Sunday, June 20, 2010

FISHER'S REMAINS TO BE EXHUMED

Below is a feature from Chessbase in the continuing legal battle for Bobby Fischer's estate. What arose my excitement and attention was the fact that among the protagonists was Fisher's alleged child Jinky Young whose mother Marilyn Young is from Davao City, Philippines. According to one news report, the Young's are now residing in a two storey house in Davao City which they acquired from the money send to them by Bobby Fischer. Since I'm also residing here in Davao City, maybe we are just neighbors with the Young's ?


Bobby Fischer with Jinky Young and "live-in partner" Marilyn Young in 2004


Icelandic Court: Fischer’s remains can be exhumed
18.06.2010 – On April 1st of this year we reported – and it was not a tasteless April Fool's joke – that the remains of former World Champion Bobby Fischer could be exhumed to settle a paternity dispute. The District Court of Reykjavik did not allow it, but now the Iceland Supreme Court has overturned this ruling after receiving new evidence from the claimant Marilyn Young. The story is in the international news.

Fischer’s remains to be exhumed

In our April report we provided details of the court appeals. Samuel Estimo, the lawyer representing Fischer's alleged Filipino child Jinky Young, told us that Judge Sigrun Gudmundsdottir of the Icelandic probate court found no DNA samples of Fischer at the National Hospital in Iceland, where the ex-world champion died on January 17, 2008 of renal failure. Because of this development, Estimo and his collaborating Icelandic lawyer, Thordur Bogason, requested the court to issue an order for the exhumation of Bobby's remains for DNA samples to be tested with the blood samples extracted from Jinky when she went to Iceland in December last year.

In our article we also described an inexpensive and uncomplicated alternative to digging up the remains of Fischer to extract DNA samples for testing against those of Jinky Young. The company 23andMe, a privately held personal genomics and biotechnology company (co-founded by Anne Wojcicki, who is married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin) provides a service that genotypes DNA samples and can map the ancestry of a subject.

A single sample – in the form of saliva – taken from Jinky Young will provide a map of her DNA family tree, going back many generations. If the map shows ancestry in Hungary and the US, where Fischer's parents originated, then further tests are justified. If they are only in Asia or the Philippines then it would be clear that Fischer is not the father of Jinky – without having to extract DNA from an exhumed body. The cost of a 23andMe is $399 for ancestry. The DNA mapping can also be conducted by many hospital facilities.

Fischer's friends in Reykjavik

One of Fischer's Icelandic friends and member of the RJF Committee Einar S. Einarsson told us that "many of Bobby's friends doubt very much that he is the biological father of Jinky Young." He and others are against the exhumation and argues that "it is easy and possible nowadays to get a DNA from a postage stamp that has been licked, or even from a hair, which should be quite easy to get from his appartment, which has been sealed off since he died. To exhume his body for DNA samples, which could be retrieved by other means, is simply a brutal and a rude thing to do. It distrub the sanctity of the grave and is a very serious matter."

Einar sent us the above picture, which is probably the very last taken of Fischer. It was during a privat New Year's party, with Kantathi Suphanongkhon, who had represented Tailand at FIDE and Asian Zone meetings, GM Helgi Ólafsson arrange the party, and his uncle Thorgeirsson was the host.

Just click the link below for the complete story..
http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=6435

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