Chess Removes Russian Grandmaster from Tournaments Due to Visits to War Zones in Ukraine

The chess platform Chess has barred Russian player Denis Khismatulin from participating in tournaments conducted on the site, due to his travels to areas of military operations in Ukraine. This was reported by Meduza.

It is noted that the ban was announced by the chess player himself. At the end of last year, Polish player Jan-Krzysztof Duda refused to shake hands with Russian grandmaster Denis Khismatulin before the start of the first round of the World Championship held in Uzbekistan. The game ended in a draw. However, before the second round, Duda agreed to shake hands with his Russian competitor.

According to Khismatulin, the Chess administration took an interest in his biography and discovered that he had visited Ukraine’s conflict zones multiple times for “humanitarian missions.” The platform has removed the Russian player from prize tournaments and banned him from engaging in “any social activities on the site.”

Chess.com is the world's largest chess platform. Following the start of Russia's large-scale incursion into Ukraine, the portal condemned Russian aggression. It has been blocked in Russia since April 2022.

Denis Khismatulin won the Russian Cup in 2005 and triumphed at the Voronezh Master-open tournament in 2006. In 2009, Khismatulin won bronze at the Russian Championship’s Higher League, and in 2010, he secured silver.