The president of Chess Federation of Russia Andrei Filatov accused Ding Liren of losing the World Championship match against Gukesh on purpose and asked FIDE to start an investigation, Ukraine Chess coach, Peter Heine Nielsen shared on X quoting Russian news agency TASS. The agency quoted Filatov as saying, "The result of the last game caused bewilderment among professionals and chess fans. The actions of the Chinese chess player in the decisive segment are extremely suspicious and require a separate investigation by FIDE. Losing the position in which Ding Liren was is difficult even for a first class player. The defeat of the Chinese chess player in today's game raises a lot of questions and looks like a deliberate one." READ MORE: Live updates from Gukesh's homecoming after 18-year-old returns to India as the youngest world champion in chess history. TASS quoted that in an equal endgame, Ding Liren made a blunder on move 55 after which Gukesh won advantage on a pawn ending. The President of the Chess Federation of Russia🇷🇺, FIDE honorary member Andrei Filatov, accuses Ding Liren🇨🇳 of losing on purpose, and asks @FIDE_chess to start an investigation:@FIDE_chess @tassagency_en pic.twitter.com/SANqHdhVEI — Peter Heine Nielsen (@PHChess) December 12, 2024 Gukesh became the youngest world chess champion at 18 years after beating title-holder Ding Liren in the last game of a roller-coaster showdown, heralding a new era of dominance for the country's chess players and taking forward the incredible legacy of the great Viswanathan Anand. Paddy Upton exclusive interview: ‘Gukesh studied the whole book to prepare for world championship… right down to minutest detail’ Gukesh became only the second Indian to clinch the title after Anand, who owned the prestigious crown five times in his career. After settling into "semi-retirement", the 55-year-old Anand, incidentally, played a pivotal role in shaping Gukesh at his chess academy in Chennai. Gukesh secured the requisite 7.5 points as against 6.5 of his Chinese rival after winning the 14th and last classical time control game of the match that seemed headed for a draw for most part. As title winner, he will get USD 1.3 million from 2.5 million prize purse.
