Top ranked Chess the player Magnus Carlsen The International Chess Federation said the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship has refused to change the jeans it wears in competition.
The federation said in a statement on Friday that its regulations include a dress code that prohibits participants from wearing jeans to the event.
“The chief arbiter informed Mr. Karlsson of the violation, issued a $200 fine, and requested that he change his attire,” the federation said in a statement posted on its website. “Unfortunately, Mr. Carlson declined, and as a result, he was not paired for round nine. This decision was made impartially and applies equally to all players.
The 34-year-old Norwegian chess grandmaster said in a video for his Take Take Take Chess app that he posted on social platform X that he had accepted a $200 fine. But he refused to change his trousers before leaving the competition in New York.
“I said, 'I'll change tomorrow if that's okay,'” Carlson said in the video. “But they said, 'OK, you have to change now.' At that point it became a matter of principle for me.
The dress code is “designed to ensure professionalism and fairness for all participants,” the federation said in its statement.
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It said fellow participant Ian Nipomaniacci was also fined earlier on Friday for breaching the dress code by wearing sports shoes.
“However, Mr. Nepomniachtchi complied, changed into approved clothing, and continued to play in the tournament,” the statement said. “These rules have been in place for years and are well known to all participants and communicated to them prior to each event.”
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