MOSCOW, Sep 26 The reigning world chess champion Norwegian Magnus Carlsen accused the American Hans Niemann in a scam. In September, the Norwegian withdrew from the final stage of the Grand Chess Tour in St. Louis, USA after losing to Niemann. According to the Norwegian edition of VG, he made such a decision, as he suspects a 19-year-old opponent of cheating. Carlsen faced Niemann again on September 19 at the online Champions Chess Tour and decided to resign after two moves of the game.
"I know that my actions have upset many in the chess community. I am disappointed. I want to play chess. I want to continue playing chess at the highest level in the best tournaments. I believe that cheating in chess is a threat to the game. I also think that the organizers and all those who care about the integrity of the game we love should seriously consider strengthening the security measures and methods for detecting cheating in chess. When Niemann was invited at the last minute to the 2022 Sinquefield Cup, I seriously considered withdrawing from the tournament before the event started. Finally I decided to play. I believe that Niemann cheated more than he publicly admitted. His progression was unusual, during our play in the Sinquefield Cup I got the impression that he was not tense or even fully concentrated on playing in critical positions, beating me with black in a way that I think only a handful of players can do. This game helped change my point of view",» Carlsen wrote in a statement posted on Twitter.
«Until now, I could only speak through my actions, and they clearly stated that I did not want to play with Niemann. I hope that the truth about this will come out, whatever it may be,» Carlsen added. Niemann previously admitted to cheating when he was 12 and 16 when playing two tournaments online. The chess player stated that his actions were a mistake, which he regrets. Niemann also noted that he did not cheat in the game against Carlsen.