Iran hosts chess final

India's Anand (l) is battling Lithuania's Alex Shirov

By Jim Muir in Tehran

The final of the world chess championship has begun in the Iranian capital, Tehran.

India's Viswanathan Anand, and the Lithuanian, Alexei Shirov, are competing not only for the coveted title but $3.5m prize money.

The contest, organised by the International Chess Federation, or FIDE, is a rival to the title recently won in London by Vladimir Kramnik, when he beat the former undisputed champion, Garry Kasparov.

It is widely believed that the game originated here about 2000 years ago

It will take a week to decide the winner.

Iran is an unusual venue for such an encounter, although it is widely believed to be the birthplace of chess.

Chess, banned in Iran after the Islamic revolution in 1979, is now making a comeback.

Hunting the king

However some hardline Iranian clerics still frown on chess.

Chess is believed to have originated in Iran

They see it as a form of gambling and the regal aspect of hunting the king also strikes the wrong note for them.

Less than 10 years after it was banned, Ayatollah Khomenei himself issued a fatwa making it legal again.

Now chess is back, out in the open here with a national federation to promote its interests.

Officials say there are more than 100,000 active players around the country, some of them as fanatical and obsessed with the game as people anywhere else in the world.

It is quite common to see quiet struggles going on in parks and cafes, as well as indoors.

Young generation

Many of the Iranian players are very young - there is a huge new generation of young people who are embracing the game with enthusiasm.

It has already produced several young world beaters, including the reigning champion in the girls' under-12 category, Atusapourkashi.

Historians say there is textual evidence to back up Iran's claim to have invented the game. Also, many chess terms, such as 'checkmate,' are believed to come from Farsi.

Iranian chess players are thrilled that, after years of international isolation, their country is finally hosting a world chess final.

For them, the game that was born here is coming home.