Although chess enfant-terrible Hans Niemann failed in the quarterfinals against Magnus Carlsen at the Blitz World Championships in New York, the American dominated the headlines on the two days of the competition. The reason was not only his sharp criticism of the shared world title, but also his win without a fight in the preliminary round against the Russian Daniil Dubov.
The World Blitz Chess Championship in New York was an extraordinary one for many reasons. On the one hand, due to the shared title between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi, who achieved a first in the history of the World Cup with their final deal.
Hans Niemann provided two further, no less headline-grabbing chapters. The controversial US grandmaster raged on social media after the final between Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi, distracting from his own controversy. This had already happened on the first day of the competition.
Dubov “sleeps through” chess game against Niemann
What had happened? In the 10th of 13 rounds, Niemann would have had to face the Russian Daniil Dubov. But this one didn’t even appear on the board. Niemann won the game without a fight. Dubov then claimed that he had simply overslept. An adventurous explanation that, of course, no one bought from him.
Rather, Dubov refused to run against Niemann because he still considers the American to be a fraud. Niemann also knew this, calling Dubov a “coward” in an X article, accusing him of lacking character and challenging the Russian to a direct duel for a lot of money.
“Chess mafia more corrupt than ever”
Dubov accepted the offer, but placed one condition: “I am willing to play under the following conditions: You agree to a professional lie detector test in which only questions about cheating are asked. The results will be published in their entirety. If the test is clear, I will accept that my decision was rash and play a 24-game blitz match against you, eight games per day, $2,000 per point.”
Niemann again rejected this suggestion. He was tired of “children’s games” and “accusations,” he wrote on Games against Dubov for $20,000 per point and I will extend this offer to every chess player on the planet.”
Dubov misses the knockout round at the World Chess Championship
It is unlikely that Dubov will accept this offer. He is, as he says about himself, a man with principles that will not be shaken. He paid a high price for this in New York.
For the Russian, “oversleeping” was very costly. He finished the first day with 9.5 points. Half a point more and he would have been in the quarter-finals. But he literally left this opportunity behind.
Source: www.sport.de
