New Delhi: The tussle between global chess body (FIDE) and five-time world champion D Gukesh has been burgeoning after the latter was disqualified from the World Rapid Championship in December last year. It was the consequence of not changing the jeans, which wasn’t in the official dress code under FIDE’s rules for competitions.
A new twist has folded up with Carlsen’s Freestyle Chess Players Club (FCPC) being targeted by FIDE for its tournament named ‘Freestyle Chess World Championship’, which is scheduled in February this year. The global body is of the opinion that no organisers can brand a tournament of ‘World Championship’ stature.
This will be a year after the FCPC hosted the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, when the likes of Carlsen and Nakamura accused FIDE of threatening grandmasters who wished to participate in the tournament.
The FIDE had recognised the FCPC, citing in a goodwill manner, with the top ranked chess players part of the club. Carlsen, Gukesh D, Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Alireza Firouzja have registered to participate in the Freestyle Chess World Championship. India’s legendary chess player Viswanathan Anand was also part of the competition, but later pulled out apparently because of his role of FIDE’s vice-president.
The implications of participating in unauthorised World Championships
FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky has reminded the participants that they are under contractual obligations and they have accepted not to participate in World Championship events, which aren’t signed by FIDE. The statement was made in a response to American GM Hikaru Nakamura’s appealed to players to participate in more freestyle tournaments and boycott FIDE events.
D Gukesh is the reigning World Championship after his glorious win against China’s Ding Liren in December last year. The FIDE, in its statement has warned, that all qualified players involved in the 2025-26 World Chess Championship cycle should sign a contract, which includes a clause of not participating in any other World Championship event not approved by the global chess body. In case of violation, the player will have to withdraw from two consecutive World Chess Championship Cycle.
This means that Gukesh, if participates in Freestyle Chess World Championship, will have to step down as the defending World Champion and won’t face the winner of the 2026 Candidates in the same year.
The ongoing feud between FIDE and top chess players like Nakamura and Carlsen intensifies. FIDE now challenges Carlsen’s FCPC’s “Freestyle Chess World Championship”. This conflict highlights tensions between FIDE’s authority and players seeking alternative tournaments, with potential consequences for Gukesh’s World Champion title. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
