The letter has been signed by 44 players, including plenty of grand champions in the sport. Sergei Karjakin, one of the top names earlier in the week, infuriated chess players after openly supporting Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine.
Chess is still a big sport in Russia. Its predecessor, the Soviet Union, was the real power of chess. In the late 20th century, game boards dominated, among other things Boris Spasski, Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov, which, however, turned against its masters and is still politically active. Today, Kasparov’s criticism hits the Russian president Vladimir Putin.
An open letter from chess players says the current regime is not satisfied.
– Chess teaches to take responsibility for actions; every move matters and an error can take you to a fatal point with no return. This was a sport, but now human lives, human rights and freedoms, human dignity and the present and future of our countries (Russia and Ukraine) are at stake, the letter is worded. (switch to another service)
Among the signatories is Karpov, a member of the lower house of the Russian parliament, the Duma. He voted in favor of recognizing the separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and is currently on the EU’s sanctions list.
A few days ago a Russian grandmaster Sergei Karjakin infuriated the chess community with his comments in support of Putin and the war. In his open letter, Karelia also “hopes that the brave Russian army will carry out the task assigned to it quickly”.
Karjaa was also born in Crimea 32 years ago and in the early part of his career he represented Ukraine. Karjakin is apparently not bothered by soldiers crashing in his former homeland.
Chess Olympics out of Moscow
The World Chess Federation FIDE is on the same line with other international sports organizations. Tournaments under it are not currently played in Russia or Belarus. The biggest of the Games, the biennial Chess Olympics, will be moved out of Moscow.
FIDE’s decision was unanimous. What makes it special is that the president of the organization served as the deputy prime minister responsible for the Russian economy in 2012-18 Arkadi Dvorkovits.
– FIDE’s operations have been driven by Russia. Under Dvorkovits, it has gone in a better direction. I am positively surprised that FIDE has had the backbone to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine, Executive Director of the Finnish Chess Federation Marko Tauriainen says.