British grandmaster's bid to be chess president risks checkmate over Russia links

For decades, the Cold War was played out, in part at least, by eccentric grandmasters from the Soviet Union and the West hunched over a chessboard during tense tournament matches.

But the recent collapse in diplomatic relations between Russia and Britain over the Skripal poisonings have meant the chess world is once again being buffeted by international events.

The English Chess Federation (ECF) has revealed it is at loggerheads with the British grandmaster Nigel Short because of his apparent friendship with Arkady Dvorkovich, a senior Kremlin politician and chess supremo who recently “ridiculed” the UK over claims Russia was behind the Salisbury Novichok attack.

Short, the only Briton to challenge for the world chess title, is bidding to become president of the game's governing body Fédération Internationale des Échecs (Fide). However, the ECF - Short’s own national association - has revealed it will not back him despite him saying he wanted to banish corruption from the game.

Instead, the ECF has endorsed Georgios Makropoulos, a Greek journalist who has Malcolm Pein, the British international master and Telegraph chess columnist, as his running mate.

In a statement published on its website the association rubbished Short’s chances of winning saying his anti-corruption campaign had “gained little traction”.

Then, it rounded on Dvorkovich for using a BBC interview to criticise Britain following the Salisbury poisonings.

“The board felt it was paramount to support a strong ticket with English participation, and it was apparent that Nigel Short’s campaign had gained little traction,” the association said.

“Furthermore, in view of current UK/Russian relations, the board felt unable to support the candidacy of Arkady Dvorkovich, or anyone connected with it.

“The board felt this particularly in the light of Mr Dvorkovich’s highly political interview on BBC HARDTalk in which he ridiculed Britain’s concerns about Russian involvement in the Salisbury nerve agent attack.”

Referring to how the October 3 election involving 186 national delegates would bring to an end the 20 year reign of the Russian Kirsan Ilyumzhinov at Fide, the association added: “Moreover, given the threat of the Fide presidency continuing as an adjunct of Russian foreign policy, as it had been under Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the Board felt that abstention was not a responsible option.”

Following the ECF's rejection of Short, his bitter rival Makropoulos declared: “Not even his own country supports him... Thank you England!!”

Short hit back saying the process had been “rigged” and he had been denied the opportunity to present his case to the ECF.

In recent weeks, Short and Dvorkovich, Russia's former deputy prime minister and chief organiser of the Fifa World Cup candidacy, have been meeting up in what some have claimed is a plan to forge a pact to win the election.

Short posted recently a photograph of them at London's “home of chess” Simpsons-in-the-Strand and later in Helsinki, Finland. Short last night had failed to respond to a request for a comment.

The fallout surrounding the election has often been played out on social media with some alleging corruption in the election.

Even Short and Pein, who were previously long-standing friends, have clashed over Twitter.

Dvorkovich has also faced down allegations that the Russian state has used its embassies to pressure national associations to vote for him.

Russia has strongly denied the claims accusing Makropoulos of launching a “campaign of total lies and inconsistencies” and threatening to drag him through the courts.  

Meanwhile, the ECF has said it would only support Mr Makropoulos’ ticket, with Pein as vice president.

It added: “With Malcolm Pein as vice president, Fide would have a better chance of becoming an independent sports organisation free of political influence.”

Voting will take place during the 2018 Chess Olympiad in Batumi, Georgia, where Russia are one of the favourites to take gold.

President Vladimir Putin visited his national team’s training camp in Sochi this week to wish the open and women’s teams success.