Top-ranked chess player Magnus Carlsen has abandoned the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship after refusing to change out of the jeans he wore for the competition, the International Chess Federation said.
The federation said in a statement Friday that its regulations include a dress code that prohibits participants from wearing jeans at the event.
“The head referee informed Mr. Carlsen of the infraction, fined him $200 and asked him to change his clothing,” the federation said in the statement posted on its website. “Unfortunately, Mr. Carlsen refused and, as a result, was not matched for the ninth round. “This decision was made impartially and applies equally to all players.”
The 34-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster said in a video for his chess app Take Take Take that he posted on social platform X that he accepted a $200 fine. But he refused to change his pants before leaving the competition in New York.
“I said, 'I'll change tomorrow if that's okay with you,'” Carlsen said in the video. “But they said, 'Well, you have to change now.' At that moment it became a matter of principle for me.”
The federation said in its statement that the dress code is “designed to ensure professionalism and fairness for all participants.”
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He said teammate Ian Nepomniachtchi was also fined Friday for violating the dress code by wearing athletic shoes.
“However, Mr. Nepomniachtchi complied, put on the approved attire and continued playing in the tournament,” the statement said. “These rules have been in place for years and are well known to all participants and are communicated to them before each event.”
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