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The FIDE Women’s World Team Championship 2025 begins in Linares, Spain, on Tuesday, but the tournament, which was marred by controversy months before its beginning, continues to draw more attention, but not for the right reasons. On Monday, the Ukrainian Chess Federation filed an official complaint against the “Team FIDE”, asking FIDE, the global governing chess body, to disallow and remove this team.
During the technical meeting ahead of the event, the Ukrainian delegation formally lodged their objection.
FIDE approved the participation of a “team of athletes of Russian nationality” in the Women’s World Team Championship. The controversial decision was taken at the second FIDE Council Meeting of 2025, which took place virtually on July 18 and it was decided to allow a Russian team will compete under the FIDE flag with no display of national symbols.
12 of the world’s top women’s national teams, with the likes of China, India, Georgia, France, the United States, Spain, and Ukraine are feautirng in the event.
As per chess.com, “Ukraine team captain GM Mykhaylo Brodsky, delegation head Volodymyr Kovalchuk, and team coach GM Mykhaylo Oleksiyenko noted that FIDE cannot legally field a Russian team without receiving a formal “non-objection letter” from the IOC. Without such an approval, FIDE would violate both IOC guidelines and FIDE rules. The Ukrainians claim such an approval does not exist.”
ECU noted in the statement, “We note that this decision directly contradicts the most recent decisions of the FIDE General Assembly taken in Budapest, where two motions for lifting the sanctions against the Russian Chess Federation were rejected by a vast majority by FIDE member nations.”
According to chess.com, FIDE Legal Director Aleksandr Martynov provided a letter from IOC’s Sports Director Pierre Ducrey, addressed to FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, and signed on July 28, stating that the IOC “would not take a position” on the matter. Martynov said that all the participating teams were informed about the existence of IOC’s letter on August 28, which was made available to any delegation upon request.
Earlier in July, FIDE clarified their stance and relased a statement, “In line with FIDE’s policy of following IOC guidance and in accordance with practices adopted by several international sports federations — such as World Aquatics, the International Fencing Federation, and the International Gymnastics Federation — the Council approved the participation of a team of athletes of Russian nationality in the 2025 Women’s World Team Championship under the FIDE flag, subject to obtaining a non-objection letter from the IOC.”
“This decision builds upon the precedent set by the January 2025 FIDE resolution, which allowed neutral teams of vulnerable groups (youth and players with disabilities) to participate in team competitions. All such entries are required to compete without national symbols, in full alignment with IOC policy,” the statement read further.
