammon under the full moon of a typical hot summer Mallorcan night. “Hey. Why don’t we take this game to the next level? Let’s get our scuba gear and play backgammon at the bottom of the sea…”

The apparently off-the-wall idea did take several long seconds to eclipse any sense of healthy logic or reason however, the brilliant idea was born and we acted fast to set it in motion. The following morning, we found ourselves at the bottom of the pool located at our newly dubbed “Backgammon World championship Headquarters”, testing the weight of the dice (sink speed). After our “go-to” diver and fellow backgammon aficionado Henrik Undén (and accomplished backgammon adversary in his own right) chiseled an underwater backgammon board from stainless steel, diverse shells were collected from Mare Nostrum and used as board chips. We then sat together and brain-stormed in regards to everything and anything that would propel the game to an even more exciting level, under the sea.

Underwater backgammon rules include a single tank per player rule and as a twist for adrenaline junkies (just to make things real interesting), only buddy breathing is allowed, meaning no own air in the final decision-game. Here, it’s “do-or-die”, as one tank is given to both players and a single octopus is shared between moves. The two finalists do not have access to any air until their move is completed. So players must think fast, …and play faster.

 
For the 2009 Underwater Backgammon World Championship, the logistics were a bit challenging in terms of competitors who could also scuba dive as well as deciding on the championship date which heavily depends on sea conditions. However after some obstacles which included bad weather and no visibility (even at 6m depth), we could successfully launch the 2009 challenge on the 12th of October, with the professional help from the Port Petro Divers team.

The 2008 Underwater Backgammon World Champion, Ilya Petrou (Greece), once again threw down the gauntlet and challenged heavyweights of the likes of Nicke Forsberg (Sweden), who ultimately fell in the semi-final. Game was on and the stakes were high for the 2008 silver medalist Lottie Undén (Sweden) who once again challenged Petrou in the final. Undén remained cool under pressure and demonstrated her solid play by taking the first game, 1-0. The pressure was on for Petrou who quickly reacted and took the second game, leveling the fight to 1-1. In the third and deciding game, the shared octopus rule was initiated and the battle was a fierce one.
Poseidon appeared to favor Undén as game three began to unfold however with a twist of the wrist and the help of the almighty Zeus, Petrou edged ahead of Undén and managed to repeat the victory and was crowned the undisputed two-time Underwater Backgammon World Champion, 2009.

Check out the latest news and pictures over at Underwater Backgammon!

Thanks to Lottie Undén and Ilya Petrou for the words and Leighton Perry for the pictures!

trekking: walking in the countryside for pleasure or sport. Usually meaning for a longer period of time than hiking.

For pleasure and sport? Hell yeah. Almost. Checking out the pictures from Officer dUB, an old extreme backgammon standby, and his opponent Hempel, a fairly new extreme backgammon player, it comes to the viewer’s mind that there is more than pleasure and sport involved here. The guys did a truly extreme tour here climbing up to lake Moriri close to the famous destination Ladakh, Northern India. It has to be seen who has enough power and oxygen left to battle it out next to the wonderful spot here.

Who actually won the game and who on the other hand had to carry the equipment back to the base camp is not known. Whoever it was – the definition of trekking has to be rewritten:

extreme trekking: walking in the countryside for extreme backgammon activities. Usually meaning for a longer period of time than a 5 point game.

The secret why people are going is the fact that it’s all about boozing and eating a lot of junk food. But there is more – of course. Anne and Lucie were well advised carrying a backgammon board to the AT&T Park to stand the 4 or whatever hours of endless boringness. Baseball – Backgammon: 0-17

It was a very well deserved victory in the end. oolong overcame magic, showed incredible strenght – mentally and physically and of course – performed backgammon at a level other regular humans can only dream of! Just one comment about the final which took place in front of the India Gate in Delhi: nobless oblige!

You are used to the fact that he xbg crew is covering the whole series in depth – and of course we do not want to disappoint you! We give you some impressions of this outstanding final act:

We see oolong here on his drive to the final. You can clearly see the tension and deep concentration! His whole body language has this graceful countenance – that’s what it takes to be a real xbg champion! We do not want to forget to cheer for the runner up! “The Driver”! You could not really count on him but he made his way to the final – showing his impressive expertise! Fantastic achievement!

This was the “All India eXtreme Backgammon Trophy”! Thanks everyone for participating! And big applause again for oolong!

p.s.: Yeah we also have to disclose that the final itself was quite a boring game – you know how that goes with these high expectations… oolong celebrated a clear 17-11!!

Although quitting the yoga scene as it became too commercial Shree Shree Remmidemmi still has “the moves” – you can’t loose sight on that… Instead of earning money now as a truck driver Shree Shree sells “black sausages” – what basically means he is not only a yoga master – he is godlike in bargaining as well…

Anyhow – his backgammon skills were truly extraordinary but oolong was finally awarded for his inhuman efforts – he made it to the final in a hard fought 17 point match. We are hoping to get an interview with oolong – after the final of course – oolong was busy preparing himself for the final showdown – trying to become one with the dices…

The first real version of Backgammon has likely originated in India or in China. Due to the trade connections between the two civilizations it is difficult to point out a definitive origin of the game, but the Indian game Parcheesi bears enough similarity to modern Backgammon to be recognized as the first ancient version of the game. [http://winningbackgammon.info/]

The very origin of Backgammon is sill not sufficiently clarified but it is believed to have originated in Mesopotamia – today Iran, Iraq and Syria. But it might be the case that it received some of his final touch in India. Maybe some Indians were playing backgammon around Jaipur a long time ago sitting on the wall same as Chloe and Eva here. Looks like another way to backgammon enlightenment…

There we go! Closer to backgammon heaven! Ken managed to convince Spanish backgammon shooting star Xavi – better known as “el cabrón” – to play a match on the very top of an ancient temple close to Bagan.

Ken was happy to be close to backgammon enlightenment while Xavi was fighting vertigo… Result: 17-0!

What an incredible privilege! Honour whom honour is due! I do not have to tell you that oolong had no chance at all in the game – doubled down to earth… Buddha was impressively demonstrating that it’s a long and stony way to backgammon enlightenment and that life equals suffering. oolong asked for deliverance…

The match took place on the ancient temple site of Bagan / Myanmar. The trophy organizers decided to set an important sign for the people of Myanmar and the world choosing this spot. Although “the prime minister” is up to every trick playing Russian Backgammon for 25 years, oolong eventually won a dramatic game although it looked like Russian Roulette in deciding situations.

oolong made it thus to the semifinal – Congratulations by now for this extraterrestrial performance! Be prepared for more thrilling action! Semis soon!!!

Scenario: unspoiled nature
Predominant element: water
Mission: wellness

These words describe the Spa center of Pré-Saint-Didier, a wonderful treasure that is now sparkling again in the heart of the Valle d’Aosta, a timeless location that gives a new meaning to the concept of Spa center, wellness and re-birth.

This passage is scraped from the official site of Terme di Pré-Saint-Didier – close to Courmayeur. Nothing much to add there as you can see:

Juan and Vincenzo had of course other things in mind:

• Scenario: the winner gets the free spot next to beautiful lady in typical Prés-Saint-Didier gear…
• Predominant element: testosterone
• Mission: extreme backgammon