The star in question is Russian grandmaster Anatoly Karpov, a former world chess champion who came to Prague to take part in the ČEZ Chess Trophy. The centerpiece of the four-day festival, held July 14–17 at Hotel Kampa, was a two-game match between Karpov and David Navara, the Czech Republic's best chess player, who at 20 years of age ranks 41st in the world.

Karpov, 54, ranks 33rd. He lost his world championship title for the first time in 1985 to fellow Russian Garry Kasparov.

Getting a big name like Karpov to participate swallowed up a large chunk of the festival's 750 million Kč budget. But it was well worth it, according to Pavel Matocha, chair of the Prague Chess Association and organizer of the event. "This festival gives Navara the opportunity to play against a very strong opponent, which is always good training for a young chess player," he said.

According to Petr Herejk, chair of the Czech Chess Association, Navara could use the practice. "He hasn't been in top form lately," Herejk said, adding, "Like in every sport, [chess] players go through cycles. Navara could very well be on his way to the top soon."

That would be good news for the Czech chess community, about 200 of whom turned out to support Navara, ogle Karpov and place bets on the games. Over 1 million Kč worth of bets were made during the festival, with most placed during the first day, when Navara played Slovak chess champion Sergey Movsesjan in a 12-game speed match that ended in a tie.

A thing of beauty

Several days later, in the medieval interiors of Hotel Kampa, Navara admitted the first game was very stressful. "I was pretty nervous, even though I knew that a lot of people were betting against me," he said. Wearing a white tie printed with larger-than-life chess pieces, Navara is slight and boyish, his arms held stiffly alongside his body as he speaks to fans and poses for pictures. He's been playing chess since age 4 and ranks third in the world among junior chess players. But he still hasn't gotten used to all the attention.

With a 10-year reign as world champion behind him, Karpov was certainly a formidable opponent. But Navara is known for being able to make strong attacks in his game. Karpov, on the other hand, plays strong defense, not taking risks, but pouncing once his opponent makes the smallest mistake. "Some people joke that most of the time Karpov just moves around his pieces along his end of the chess board," said Matocha before the match. "If David is to have a chance, he needs to start with strong offense."

Navara was more philosophical: "The purpose of a chess game isn't just to strategize, but also to create something beautiful," he said. He later added that along with being a science, a sport and a game, chess for him is also an art form.

Twenty-five at once

The work of art that Navara and Karpov created during their two-part match, played over two days, was probably very beautiful to some. To many it was also very, well, long.

"If only one of them would fall off a chair, that way at least something would be happening," remarked one of the commentators at a point in the second game when most of the pieces had been taken off the chessboard. Navara and Karpov were in the final stages of a game reduced to rooks and a few pawns. Chairs creaked as spectators shifted in their seats. Otherwise, nothing broke the absolute silence.

After 48 moves and more than three hours, the second game ended the same way as the first: in a draw, with both competitors earning a trophy.

Karpov later said he enjoyed competing against Navara. "I thought he played at a very high level and he was good in defense, so I thought he deserved this [ending]." Asked if Navara has a chance to one day become world champion, Karpov was diplomatic with his answer: "It's very difficult to become a world champion. In the last 100 years, we had only 13."

No longer nervous and sporting a wide grin, Navara seemed pleased but tired. "Over the last 30 days I've played 24 games, which is a new record for me," he said. He doesn't think he'll ever grow tired of the game, though. "Millions of chess games have been played, but there are still new things to explore."

As the festival approached its end, Karpov looked relaxed as he prepared for 25 simultaneous games against competitors selected from the ranks of celebrities and managers who sponsored the tournament. Among them was Jan Klaus, son of the Czech president, and former hockey player Martin Hosták.

Did any of them stand a chance to beat the grandmaster? Matocha wasn't so sure. "Five of the players are pretty strong," he mused, sounding doubtful. Meanwhile, fans once again circled Karpov, trying to catch a last look at the former world champion.