Anand Requests Postponement

Various news websites in India and the ICC are reporting that Vishy Anand's team have requested a postponement to the start of his match with Topalov because the Indian has been stuck in Frankfurt. The ICC's newsletter today has the following entry (not available online):

The power and wrath of Mother Nature came into dramatic clarity recently as Eyjafjallajökull, the glacier-topped Icelandic volcano threw world air travel into turmoil - and it could well have an impact on the upcoming Topalov-Anand World Championship match in Sofia, Bulgaria!

World champion Vishy Anand has been stranded at Frankfurt Airport and has asked FIDE, via the All India Chess Federation, for a 3-day postponement in the match due to start on Friday, April 23rd, citing force majeure conditions stipulated in the playing contract for the match.

However, his request may not be met as things seem to be beginning to clear up, and even UEFA, the governing body of European soccer, has instructed that all of next week's all-important European semifinal matches will have to go ahead as planned, regardless of the travel situation.