Is nothing sacred?

[Rockstar]

The Chess World Is Absolutely Losing It Over Cheating Allegations After Massive Upset

https://www.vice.com/en/article/5d3y...-massive-upset

31-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen wasn’t supposed to lose to Hans Niemann. Until he did.

The chess world has been rocked by online allegations of cheating after a top chess grandmaster was toppled by a relative newcomer this week in a major high stakes tournament in St. Louis.

31-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen—rated the top player in the world by the International Chess Federation (FIDE)—abruptly withdrew from the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis after a third-round defeat by Hans Niemann, a young chess prodigy from the United States.

Soon after his loss, Carlsen posted a cryptic tweet featuring a speech by football manager Jose Mourinho. "I prefer not to speak,” Mourinho said in the 2020 video. “If I speak I am in big trouble…and I don't want to be in big trouble."


The defeat was an upset for the ages, given Carlsen had played 53 classical matches without a loss (though Niemann had defeated him one month earlier in a non-classical match). Niemman also had an ELO rating several hundred points lower than Carlsen and was playing black, which has a slight but statistically notable disadvantage because the white side moves first.

“It must be embarrassing for the world champion to lose to an idiot like me,” Niemann said in an interview shortly after the victory. “I feel bad for him.”

Carlsen’s implications rocked the chess community, which quickly began speculating online that Niemann must have cheated, despite no evidence of foul play being presented from Carlsen or event organizers. On Reddit, r/chess has been a firestorm of gossip since the loss, with many observers tracking the allegations and counter allegations in minute by minute detail.

In several comments on Twitch, American chess grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura implied Nieman may have had a history of online cheating. Emil Sutovsky, Director-general of FIDE, also noted that Carlsen wasn’t the type of player to quit the tournament over petty spite:

Emilchess
@EmilSutovsky
·
Follow
No matter how his tournaments went, @MagnusCarlsen never quit. He must have had a compelling reason, or at least he believes he has it. Don't call him a sore loser or disrespectful. I shall not speculate on the reasons of his withdrawal, but probably would expect TD to air them.
2:25 PM · Sep 5, 2022

In the wake of Carlsen’s vague allegations, event organizers say they delayed the online broadcast of the fourth round by 15 minutes, and ramped up event metal detection and RFID checks on players ahead of the next round.

The Sinquefield Cup features cash prizes as high as $350,000, and has been a major step on the World Grand Chess Tour since 2015. Carleson has won the cup twice in the last decade, and had never before withdrawn from an ongoing event.

“This is truly a humbling day for me,” Niemann said in a Tweet shortly after the win. “I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to play chess at the highest level and live out my dreams. A few years ago, my chess dreams were quickly dwindling but thankfully they rose from the dead.”

Direct accusations of cheating in the chess world are rare and often hard to prove. In real-world over the board (OTB) chess, cheating usually comes in the form of somehow obtaining outside move advice through hidden communications systems, or embedding computers in clothing or footwear that can predict game outcomes and provide move recommendations.

One recent proof of concept involved using vibration-based buttons in a player’s shoes to communicate with a Raspberry Pi Zero running the open source Stockfish chess engine hidden somewhere in the player’s clothing. In a writeup of that proof-of-concept, the device's designer wrote that "I was planning to recruit a 'plausibly-good' chess player to use the shoes to win the world championship," and that he was planning on creating an updated version of the cheating device: "This proof-of-concept only needed to fool my mates, in a pub, for the duration of 2 games. To win the world championships we're going to have to get much more serious." That post has gone viral on Hacker News, though there is no evidence that this device or any other was used by Niemman.

Cheating in online chess is significantly more common, and online events have been routinely plagued by scandal during the last few years.

For their part, event organizers wouldn’t speculate on the motivation for Carlsen’s abrupt departure, or comment on the parade of online gossip that has accompanied his exit.

“A player’s decision to withdraw from a tournament is a personal decision, and we respect Magnus’ choice, ″ Tony Rich, Executive Director of Saint Louis Chess Club, said in a statement. “We look forward to hosting Magnus at a future event in Saint Louis.”

[Buddahaid]

Nothing should be sacred.

[Skybird]

"Empty vastness - no trace of holiness!" - Hui-Neng, Zen patriarch



Serious, the article reveals no proven evidence pro or agianst anythign and anyone.
But I know the problem is real, and a lot of cheating no longer happens just at online chess platforms (thats why I do not play there), but in professional touranment business, too. Modern elctronics... well, evertyhing has two sides.

I played correspondence chess, and there it was never considere dcheating if you used books for research in analysis. Many players played CC just to deepen their theoretical knowledge and analysing capabilities. Later, when software b ecame good enogzhh for the task, copmp0tuers entered this realm, too. I still do not see that as chetain in that context as long as it is not done in the hiodden while claiming one does not use it. CC is simply another context, and analysing in depth and with all means avilable is declared goal of the effort.

Three players I played with in this way (using emails instead of postcards, however), for 20 years, unfortunately all three fell victim to Corona. Never no more, they are gone.

In my youth days I played CC tournaments (via postcard) and in the German association, and successfully.

Chess is the game of games.

[Platapus]

Unless there is evidence of cheating, we really can't assume that it happened.


As a recovering ChessNut, I have beaten players that were much better than I was. Whether that was due to my playing my best or my opponent playing their worst, it does happen. Not very often, but not impossible.



I have had my patzer butt kicked by players less experienced/skilled than I was. . The later happening more often than the former.



Also at tournament levels, the physical and mental condition of the players has some influence.


Bottom line, there are several reasons why one particular person wins and another one loses with out assuming any cheating.

[Gorpet]

Originally Posted by Rockstar

The Chess World Is Absolutely Losing It Over Cheating Allegations After Massive Upset

https://www.vice.com/en/article/5d3y...-massive-upset

31-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen wasn’t supposed to lose to Hans Niemann. Until he did.

The chess world has been rocked by online allegations of cheating after a top chess grandmaster was toppled by a relative newcomer this week in a major high stakes tournament in St. Louis.

31-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen—rated the top player in the world by the International Chess Federation (FIDE)—abruptly withdrew from the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis after a third-round defeat by Hans Niemann, a young chess prodigy from the United States.

Soon after his loss, Carlsen posted a cryptic tweet featuring a speech by football manager Jose Mourinho. "I prefer not to speak,” Mourinho said in the 2020 video. “If I speak I am in big trouble…and I don't want to be in big trouble."


The defeat was an upset for the ages, given Carlsen had played 53 classical matches without a loss (though Niemann had defeated him one month earlier in a non-classical match). Niemman also had an ELO rating several hundred points lower than Carlsen and was playing black, which has a slight but statistically notable disadvantage because the white side moves first.

“It must be embarrassing for the world champion to lose to an idiot like me,” Niemann said in an interview shortly after the victory. “I feel bad for him.”

Carlsen’s implications rocked the chess community, which quickly began speculating online that Niemann must have cheated, despite no evidence of foul play being presented from Carlsen or event organizers. On Reddit, r/chess has been a firestorm of gossip since the loss, with many observers tracking the allegations and counter allegations in minute by minute detail.

In several comments on Twitch, American chess grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura implied Nieman may have had a history of online cheating. Emil Sutovsky, Director-general of FIDE, also noted that Carlsen wasn’t the type of player to quit the tournament over petty spite:

Emilchess
@EmilSutovsky
·
Follow
No matter how his tournaments went, @MagnusCarlsen never quit. He must have had a compelling reason, or at least he believes he has it. Don't call him a sore loser or disrespectful. I shall not speculate on the reasons of his withdrawal, but probably would expect TD to air them.
2:25 PM · Sep 5, 2022

In the wake of Carlsen’s vague allegations, event organizers say they delayed the online broadcast of the fourth round by 15 minutes, and ramped up event metal detection and RFID checks on players ahead of the next round.

The Sinquefield Cup features cash prizes as high as $350,000, and has been a major step on the World Grand Chess Tour since 2015. Carleson has won the cup twice in the last decade, and had never before withdrawn from an ongoing event.

“This is truly a humbling day for me,” Niemann said in a Tweet shortly after the win. “I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to play chess at the highest level and live out my dreams. A few years ago, my chess dreams were quickly dwindling but thankfully they rose from the dead.”

Direct accusations of cheating in the chess world are rare and often hard to prove. In real-world over the board (OTB) chess, cheating usually comes in the form of somehow obtaining outside move advice through hidden communications systems, or embedding computers in clothing or footwear that can predict game outcomes and provide move recommendations.

One recent proof of concept involved using vibration-based buttons in a player’s shoes to communicate with a Raspberry Pi Zero running the open source Stockfish chess engine hidden somewhere in the player’s clothing. In a writeup of that proof-of-concept, the device's designer wrote that "I was planning to recruit a 'plausibly-good' chess player to use the shoes to win the world championship," and that he was planning on creating an updated version of the cheating device: "This proof-of-concept only needed to fool my mates, in a pub, for the duration of 2 games. To win the world championships we're going to have to get much more serious." That post has gone viral on Hacker News, though there is no evidence that this device or any other was used by Niemman.

Cheating in online chess is significantly more common, and online events have been routinely plagued by scandal during the last few years.

For their part, event organizers wouldn’t speculate on the motivation for Carlsen’s abrupt departure, or comment on the parade of online gossip that has accompanied his exit.

“A player’s decision to withdraw from a tournament is a personal decision, and we respect Magnus’ choice, ″ Tony Rich, Executive Director of Saint Louis Chess Club, said in a statement. “We look forward to hosting Magnus at a future event in Saint Louis.”

Well, You bring a 31 year old Norwegian man
to Saint Louis Mo USA. What did you expect? Between Southern female spread legs you lose your mind.And your future.LOL

[Aktungbby]

reported

[Gorpet]

Originally Posted by Aktungbby

reported

What ? You have got to tell me . Were you offended ? and just what offended you. I just might have to report you for offending me.

[Gorpet]

You are.Interesting!

[Skybird]

You just dont know when to stop. Reported.

[Skybird]

Investigations are being started against Niemann. He should have cheated much more often than he admitted, over 100 times. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes (with reference to the Walls Street Journal):
----------------------------
The scandal surrounding chess grandmaster Hans Niemann is widening: The American is alleged to have played incorrectly in more than 100 online games - also in tournaments in which prize money was at stake.

The controversial chess grandmaster Hans Niemann, whom World Champion Magnus Carlsen has openly accused of illegal methods, is alleged to have cheated in more than 100 online games. This is the result of an investigation report by the portal chess.com, reported by the "Wall Street Journal" (WSJ) on Tuesday. According to the report, the 19-year-old American is said to have cheated many times more often than on the two occasions as a 12- and 16-year-old, which he had admitted to himself most recently.

According to the WSJ, Niemann admitted to the allegations in the report and was banned for some time from the site, which is popular with both amateurs and chess grandmasters. According to the information, Niemann cheated most recently in 2020 and that too in tournaments where prize money was at stake.

Carlsen accuses his US rival of cheating: "I believe that Niemann has cheated - also recently - more than he has admitted publicly." The first incident between the two had occurred in early September. At the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis, the superstar surprisingly lost to Niemann and withdrew from a tournament for the first time in his career. The 31-year-old Norwegian did not give any reasons at the time.

The chess scene interpreted Carlsen's withdrawal as an accusation of cheating against Niemann. The American admitted in an interview during the Sinquefield Cup that he had cheated twice as a teenager at the age of twelve and 16 in online games, but never in presence at the chess board.

According to the WSJ, the chess.com report makes no statement on whether Niemann also cheated in direct duels. However, it does suggest that Niemann's strongest performances merit further investigation based on the data.

The World Chess Federation had announced last week that it would set up a commission of enquiry.
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