MOSCOW, November 11. /TASS/: Russia will not be allowed to host the 2023 World Chess Championship due to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) previously issued recommendations, President of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Arkady Dvorkovich told TASS on Friday.
On July 20, Norwegian Chess Grandmaster and current 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 is most likely to clash for the world’s chess crown with China’s Ding Liren, who was his runner-up at the 2022 Candidates Chess Tournament.
The Russian Chess Federation expressed its readiness to host the first half of the battle for the world chess crown in Moscow, at the Tretyakov Gallery, while the other half would be hosted by China.
"We cannot hold the world championships in Russia based on recommendations from the IOC," FIDE President Dvorkovich said in an interview with TASS. "We don’t want to aggravate the situation in this regard."
"It is also unfair for China [to host the tournament]. This is why we are looking for a neutral venue," he continued.
"We are currently in negotiations. Mexico is viewed as the most probable candidate, but there are other interested parties who are vying to host the event. We will make a decision within a month and announce it before the end of the year," FIDE President Dvorkovich added.
On February 28, 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, the majority of global sports federations decided to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from all international sports tournaments. 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.
On July 3, 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, 31, 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 in December.
Chinese Chess Grandmaster Ding Liren replaced Russia’s Sergey Karjakin at the 2022 Candidates Tournament, because the Russian chess player had been suspended by FIDE.
On February 28, 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, 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.
