FIDE president reveals one clause that became sticking point and more

A day after talks broke down between FIDE and organisers of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, Arkady Dvorkovich, the president of the global chess body, has revealed the clause that became a sticking point in negotiations between the two parties. Just days before the bitter fallout, FIDE and organisers of the Freestyle Tour had been confident that an agreement would be reached. There was even a press release drafted and kept ready to announce that both parties had found middle ground. But on Monday, FIDE announced that there was no agreement. This led to open letters from Freestyle Chess’ main organiser Jan Henric Buettner and a post on social media from Magnus Carlsen where he demanded that Dvorkovich step down.
Now, Arkady Dvorkovich had revealed to The Indian Express what had gone wrong, why FIDE Council had no faith in Freestyle Chess organisers, what FIDE could have done better, why FIDE are not perfect and more. Excerpts from an interview:
What went wrong?
Story continues below this ad

Arkady Dvorkovich: We had very intensive negotiations with Buettner during the last few days. I was trying to find language that would suit both parties. Eventually I was able to find such language. But the fact is that it’s not up to me to take final decisions on matters related to World Championships. It’s up to the FIDE Council to take the decision. And my colleagues in the FIDE Council were seeing all the public communications and lots of things going on in public from the freestyle team: accusing us of illegal behavior, of being stupid… My people just didn’t trust that the agreement that I was trying to construct would be stable.
There were two reasons (for FIDE Council’s opposition). They didn’t have trust and they actually didn’t like one part of the language. I thought maybe it’s okay to compromise, but my colleagues didn’t think so. They thought that if we use ambiguous language, then our partners (Freestyle Chess) will use this ambiguity in their own interests.
What was the ambiguous part?
Arkady Dvorkovich: It (The ambiguous part) was about who provides the World Championship title. The draft press release was saying that Freestyle Club is awarding the World Championship title based on co-regulation between them and FIDE. My colleagues said, no, it doesn’t work. We should say that FIDE awards the title based on co-regulation of Freestyle and FIDE, but still the title should be awarded FIDE or maybe jointly, but not Freestyle itself.
FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich speaks at an event during the FIDE World Chess Championship in Singapore last year.(PHOTO: FIDE/Maria Emilianova)
On Carlsen and Buettner demanding that he step downStory continues below this ad
Arkady Dvorkovich: I kept my word. I was always open in my communication. I do not see any reason why I should take such a decision. We are working in the interest of all chess players. Not one or two chess players. I do remember my promise to Magnus, his father, and other players in December. I strictly followed that. They interpret this in different ways. I just disagree completely with their interpretation of what happened.
‘FIDE far from perfect’
Arkady Dvorkovich: We still have lots of challenges in chess, including creating a balance between online and over-the-board chess, including the time controls that we are discussing. There is a clear trend towards reducing time control, there is a lot of discussion about the structure of the World Championship cycle. We need more events for players in the top 50, top 100. There are just not enough good events for players to pursue their careers and compete and earn money. So we still have a lot of homework to do, so we are not saying that we are perfect, we are far from it.
READ MORE: Arkady Dvorkovich responds to personal texts being leaked: ‘Cannot deal with a partner who has such business culture’
Do players have to sign waivers to play in the Freestyle event? Is the deadline still today?Story continues below this ad
Arkady Dvorkovich: Yes, the deadline is today. If the organisers do not call the event a world championship, then technically there is no problem. If mention of ‘world championship’ is taken out from all official communications, is not on their website, and not in the regulations, then players do not break any rules, even if they do not sign the document. Then there is no problem. But if it is mentioned in some regulations, then there is still a problem. That’s why it is better to sign the letter. Actually, not even to sign the document. We have told players that you can even simply respond to our email saying ‘I understand the content and acknowledge that’ without even formally signing the paper. That is still enough. Many players already did it: getting close to 10 already. So half of the players who received letters have signed. Players who played in Wijk aan Zee didn’t sign since they were just busy with playing. We totally understand that.
They (Freestyle) argue that asking players to confirm their previous commitments is a condition. For me, it’s nonsense. They signed those commitments, they have contracts, and the only thing we ask is to confirm that they remember their commitments that they signed before.
What FIDE could have done better?
Arkady Dvorkovich: I think FIDE probably could do better in terms of communications with players. Some players told me that before sending the letters, we could actually talk to them, explain everything, and be more open just before sending any papers to players. I agree with that. We could do better. We could establish better communication channels and explain to players beforehand what’s going on. I would take responsibility for this make, certainly. But overall, I think we are working openly, transparently, and depending on the interest of the entire chess community.