MOSCOW, January 19. /TASS/. /TASS/. The battle for the 2023 World Chess Crown between Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi and China’s Ding Liren will be hosted by the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana, between April 7 and May 1, the World Chess Federation (FIDE) announced in a statement on Thursday.
"The FIDE World Championship 2023 is due to take place in Astana, Kazakhstan, from April 7th to May 1st," the statement reads. "A new World Champion will be crowned, as Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren will battle to seize the throne left vacant by Magnus Carlsen’s withdrawal."
On July 20, 2022, Norwegian Chess Grandmaster and reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen refused to participate in a match for the world chess crown against Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi.
Following Carlsen’s withdrawal, Nepomniachtchi was slated to face China’s Ding Liren, who was his runner-up at the 2022 Candidates Chess Tournament.
"Since almost five centuries ago, the question of who the best chess player in the world is has been resolved over a match, a face-off between two players competing over the course of several weeks, usually with a large purse at stake. In the case of Astana 2023, the prize fund will be 2 million, with 60% going to the winner and 40% to the runner-up," the statement reads.
According to regulations posted on the FIDE official website: "The World Championship match in Astana will once again be played to the distance of 14 games, with a time control of 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves, and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 61. In case of a tie, the Champion would be determined in a rapid chess playoff."
Russian sport of chess under sanctions
On February 28, 2022 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued recommendations to international sports federations to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from taking part in international tournaments because of the special military operation in Ukraine.
Following the IOC’s recommendations in late February last year, the majority of global sports federations decided to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from all international sports tournaments. On March 16, 2022, the World Chess Federation 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.
On July 3, 2022, Nepomniachtchi won the 2022 Candidates Chess Tournament and was granted the right to face reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen at the World Chess Championship in 2023. Nepomniachtchi, 32, is a European champion (2010) and a two-time world champion in the team tournaments (2013, 2019). He won the Candidates Tournament in 2021 but was edged out by Carlsen later.
Chinese Chess Grandmaster Ding Liren replaced Russia’s Grandmaster Sergey Karjakin at the 2022 Candidates Tournament, because the Russian chess player had been suspended by FIDE.
On February 28, 2022, 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 the public announcement of his political stance, launching a disciplinary case against him.
On March 21, 2022 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.