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!