(Reuters) – World chess champion Magnus Carlsen said on Monday he believes Hans Niemann has “cheated more – and more recently – than he has publicly admitted”, adding that he no longer wants to play against the American and any other rivals. who have repeatedly cheated in the past.
The 31-year-old Norwegian resigned from the Julius Baer Generation Cup last week after a move against Niemann, who is nearly 200 points behind him in the Elo ranking – the ranking system used to calculate relative skill levels of players.
“So far I’ve only been able to speak through my actions, and those actions have clearly stated that I am not willing to play chess with Niemann,” Carlsen said in a statement on Twitter.
Carlsen, a world champion since 2013, also withdrew from the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis, Missouri, earlier this month after unexpectedly losing to the 19-year-old, sparking a furor of comments and allegations that Niemann had cheated.
Niemann denied any wrongdoing in face-to-face games.
“When Niemann was invited at the last minute to the 2022 Sinquefield Cup, I strongly considered withdrawing before the event. I ended up choosing to play,” Carlsen said.
Niemann has since been banned from the chess.com website for cheating online after admitting he didn’t play fairly in non-competitive games on the site in his youth.
“I believe Niemann has cheated more – and more recently – than he has publicly admitted,” Carlsen said Monday.
“His progress on the board was unusual, and throughout our Sinquefield Cup game I got the impression that he wasn’t tense or even fully focused on the game in critical positions, as he outperformed me by playing the black pieces in a way that I think only a handful of players can do it.”
Niemann was not immediately available for comment.
(Reporting by Silvia Recchimuzzi in Gdansk)
((Translation Newsroom from São Paulo))
REUTERS PB
#World #Chess #Champion #Carlsen #Claims #Rival #Niemann #Cheated #Admits