‘One might ask Gukesh…’: FIDE responds to Magnus Carlsen’s declare of threatening gamers in opposition to becoming a member of Freestyle Chess

The Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour finds itself mired in controversy greater than a month earlier than its huge debut in Germany. Former Classical and Undisputed World Champion
Vladimir Kramnik has questioned FIDE for lending its help to the Freestyle Chess Gamers Membership (FCPC), a non-public group of elite gamers with an ELO Score of 2725 and above who shall be in motion within the 2025 tour.

What’s extra, Russian Grandmaster Kramnik has additionally accused Magnus Carlsen, the top-ranked participant on this planet who has partnered with German expertise investor Jan Buettner and New York-based Left Lane Capital to launch the model new league, of “blackmailing” the Lausanne-based world governing physique.

5-time world champion Carlsen allegedly threatened to boycott the continued Fast and Blitz World Championships in New York Metropolis as a way to power FIDE to help the Freestyle Chess Tour, which is able to introduce a model new format of the board sport as a way to increase its reputation on the world stage.

Responding to the allegation of blackmailing FIDE, Norwegian GM Carlsen got here up with a counter-accusation; he claimed it was truly FIDE that was threatening gamers who had been planning to take part within the Tour that shall be going down in 5 cities in 5 totally different international locations throughout 4 continents, with Delhi internet hosting the fourth leg in September.

FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky addressed Carlsen’s declare in a publish on X the identical day the latter was
disqualified from the World Fast and Blitz Championships over a costume code violation. The Israeli GM firstly clarified that Carlsen was not banned from the rest of the event – simply that he had been unpaired from Spherical 9 for refusing to alter his apparel after turning up on the venue in denims.

That was adopted by an outright denial of Carlsen’s declare of threatening gamers whereas including that the brand new Freestyle Chess Tour couldn’t host its personal model of a World Championship with out FIDE’s approval.

One of many key speaking factors between FIDE and Freestyle Chess Operations, the mum or dad firm liable for the FCPC and the Grand Slam Tour, was the “mutual recognition of future World Championship titles” – that means Freestyle Chess was planning to comply with the footsteps of the Skilled Chess Affiliation that broke away from FIDE in 1993 and launched its personal world title.

“The declare that FIDE threatened gamers who had been keen to take part in Freestyle Chess Tour is a lie,” Sutovsky wrote on X on Friday. “We had been pleased to cooperate (as we cooperate with Grand Chess Tour, for instance), to align the calendars, and so on.

“We care about gamers, and about their alternatives – always enhancing prize funds and situations in all our occasions, and dealing with quite a few companions who conduct their tournaments outdoors of FIDE.

“The one factor we insisted on – no Sequence or Tour could be referred to as World Championship except FIDE approves it. FIDE is the governing physique of chess, and any World Championship ought to both be carried out or permitted by FIDE,” the 47-year-old added.

Necessary clarification:

The declare that FIDE threatened gamers who had been keen to take part in Freestyle Chess Tour is a lie.

We had been pleased to cooperate (as we cooperate with Grand Chess Tour, for instance), to align the calendars, and so on.

We care about gamers, and about…

— Emilchess (@EmilSutovsky) December 28, 2024

Sutovsky, who had beforehand served as FIDE Director Normal from 2018 to 2022, added that one merely needed to ask reigning chess world champion D Gukesh amongst others in regards to the organisation’s angle in the direction of its gamers.

“No participant was threatened – and to that impact one might ask Gukesh, Fabi, Nodirbek and others,” Sutovsky added.

The Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour kicks off in February with the primary occasion going down in Weissenhaus. That shall be adopted by occasions in Paris (April), New York (July), and Cape City (December) moreover New Delhi.