 "Russian chess icon Vladimir Kramnik had accused American GM Daniel Naroditsky of cheating by consulting a chess engine on a second screen during an online match. AP")
Russian chess icon Vladimir Kramnik has been facing the heat for his controversial crusade against cheating in chess since the untimely demise of American Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky , who passed away at the age of 29 on Sunday. Former world champion Kramnik had made cheating accusations against several players in the recent past without providing proof for his allegations.
Naroditsky was among the players targeted by the veteran Russian GM, and while the popular commentator, streamer and trainer maintained his innocence throughout, he did admit to being affected by Kramnik’s accusations.
Not only have several leading players including Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura slammed Kramnik for hurling cheating accusations at other players without proof, Lausanne-based govering body FIDE are also involved in the matter and are planning to discipline the controversial Russian GM .
It remains to be seen what action FIDE takes against Kramnik, which could range from a fine to a life ban on offending players. Chess fans, however, appear to be heavily leaning towards the latter, with a petition filed on change.org asking FIDE to ban Kramnik and also revoke his titles/norms that had gained over 20,000 verified signatures as of Saturday evening.
Rename ‘Rue Vladimir Kramnik’, demands online petition against Russian GM
And it’s not just a ban on Kramnik that has been mentioned in the petition; they also want a street named after the Russian GM in the outskirts of French capital Paris to be renamed after Naroditsky, who went by the name ‘Danya’ and had a massive following on video-sharing and streaming platforms YouTube and Twitch.
“Please keep sharing, and signing. Also, ask for the town hall in Asnières-sur-Seine, France, to change the name of the street called ‘Rue Vladimir Kramnik’ to ‘Rue Daniel Naroditsky’,” read the opening line of the petition, which also accuses FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky of remaining silent on the issue and calls for his resignation.
Sutovsky had earlier told news agency Reuters that FIDE was “looking into” Kramnik’s cheating allegations against Naroditsky and other players before president Dvorkovich announced the governing body’s decision to refer him to its ethics and disciplinary committee.
Sutovsky, however, slammed Kramnik for his “appalling and outright shameful” response to Naroditsky’s passing while questioning where the American GM’s well-wishers were when he was alive and unwell in a post on his personal X account.
Naroditsky’s mother also broke her silence earlier this week, reflecting on how nothing was more important for Daniel than his dignity and opening up on the impact that the cheating allegations from Kramnik, his childhood idol, had on him mentally.
Kramnik, who had dethroned the legendary Garry Kasparov as world champion in 2000 and later lost to Indian chess icon Viswanathan Anand in 2007, maintains his innocence in the matter, claiming that his family has been receiving threats and that his son had a nervous breakdown. He has also accused FIDE of launching a smear campaign against him and is planning to file a lawsuit against the organisation.