World Chess Championship 2013 venue arrangements: Security, seating plan and media regulations

As is required for an event like the World Chess Championship, officials of the organising body are working round-the-clock to have everything in order. Here is a quick update on all the arrangements at the venue – the Chennai Hyatt Regency:

- Players’ security, playing area and seating arrangements have been finalised. No outsider will have access to World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand and World Chess Challenger Magnus Carlsen before the championship. The players will, however, attend the post-game press conference every day.

- Both chess teams are expected to check in at the Hyatt Regency by November 2-4 and would be allocated separate floors. Separate elevators will take Anand and Carlsen straight to the playing arena. All entry and exit points will be barricaded.

- Playing arena will be accessible only to the players, chief arbiter, deputy arbiter and a hotel staff member for serving refreshments to the players.

- Media, public, fans won’t have access to either Anand or Carlsen before the World Championship match begins.

- A sound proof glass partition will separate the players from the audience as has become an international tradition for international chess events. This, after all, is the World Chess Championship!

- Electronic gadgets, mobile phones, tablets, etc would not be allowed into the venue.

- Two large audio-visual screens will be installed in the spectators’ area.

- A small area behind the spectators’ area will be available to 100 registered chess players at a time for watching the game of the day. This area will not have any seating arrangement.

- Journalists would have to follow the match live in the media centre where post-game press conferences will also be held.