Indian chess GM Narayanan pressured to face barefoot for steel detector verify throughout match in Germany

Indian Grandmaster S L Narayanan hit out on the Bundesliga chess league for ‘humiliation’ as he was left to face barefoot contained in the enjoying corridor for a steel detector verify throughout a match in Germany on Monday.

New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 28, 2022 18:56 IST

Indian chess GM Narayanan hits out at Bundesliga chess league for ‘humiliation’ (ChessBaseIndia Photo)

By Press Trust of India: Indian Grandmaster S L Narayanan felt ‘humiliated’ as he was left to face barefoot contained in the enjoying corridor for a steel detector verify throughout a Bundesliga chess league match in Germany on Monday.

As there was a beeping sound in the course of the steel detector verify, Narayanan was made to take away his footwear and subsequently his socks too. It was later discovered that the beep sound emanated from the carpet on the ground.

This form of checks occurred earlier too, however they’ve grow to be extra inflexible ever since world champion Magnus Carlsen accused American GM Hans Niemann of dishonest earlier this yr.

“…I felt humiliated. And if I prefer to remain silent about it, I’ll not be doing justice to myself and other sportspersons who go through similar experiences,” Narayanan wrote in a prolonged put up on his Twitter deal with.

The 24-year-old Indian stated he was one of many 5 gamers chosen by the arbiter for a random verify earlier than his first spherical match on Monday.

“During the check with a metal detector, there was a beep sound. So, I was told to remove my shoes and they checked again. Beep. Now, I was told to remove my socks. The arbiter then ran the metal detector on my naked foot and we heard the beep again,” he wrote.

“At this point, I was told to move aside and the next player was asked to step forward. It is hard to explain how bad it felt as if I was guilty of something I had no clue about whatsoever.

“All this occurred in the course of the enjoying corridor. I held a sock and stood with a naked left foot. Imagine how I may need felt.

The steel detector beeped once more when the opposite participant’s foot was scanned and that prompted the arbiter to verify the ground.

“It was the carpeted floor that was triggering the beep and not any human,” Narayanan wrote.

“The arbiter apologised to me. But I must say how embarrassing it was. And mind you, this happened just minutes before my round.” Narayanan went on to lose his sport in opposition to Czech Republic GM David Navara. This was his first lack of the season for his group SV Deggendorf.

He stated the state of affairs may have been dealt with higher.

“The fact that the arbiter apologised is appreciated. But this whole situation could have been handled better. Yes, we need such vigilant arbiters to prevent cheating in chess but at the same time they should act in some professional way.

“Arbiters ought to verify the flooring first earlier than asking bizarre query like if that they had any surgical procedure or not, earlier than instructing them to take away the footwear and socks.”

“Perhaps, FIDE and match organisers will convey a few change and save gamers from going by means of such humiliation.”

Replying to Narayanan, FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky wrote: “Sorry for such an disagreeable expertise. However because it was not a @FIDE_chess occasion, I can solely readdress the query to the organizers of the actual Bundesliga leg – as a result of FIDE Protocol implies the garments may very well be requested to be taken off within the devoted separate space.”

Narayanan had just lately received the person bronze medal for India on the third board on the World Team Chess Championship 2022 in Jerusalem.

It could also be recalled that India’s lady Grandmaster Priyanka Nutakki was expelled from the World Junior Chess Championship in Italy just lately for having a pair of ear buds inside her jacket pocket throughout a routine verify.

Published On:

Nov 28, 2022