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A two-time world chess champion has been forced to surrender her title after refusing to compete in a major world tournament that began in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
Ukrainian chess grandmaster Anna Muzychuk pulled out of the The King Salman World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship in Riyadh when told she would be compelled to wear an abaya, the full-length robes women are required to adorn in public in Saudi Arabia.
This woman gave up something very dear to her and a lot of money because she didn't want to be forced to wear restrtive clothing.
Women are, according to local reports, being allowed to wear dark blue or black formal trousers and high-necked blouses, avoiding Saudi rules of dress that require female residents and most visitors to wear loose-fitting, long robes known as abayas.
Still required wear though.
On 9th of September at the start of the third round of the FIDE World Cup 2017, Anton Kovalyov came to the board before the round began. He was wearing his striped shorts, the same one that he had worn while playing rounds one and two. He was asked by ECU President to dress appropriately in accordance with the dress code which was mentioned in the players' contract. Kovalyov left the playing hall before the round began and did not turn up for the game. After 15 minutes, his opponent Maxim Rodshtein was given a walkover.
originally posted by: Grambler
a reply to: Phage
I believe there is a difference to the actual tournament having a required dress code, vs saying women can't show skin or walk without a man outside the tournament.
originally posted by: starwarsisreal
a reply to: Grambler
This is why nobody takes the US and the UN very seriously when they preach about human rights.
While the US complained of North Korea's nuclear program and human rights violations, they ignored Saudi Arabia's treatment of women.
originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: MisterSpock
There are separate competitions. Normally are.
Don't ask me why.
originally posted by: Bluntone22
She should have said that she wouldn't set foot in that backwater crap hole of a country and that any organization that held a tournament there could shove their title where the monkey put the peanut.
The very fact that this country is hosting a world chess tournament for the first time is controversial domestically as it comes two years after the country's top cleric issued a religious edict against playing the board game. Saudi Arabia's top cleric, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Sheikh, said in early 2016 that chess is "forbidden" in Islam because it wastes time and can lead to rivalry among players. Similarly, top Iranian clerics have also decried the game, saying it can lead to gambling, which is banned in Islam.
JERUSALEM — Saudi Arabia is hosting an international chess tournament this week, and the fact that female players are permitted to play without the traditional head covering is a first — and a nod to the kingdom’s attempts at modernization and reform.
But Lior Aizenberg, spokesman for the Israeli Chess Federation, said the decision to prevent the Israelis from attending was indeed political....
He said the seven players who had planned to participate were now seeking financial compensation from the World Chess Federation, also known as FIDE.