Magnus Carlsen has broken his silence and weighed in on FIDE's ban of Sergey Karjakin for the first time. The World Champion thinks the controversial Russian wants to become a “martyr”, says he strongly disagrees with his Russian rival, but is unsure whether it was correct to ban him from chess competitions and strip him of a spot in the Candidates.
Sergey Karjakin and Magnus Carlsen during a photo session in Bilbao in 2016 | photo: Tarjei J. Svensen
Former World Championship challenger Sergey Karjakin was banned from chess for 6 months by FIDE on March 21 after a series of statements strongly supporting Vladimir Putin and the Russian invasion in Ukraine. The support has led to condemnation from enraged chess fans all over the world. Several leading tournament organisers also said the current world no. 17 is no longer welcome in their tournaments.
The ban means the Russian is stripped of his spot in the the prestigious Candidates Tournament, set to take place in Madrid from June 16 to July 7, where the winner qualifies for a World Championship match in 2023.
In a new interview with Norwegian newspaper VG, reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen has weighed in on the ban for the first time.
A lot of Russians who previously supported Putin openly or did not say anything about it, chose to turn around and are now saying that Putin went too far. Karjakin has chosen the other way. He has increased his support for Putin. This type of attitude cannot be accepted.
Despite strongly criticising Karjakin's statements, the World Champion is not sure whether banning him is the way to go.
It's difficult to assess, because it's a completely new situation. There are no parallells in history. Obviously I don't agree with Karjakin in anything, but is it correct to ban people for opinions we don't tolerate? I am not sure. It's possible it pays off in a difficult time, but it also sets some precedents for what can come later.
Carlsen suggets that banning his 2016 World Championship match opponent will lead to him becoming a “martyr”.
Is it good that we give him what he wants? He wants to become a martyr for the “tyranny of sanctions” by the West. Now he can tell that story back home — and it goes straight home in Russia. We are certainly helping him with that. We give him what he wants. I don't know if that's good or not, I am not sure.
Carlsen says he is not surprised by Karjakin doubling down on his stance considering the amount of opposition he gets. Asked whether he thinks Karjakin can ever come back into chess internationally, he says: “I doubt it”.
It will likely be some time until Sergey Karjakin gets to meet Magnus Carlsen in an official game again. Here from their second last meeting in Stavanger last year, which Karjakin won | photo: Lennart Ootes, Norway Chess
Carlsen is not the only top player who commented on Karjakin's ban last week. Several players spoke about the ban during the FIDE Grand Prix last week.
One of them was the outspoken Russian fan favourite Daniil Dubov, known as a strong critic of Putin's regime, who said he thinks Karjakin would be “a very interesting subject for a scientist”.
Carlsen's World Championship helper gave his thoughts to German magazine Der Spiegel, where he also spoke about how sanctions affect Russia and whether Russian players should be banned from sports.
On Karjakin's praise of Putin after the invasion, Dubov says:
It was a big story for chess. It was shameful. But in terms of Russia as a whole, I don't think Karjakin is that much of a help to Putin. I'm pretty sure Karjakin is doing this mainly for his own benefit, to pursue a political career.
Asked how well he knows Karjakin, the 25-year-old says:
We were never friends. There were always tensions. It started with the Crimea, on which we had very different opinions. But, and this is strange, when you talk to him privately, he is very nice. I also know a lot of private stories about him doing good things and helping people. The man I had read about in the news was a completely different person. Offline, I have yet to hear him make a political statement.
Dubov thinks it was “a strange decision” to ban Karjakin for six months, suggesting it should have been a longer suspension if he was found guilty in the first place.
That is a strange decision. FIDE’s code of ethics says that you must not damage the image of chess. He has clearly done that. If he is really guilty, his ban should be a few years. But I find it hypocritical that suddenly so many are calling for him to be punished while more or less everybody kept silent in 2014. I see the difference, but it’s obvious to me that these two things are connected. And Karjakin actually has never denied it as well.
Another reaction came from Anish Giri, during the FIDE Grand Prix in Berlin. He told Dina Belenkaya:
It's a very difficult question, of course. I've heard about that. We landed in that situation because of something tragic in general. If we look only at this, I could say that it's a pretty unprecendented situation. I don't recollect, fortunately, other such cases. It's really odd that we landed in that situation, on many levels. That's why it's really hard for me to understand how to treat such situations. In a court of law you look at that. Here I don't really know how FIDE is supposed to treat such a situation. It's a serious decision they took, and as always in such situations you have sides that says it's not harsh enough, and sides that says it's too harsh. I don't know how I should give an opinion on this, since I have never seen it before.
Levon Aronian also commented:
Of course I am a bit sad about it, because I think we should try to stay away from politics. But I think this not just the problem of Karjakin or the problem of FIDE. This is just life. You make some statements, and then there are consequences. It's normal. I believe human life is the most valuable thing in the world, and we should try to protect it in any way we can. If it's possible, we should stay away from the war, and not promote it. Generally. I do understand his point, I think Sergey is a very nice guy, and I am sad for him. I also understand the decision. I can't say whether it's good or bad, but I think it's part of life.
Wesley So, on the other hand, called the whole situation “very sad” and was crystal-clear in his condemnation of Sergey Karjakin.
I have nothing to say against Sergey, but I think he has lost his mind in the last couple of months.
He is using his platform, he is using his fame. (...) This is not about political opinions, but about the killing of innocent civilians and innocent Ukrainians. It's not just about politics, this is about war.
Karjakin, meanwhile, is expected to appeal the ban with the support of the Russian Chess Federation and its president Andrei Filatov.
It is also likely that the case will be tried by CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports) in Lausanne, but it remains unclear whether a decision will come in time before the Candidates Tournament starts.
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