Chess-CAS ruling on Russia a red line for FIDE, says presidential candidate Turlov

BENGALURU, Sept 21 : FIDE presidential candidate Timur Turlov said the world chess body must continue to abide by international sports rulings restricting Russian participation, while expressing hope that Russian federations will eventually meet the conditions required for a return to full competition.

The September 26 election will be held during FIDE's General Assembly in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, with the Kazakh businessman facing German entrepreneurs Wadim Rosenstein and Jan Henric Buettner.

The issue regarding Russian players has remained central in the presidential race following the decision of incumbent Arkady Dvorkovich, a former Russian deputy prime minister, not to seek re-election after being included in a European Union sanctions package.

Turlov was originally part of Dvorkovich's presidential team before launching his own bid.

"I respect Arkady very much and I truly believe that he did a great job for FIDE," Turlov told Reuters on a video call.

"But I am too independent to be someone else's shadow."

Turlov renounced his Russian citizenship and became a Kazakh citizen in 2022, while his Freedom Holding Corp group has sought to distance itself from Russia-related business activities. He and the company were sanctioned by Ukraine the same year, measures he has repeatedly challenged.

He said any administration under his leadership would continue to abide by rulings issued by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which prevent Russian teams from competing in FIDE events.

"We will follow this CAS ruling because we have to be compliant with the Olympic movement," Turlov said.

"If we are excluded from the Olympic movement because of disrespect to CAS decisions, that will hurt the chess movement very much."

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