Chess: Deadlock between FIDE and Freestyle Chess Tour breaks; Tour deletes world championship title | Chess News

Days after talks between FIDE and Freestyle Chess Tour collapsed over the use of the title world championship in the tour’s title, the world governing body FIDE stated that the organisers of Freestyle Chess Tour have fully deleted the ‘world championship’ title from its regulations. In an updated statement issued on FIDE website, the world governing body has shared that the players wishing to participate in the tour are no longer required to sign the waiver note. The new tour, backed former world champion Magnus Carlsen, was in loggerheads with the world body over the use of the title ‘world championship, and the issue seems to resolve.
“The organizers of the “Freestyle Chess Tour” fully deleted from its Regulations the reference to the “World Championship” title. Following this change in the regulations, players wishing to participate in the 2025 “Freestyle Chess Tour” are no longer required to sign the waiver note,” said the updated FIDE statement.
The Freestyle Chess Tour, a brainchild of Jan Henric Buettner and backed the likes of Carlsen, had bene facing controversy after Carlen leaked private messages from FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich and CEO Emil Sutovsky over assurances being given on players not being affected on taking part in the tour. With the tour using the title world championship, FIDE had issued a statement that players that they cannot take part unless the tour removes the world championship title from its regulations. “In recent days, FIDE has been engaged in extensive discussions with the “Freestyle Chess Tour” regarding the potential recognition of their event as a World Championship. Despite our willingness to collaborate—including offering a waiver to the participants of the planned 2025 competition, waiving the fee for the 2025 edition, and requesting an end to unfounded accusations against FIDE and undermining classical chess—no agreement was reached,” FIDE had stated earlier.
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Earlier this week, Carlsen had shared how FIDE president and CEO had sent his father Texts over players not being affected. “Coercion of players, misuse of power and broken promises. FIDE President Dvorkovich, to convince me to play the Rapid & Blitz in New York, you wrote Dec 19th to my father: ‘Just want to pass a message to you and Magnus that whatever happens between FIDE and Freestyle in terms of recognition, players will NOT be affected in any way. They can decide on their own and FIDE will not take any negative action’,” Carlsen had wrote on X.
GM Anish Giri too took on the issue after FIDE’s latest statement. “The entire Chess960 saga is a testament to Carlsen’s influence in the chess world and how he chooses to wield it. Everyone else is watching in sheer confusion. This is merely a ChatGPT version of my original tweet,” Giri wrote on X.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd

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