Chess wars: Defiant Kramnik sues FIDE for defamation in Swiss civil court

Former world champion Vladimir Kramnik has filed a defamation suit against FIDE in a Swiss court after criticism over his cheating allegations against players. FIDE had opened an ethics inquiry, citing harmful conduct, while Kramnik denied wrongdoing and defended his actions

New Delhi: Russian chess great Vladimir Kramnik has sued world chess governing body FIDE for defamation in a Swiss civil court after he became the subject of an inquiry for allegedly harassing players with “unsubstantiated” cheating claims following the death of American Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky.

Kramnik posted on ‘X’ that he has been forced to take the legal route after being relentlessly attacked by fellow players and FIDE, whose CEO Emil Sutovsky described Kramnik’s allegations of cheating against Naroditsky as “appalling and outright shameful”.

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The exact cause of 29-year-old Naroditsky’s death is not known but in his last livestream, he talked about being under immense mental stress over the allegations levelled by Kramnik.

Czech Grandmaster David Navara has also claimed to have felt distressed and suicidal due to Kramnik’s online cheating charge against him. The defiant Russian has, however, maintained that he has not spoken without basis.

“I have initiated formal legal proceedings against FIDE in accordance with Swiss law in the Court of Lausanne. Under the applicable Swiss procedural rules, an obligatory preliminary procedure must first take place. This phase typically lasts 2-3 months,” the former world champion said.

“The specific legal provisions of the Swiss Code on which the claim is based, as well as the exact amount of financial compensation sought from FIDE, will be finalized and specified by my legal team immediately prior to filing the main claim.

“Additionally, a formal request for the preservation of evidence has been personally delivered to the FIDE headquarters today,” he added.

Kramnik said a request has been submitted to ensure that all documents, correspondence, electronic records, and any other evidence relevant to the ongoing legal proceedings against FIDE are “properly preserved and not altered, deleted, destroyed, or otherwise made unavailable.

“I will provide further details in due course as the proceedings advance,” he said.

Lambasting the players critical of him, a group which also includes world number one Magnus Carlsen and some prominent Indians like Nihal Sarin who accused him of being responsible for Naroditsky’s death, Kramnik said, “Several players have publicly named and shamed me.

“None have shown the integrity to apologise or retract their statements, instead ignoring the evidence that I provided in response.”.

Kramnik also asserted that his legal claim was not in response to the body’s ethics inquiry against him.

“The upcoming court case has little relation to FIDE’s complaint to the Ethics Commission (it merely adds points), my legal claims go far beyond the scope of this FIDE action,” he said.

FIDE opened an ethics inquiry against Kramnik, citing a two-year “pattern of conduct” that hurt players’ dignity.