The American chess website Chess.com (blocked in the Russian Federation at the request of the Prosecutor General's Office) blocked Russian grandmaster Denis Khismatullin after a conflict with Polish chess player Jan-Krzysztof Duda at the World Rapid Chess Championship in Samarkand. Khismatullin’s statement on this matter was published on January 4 by Sergei Karyakin, Honored Master of Sports of Russia in chess, in his Telegram channel.
Khismatullin recalled that in early January Duda refused to shake his hand during the tournament, which caused a stormy reaction in the Western press and social networks. As a result, the media found out that he, together with Karyakin, had repeatedly visited the special operation zone in Ukraine on humanitarian missions.
“After that, the most popular chess site Chess.com sent an email in which I was notified that from now on I was prohibited from participating in prize tournaments and any social activity on their site,” the chess player shared.
He noted that he respects the right of the Polish athlete to do so, expressing disagreement with the position of the Russian outside the chessboard. Khismatullin also called on the press not to politicize the situation and not to insult Duda.
“If I have the opportunity to play with Duda again, I will again shake my hand in front of the game, but not because I’m so stupid and naive, and not for hype, but because this is what my father taught me to do when he taught me chess in early childhood, This is what my first coach taught me to do,” he emphasized.
It was reported on January 3 that Duda refused to shake hands with a Russian chess player in Samarkand. According to the tournament rules, the Pole could have been disqualified for violating the rules of “fair play,” but Khismatullin did not write a complaint. The game ended in a draw.
In April 2022, Roskomnadzor, by decision of the Prosecutor General's Office, restricted access to the Chess.com website for playing chess and learning online due to the fact that there was a link to a propaganda article and the forced replacement of Russian flags among chess players from Russia.
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