Controversial chess player Niemann allegedly cheated in 100 online games | Sport

Niemann recently caused a stir by beating world champion Magnus Carlsen. Shortly afterwards, the Norwegian grandmaster stopped his match against Niemann in an online tournament after just one move and turned his screen to black. A few days later, Carlsen openly accused Niemann of cheating.

The 19-year-old American is said to have cheated online far more times than the two times he admitted himself when he was 12 and 16 years old. According to the Wall Street Journal, the chess player likely received illegal assistance in more than a hundred online chess games, the most recent of which was in 2020. In between were also games that involved prize money and in 25 cases it was a game streamed live on the internet.

The 72-page report from Chess.com also states that Niemann admitted to the allegations in a telephone conversation with the website’s spokesperson and that he was banned from the platform for a period of time. According to the investigation, irregularities have also been found during the chess player’s way to the top. The chess player has not responded to the reports of the American newspaper.

However, the chess website also points out that it has not been involved in detecting cheating in classic board chess games and has no definitive statements as to whether he cheated in direct games. Chess.com does say that some of Niemann’s parties deserve additional research based on the data. The international chess federation FIDE has ordered a commission of inquiry to investigate the riot between Carlsen and Niemann and the allegations.