Karpov at Disney

In my previous post, Dingo and Mickey Play Chess, I wrote, 'The Disney company has long been a supporter of chess.' When I read this a second time, I wondered if I could back up the statement with facts.

My page Karpov's Tournament, Match, and Exhibition Record 1985+ ('Last updated 2001-05-04'?!), mentions three Disney events -- 1993 EuroDisney; 1994 Simul, Disney; and 1998 Disneyland Paris, Marne-la-Vallee -- but I had never looked into them any further. I found a report for the 1993 event in Europe Echecs, February 1994, written by Christophe Guéneau, who is also credited for the photo of Etienne Bacrot and GM Karpov shown below.

I couldn't find a report for the '1994' event. A Chess Life report for the 1998 event included an interview with Pierre Sissmann of Disney, who mentioned, 'It's the fifth time we've organized a big chess event'.

The December 1993 event was the European Youth Rapidplay Championship (U12 & U14), a December 1995 Disney event had the same title & categories plus a Karpov simul, and the November 1998 event was the World Youth Rapidplay Championship (U12 & U14). The various youth championships are often documented haphazardly, depending on which countries can claim the winners, so it's not surprising that I couldn't find all of the events quickly.