 "Explained: Why World Rapid Champion Volodar Murzin is fighting his own federation")
Volodar Murzin, who won the FIDE World Rapid Championship in December, is reportedly in a conflict with the Russian Chess Federation (FSHR). According to Russian sports website Sports.ru, Murzin, 18, has said that he “has no desire to play in Russia, because all Russian competitions are held under the flag of the FSHR.” He also said that he will also not have “any cooperation with the current leadership of the FSHR.”
Alexander Tkachev, the Executive Director of the Russian Chess Federation, has criticised Murzin on his stance regarding the use of the FSHR flag being used in all chess competitions. “You live in a great country, the country gave you an education, an apartment, which is departmental.
‘You spit on Russia’: Alexander tells Murzin
“You are employed by the Ministry of Sports, you receive a salary. That is, you enjoy all the social benefits, including the fact that you have a large family — these are also social benefits, guarantees. Everything that all ordinary normal people — citizens of Russia — enjoy. And at the same time you criticize and spit on Russia… How can this be? Two incompatible things,” he told Match TV, a Russian television channel.
“And to refer to the fact that the child is 18 years old… At 18, I served with a Kalashnikov assault rifle on the border of the Soviet Union. So to refer to the fact that he does not understand something… He understands everything perfectly well. You can’t spit in the well from which you drink,” he added.
Since 2022, the Russian ports federations, including the FSHR, have have been banned from playing under the Russian flags due to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. As a result of this, all Russian and Belarusian players play under the International Chess Federation’s (FIDE) flag. All Russian competitions that are held in the country, however, still continue to use the flag of the FSHR.
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