FIDE refuses to reinstate Russian Chess Federation – Kremlin-backed media

The General Assembly of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) has decided not to lift the suspension of the Chess Federation of Russia (CFR).

Source: TASS, a Kremlin-aligned Russian news outlet

Details: According to the source, during a meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, delegates voted by a majority to reject a proposal by the chess federations of Armenia, Belarus, Cuba and Nicaragua to reinstate the CFR.

Newly elected FIDE President Timur Turlov said the organisation must comply with rulings by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on the matter. At the same time, he expressed hope that the CFR would eventually have its membership restored if it fulfilled all the conditions set by the court.

In March this year, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered the Chess Federation of Russia to cease its activities in the occupied territories of Ukraine.

Following the CFR's failure to comply with these requirements, FIDE suspended the Russian organisation's membership for three years.

It is also worth noting that Timur Turlov was recently elected president of FIDE. Turlov is a Russian-born businessman and banker who obtained Kazakh citizenship in 2022. He has been under sanctions imposed by Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council since 2022.

During the election, Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine, publicly backed Turlov and expressed a desire to join his team. The Ukrainian Chess Federation condemned Podoliak's actions.

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