I wonder if any chess enthusiast here is following the present drama ongoing in the chess world. Apparently, Magnus Carlsen, who is presently the World Chess Champion, has being sued to court by 19 year old chess grandmaster Hans Niemann for defamation of character after Magnus "accused" him of cheating in a game they played in a chess tournament where Hans beat him.

^^^
I put the word accused in quotation marks above because Magnus didn't exactly make any direct accusations of cheating towards Hans. After the game, he only published a tweet with a Jose Mourinho clip saying "if I speak up, I'll be in trouble. This was after he withdrew from the tournament after his loss to Hans Niemann. Of course, people interpreted the cryptic tweet to mean that Magnus was accusing Hans of cheating in their game, despite the fact that they played classical, face-to-face, over-the-board chess where it would be harder to catch someone in act of cheating due to the strict security measures taken by officials to limit fair play violations.

I believe he spwcifically wcifically mentioned Hans in his follow up report that was released...

I love Hans move though, fighting for his reputation

chiboyo:
I believe he spwcifically wcifically mentioned Hans in his follow up report that was released...

I love Hans move though, fighting for his reputation

Hans Niemann has a history of cheating though. And he lied in an interview that he had only cheated on two occasions in the past - once when he was 12 and the other at age 16. That was until Chess.com published evidence contradicting his story and it was discovered that he has cheated in a large number of online games, some as recent as 2020. Some were even tournaments with a cash prize at stake. Personally I think this already indicts Hans as a dishonest person.

That being said, there is no empirical evidence that Hans cheated over the board. His rise in ELO ratings has been considered abnormal, to say the least - growing at astronomical rates even faster than Magnus Carlsen and Bobby Fischer. Considering his cheating past, it's understandable that people are suspicious.

As for the lawsuit, I'm not really sure what to think of it. There's always the possibility that Magnus and Chess.com are withholding further evidence that Hans truly cheated over the board at the Sinquefield Cup, anticipating Hans making this kind of move. If that's the case, then this lawsuit could actually turn around to bite him in ass.

uche40:


Hans Niemann has a history of cheating though. And he lied in an interview that he had only cheated on two occasions in the past - once when he was 12 and the other at age 16. That was until Chess.com published evidence contradicting his story and it was discovered that he has cheated in a large number of online games, some as recent as 2020. Some were even tournaments with a cash prize at stake. Personally I think this already indicts Hans as a dishonest person.

That being said, there is no empirical evidence that Hans cheated over the board. His rise in ELO ratings has been considered abnormal, to say the least - growing at astronomical rates even faster than Magnus Carlsen and Bobby Fischer. Considering his cheating past, it's understandable that people are suspicious.

As for the lawsuit, I'm not really sure what to think of it. There's always the possibility that Magnus and Chess.com are withholding further evidence that Hans truly cheated over the board at the Sinquefield Cup, anticipating Hans making this kind of move. If that's the case, then this lawsuit could actually turn around to bite him in ass.

Well, all you said is probably correct, but the fact remains that there was no proof he cheated at the sinquefield cup chess competition.

I think Magnus was too hasty in his accusations though.

A very weighty allegation without proof and coming from a world champ is enough to bring Hans career down.

Although, i believe he might have confided in Magnus in some of his cheating, but all that can be denied if he actually did as there might be no proof.

Anyway, lets keep our fingers crossed as the drama unfolds

chiboyo:


Well, all you said is probably correct, but the fact remains that there was no proof he cheated at the sinquefield cup chess competition.

I think Magnus was too hasty in his accusations though.

A very weighty allegation without proof and coming from a world champ is enough to bring Hans career down.

Although, i believe he might have confided in Magnus in some of his cheating, but all that can be denied if he actually did as there might be no proof.

Anyway, lets keep our fingers crossed as the drama unfolds

I largely agree with you. Although popular online streamers like Hikaru Nakamura allude to a number of circumstantial evidence -- which seem convincing, the fact remains that definite proof of Hans Niemann cheating at the tournament doesn't exist. At least, not yet. I also agree that Magnus handled the situation poorly. He may not have accused Niemann directly with his words, but he accused him with his actions by 1) making that vague tweet immediately after his match with Niemann knowing fully well that his fans would interprete it across all 360 cardinal directions, and 2) Resigning a subsequent game with Niemann after just one move. Lol. Like, why even accept the match in the first place?

Hans Niemann suing Magnus is reasonable and logical for someone who wants to defend himself from character assassination. But I don't think it assures us that Hans is completely squeaky clean himself. Just like how Lance Armstrong sued the USADA for falsely accusing him of doping, and it was later found that he was indeed guilty.

Anyhoo, let's just enjoy the drama

uche40:


Anyhoo, let's just enjoy the drama

The drama is settled.

https://wapo.st/47TJd96

Nice one..

@uche40, are you following the candidates?

Who do you think would win?

I am rooting for Hikaru though