Russia’s powerful chess federation, the world’s largest, is pushing ahead with its historic move to formally switch from the European Chess Union (ECU) to Asia, it was revealed on Tuesday.
In the latest back-to-back event that has exposed the deep division in the chess world over the Ukraine war, ECU officials have told the Russian federation that it must renounce membership of their association before agreeing to be a member of the Union. Asian Chess (ACF).
The ECU said it expects the RCF application to be confirmed by the next ACF General Assembly, which will take place between February 26 and March 3.
A political organization?
The ECU reiterated that it considers that the RCF, which represents more than 35,000 players and 200 grandmasters, is “politically exposed”. The ECU also reiterated its opposition to the RCF annexing Crimea to its official structure. Both positions have put him on a collision course with the Russian federation, which has been suspended from the ECU since March last year.
The ECU statement read: “The ECU has taken a clear position, expressing its concern for the high-ranking officials of the Russian Security Council who are part of the constitutional structure of the RCF (Board of Directors), including the Minister of Russian Defense Sergei Shoigu and Russian President’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov.
“This makes the RCF a sports entity, not only politically exposed, but also exposed to the consequences of the war. We firmly believe that at such crucial times for peace and security in Europe, each federation must protect its independence as a sporting body. .”
ECU members were informed of Russia’s decision at its General Assembly in July. The video of the discussion is here (3 hours and 2 minutes after the meeting):
When the chess world reacted to the Russian invasion of the Ukraine on February 24 last year, chess federations were forced to act.
FIDE, the Russian-led world chess governing body, initially stripped Moscow of the 190-nation Chess Olympiad, which was to take place last July. Chennai eventually replaced Moscow as the host. Then, three days after the Russian tanks rolled into the Ukraine, FIDE took the momentous step of effectively banning Russia and neighboring Belarus from the game.
Suspension of Belarus and Russia
The two countries were prohibited from holding official FIDE chess competitions and events; Russian and Belarusian players were also banned from displaying national flags at FIDE rated events and FIDE said it would end all sponsorship deals with state-sanctioned and/or controlled Russian or Belarusian companies.
In doing so, FIDE followed some of the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), of which FIDE is a member. (He did not go so far as to follow the recommendation to ban players from Belarus and Russia from competing internationally.)
On March 3, the ECU did the same thing. It suspended the Russian and Belarusian chess federations after an extraordinary board meeting. However, the ECU Board fell short of accepting a proposal from the Ukrainian Chess Federation to expel the RCF. Russia and Belarus remain suspended.
Since then, the ECU has offered support to war-affected Ukrainian and Russian players who have applied to play under the FIDE banner, transferred to other European federations, or moved to Europe.
The ECU added: “While the ECU recognizes the great history and contribution of Russian chess, the invasion and war in Ukraine has forced the IOC and international sports federations to make difficult decisions and firm stands. The IOC has repeatedly stated that the The intent of sanctions is not to punish individual athletes Consequently, the ECU is among the federations that have from March 2022 allowed the participation of individual athletes under the status and clear terms of neutrality established by the Board of the ECU and approved by the General Assembly, especially those players who have not acted against the peace mission of sport.
“Several former RCF players have been transferred, at their request, to the FIDE banner under the FIDE special status agreement and have permanent residence in Europe. The planned transfer of RCF to Asia could result in many difficulties for these players. To support them, the ECU would accept any of these players who wish to remain members of the European chess family as participants in the next European Championships under a special status to be agreed with FIDE.”
The RCF reportedly expects his transfer to the ACU to be a mere formality and expects no opposition.
‘Break the lockdown’
In December, the recently re-elected RCF president Andrey Filatov told the Russian news agency Ria Novosti: “I hope we will be the first federation to break the blockade. Russia is strong in chess today.”
He added: “We have applied, the expectations are positive so far. We hope that the vote will take place soon. And I don’t see any obstacles yet. The date of the vote has been set, but it is constantly changing. For technical reasons, we are waiting for the first quarter of next year, so far all federations support us and I don’t know a single federation that says they don’t want to see Russia in ACU.”
Filatov has been RCF President since 2014 when he replaced Arkady Dvorkovich, the current FIDE President. Dvorkovich is a former deputy prime minister of Russia and headed the local organizing team responsible for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
The International Chess Federation has faced increased scrutiny over its ties to Russia this week as links emerged between Russian energy giant Gazprom and NIS, the “General Sponsor” of the first FIDE Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities held. in Belgrade, Serbia.
It is unfortunate that the FIDE leadership is using a huge event like the First Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities to brazenly retake Russian controlled money. The event’s general partner, NIS, is 55% controlled by Gazprom and its subsidiary Gazprom Neft. https://t.co/sIkMH4BIMf pic.twitter.com/KarcISuFAD
—Paul Meyer-Dunker (@Meyer_Dunker) January 30, 2023
FIDE hailed the event as “a watershed moment for the world of chess as it inaugurates the largest chess event dedicated to people with disabilities.”
Also on Tuesday, reports surfaced of a chess club in the Ukraine being bombed. GM Sulypa Oleksandr, Ukraine’s head coach, claimed on Twitter that the Kherson Chess Club, in the southern city that has been on the front line, had been attacked by Russia.
The 51-year-old grandmaster, who was photographed holding a weapon in defense of his country during the early days of the war, posted images showing the damage.
Today, Russian terrorists shot at the Kherson Chess Club in Ukraine, an architectural move. Politics outside of sport? #fide #Chess #Ukraine️ pic.twitter.com/buG0N74taY
— Sulypa Oleksandr (@flycont) January 31, 2023
Chess.com cannot independently verify GM Oleksandr’s claims, but has contacted him for comment.
The ECU, founded in 1985, is an independent association representing 54 national federations. It organizes around 20 events a year, including the European Club Cup and the European Individual Championship.
Chess.com has also contacted the RCF and ACF for comment.
