A few days ago, the world chess champion, the Norwegian Magnus Carlsen openly accused the American Hans Niemann of having "cheated more, and more recently, than he has publicly admitted".
Carlsen on Twitter had called his opponent's "head-to-head progression" "unusual" before gushing about the disconcerting ease with which the American had beaten him in the Sinquefield Cup.
My statement regarding the last few weeks.
pic.twitter.com/KY34DbcjLo
— Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) September 26, 2022
Although 19-year-old Niemann has admitted to cheating in the past during online games, no one has been able to prove that he cheated in his last games.
However, the American, for five consecutive tournaments, played more than 73% of the moves that a computer would have offered, recalls L'Équipe.
And even nine games during which the champion saw this rate climb to 100%… Enough to raise all the theories on how this cheat could well be set up.
All sorts of theories have sprung up, from the undetectable earpiece, to subcutaneous implants to the signal-emitting butt plug.
Faced with this situation, three members of his fair play committee will "form an investigation group" and will be able to "consult outside experts if necessary" to clarify both Carlsen's allegations and the fact that Niemann admitted to having cheated in the past during online games, explained the Federation, FIDE.
“In the best interests of the chess community, we ask the public to refrain from speculation about the results and potential penalties until all available facts are reviewed and the investigation is completed” , warned Salomeja Zaksaité, president of the fair play commission of FIDE.
