English Chess Forum

Magnus Carlsen has chucked himself out of the FIDE rapid world championship after refusing to change out of his jeans as required by tournament officials. It was a matter of principle, he says. He expects not to play in the Blitz championship either, although that may change.

I have a strong opinion about this. Chess players should not have to abide by a dress code. That’s it. OTOH I would set the default time to 1 second specifically to target Magnus who has made showing up late an affectation, but that’s another matter. Now, given the scruffs & unwashed tramps who make up the English chess playing demographic, I expect strong support on this one. So who’s of like mind?

Here we go again. It's hard to escape the conclusion that Clive is a compulsive attention-seeker.

So Carlsen says it's a matter of principle. Not an important one for me and not a battleground worth fighting on. Is he still contracted to a casual clothing sponsor? If FIDE wishes to project a respectable image is it really so painful to abide by a probably still wide-ranging dress code? I seem to recall Keene and Basman donning dinner jackets for their games v Botvinnik at Hastings. Or was it Smyslov?
Surprisingly Fischer was an advocate of suits.

When I saw a snooker tournament with a relaxed dress code it just didn't seem right. I like to see the traditional bow tie outfits. Irrational maybe, but nevertheless true. Dress is a constant hot topic at golf clubs and you will never get agreement. Tuck those shirts in, gentlemen!

They seem to exemplify someone imposing his values onto others thoughtlessly.

This is quite amusing https://x.com/haakonbe/status/1872788240367009905

A great shame we lose Magnus from the blitz event. Let's hope at least, it spurs on fide to review and scrap this outdated rule. Carlsen looks perfectly smart. Nobody gives a s**t what material his trousers are made of. The whole chess world cares about whether he particiapates in this "flagship" event.

Nick Burrows wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 12:01 pm

A great shame we lose Magnus from the blitz event. Let's hope at least, it spurs on fide to review and scrap this outdated rule. Carlsen looks perfectly smart. Nobody gives a s**t what material his trousers are made of. The whole chess world cares about whether he particiapates in this "flagship" event.

Exactly.

Nick Burrows wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 12:01 pm

Carlsen looks perfectly smart.

No doubt he does. The trouble is that most of those involved in and paying for the event don't want a few players looking and smelling like a tramp who has just spent the night in a ditch ( history has shown this is a genuine risk ), so a line must be drawn somewhere. "You must look smart" is too subjective and doesn't work.

The organisers and the players' representatives agreed, reasonably or not, that one part of the requirements would be not wearing jeans. You can't then have one top player saying stuff you lot, I'm going to wear mine anyway.

Chief arbiter Alex Holowczak kicks Magnus out ,for wearing £1000 jeans , thats Magnus the ex model for clothing brand G-Star, Magnus the Ex Champion, Magnus successful chess businessman. Are we are witnessing the decline and fall of Fide.?

Fide seems so out of touch and insensitive to the needs of the chess community. such poorly thought out actions have yet again damaged the public image of the game .

A new chess organisation will hopefully emerge for the chaos.

So you are an uncritical Carlsen fanboy, then. Many of us are not, however - and see his actions as not untypically self centred.

FIDE is, of course, rubbish - but do I really need to remind people how well the last major breakaway from it went?

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 12:29 pm

No doubt he does. The trouble is that most of those involved in and paying for the event don't want a few players looking and smelling like a tramp who has just spent the night in a ditch ( history has shown this is a genuine risk ), so a line must be drawn somewhere. "You must look smart" is too subjective and doesn't work.

The organisers and the players' representatives agreed, reasonably or not, that one part of the requirements would be not wearing jeans. You can't then have one top player saying stuff you lot, I'm going to wear mine anyway.

Without getting bogged down in the ditch of the rights and wrongs of the application of the rules as stated, I'm suggesting taking a step back and considering the wider effect on this important event, and on chess in general.

Specifying one random type of trousers in a vacuum is meaningless. He had shoes and a jacket on, and it was far from obvious he even had jeans on.

The general point of the rule is that players looked smart. He looked smart. He was penalisied as the rule was followed to the letter. The effect on chess is damaging. The rule is at fault.

Bob Kane wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 12:35 pm

……Magnus successful chess businessman.

You could have shared in his business acumen when Play Magnus listed at 21 NOK in late 2020. Except you’d have lost almost 40% of your capital when chess dot com bought the business for 13 NOK less than 2 years later.

Nick Burrows wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 1:01 pm

Without getting bogged down in the ditch of the rights and wrongs of the application of the rules as stated

But that isn't a detail, it's the whole point. If one player says I'm bigger than the tournament so I can ignore the rules, or at least interpret them in my own way, what are the organisers supposed to do? Chess is not the only sport to face this problem.

No doubt there will now be yet another review of the rules, with further input from the players, but they will never be perfect because that is unattainable.

Carlsen was fined €10k by the Ethics Commission for withdrawing from the Sinquefield Cup in 2022. What sanction for a repeat withdrawal here and the vulgarities in the subsequent interview?

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 28, 2024 1:18 pm

But that isn't a detail, it's the whole point. If one player says I'm bigger than the tournament so I can ignore the rules, or at least interpret them in my own way, what are the organisers supposed to do?

Demand that they be given discretion in the application of the rules. It's the premise used by the DPP in England and Wales that prosecution (aka enforcement of rules) is "not in the public interest". Discretion for instance that was NOT shown in the application of FIDE's short lived obsession with application of defaults for not being at the board at the start of play.