MOSCOW, November 11. /TASS/. The World Chess Federation (FIDE) will not change the rules in regard to players’ participation in global tournaments following recently voiced demands on behalf of Russian Chess Grandmaster Sergey Karjakin, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich told TASS on Friday.
Karjakin told TASS on Monday that he would not be competing at the 2022 World Rapid and Blitz Championship in Kazakhstan next month if he was not allowed to play under the national flag of Russia.
"We have rules, which we will be following. We will not be adjusting them concerning a certain chess player," FIDE chief Dvorkovich said in an interview with TASS. "Russian chess players should feel free to participate [in international tournaments], but only under the flag of FIDE."
On March 16, The World Chess Federation (FIDE) prohibited national teams from Russia and Belarus from playing in FIDE licensed tournaments, but allowed individual players from these countries to take part under a neutral status.
Karjakin’s six-month suspension
On September 22, FIDE announced Karjakin’s six-month suspension from the federation and all sports tournaments had expired.
On February 27, Karjakin published an open letter in which he supported Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. The next day, FIDE condemned the Russian grandmaster for publicly declaring his political stance, and took ‘disciplinary action’ against him.
On March 21, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) stated that its Ethics and Disciplinary Commission (EDC) decided to suspend Russian Chess Grandmaster Karjakin from all competitions for a period of six months.
Karjakin, 32, is currently 18th on the FIDE Rankings List. In 2016, the Russian chess player won the Candidates Tournament and then lost the World Chess Championship’s title match to Norwegian Magnus Carlsen.
Karjakin is the winner of the Chess World Cup in 2015. He is also the world champion in Rapid Chess (2012) and Blitz (2016).