US chess grandmaster Hans Niemann has remained defiant despite a damning report accusing him of cheating in more than 100 matches – with…interesting methods.
It’s a story more worthy of a Hollywood script that caused a storm in the chess world and made headlines around the world.
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Niemann once admitted to cheating, but now claims he’s clean
The 19-year-old has been accused of cheating since knocking out world champion Magnus Carlsen, who has dominated the game for over a decade.
Carlsen withdrew from the Sinquefield Cup and posted a cryptic message on Twitter with Jose Mourinho’s famous meme: “If I talk I’m in big trouble.”
Niemann has previously admitted to cheating between the ages of 12 and 16 using computer assistance, but claims to be a reformed character.
Carlsen then issued a statement with specific charges against the American, pointing out certain irregularities in his game that only a handful of players can do.
This is where the story gets even crazier…online theories suggest he used vibrating anal beads to cheat.
Yeah… anal beads. Vibrant. Anal. Pearls.
How? It was claimed that a coach would watch the game and enter perfect moves into a computer, which would send a coded message to the balls, and thus be able to help Niemann.
The embattled teenager even offered to play naked to prove he wasn’t cheating.
“If they want me to completely undress, I will,” Niemann said. “I don’t care, because I know I’m clean. You want me to play in a closed box with zero electronic transmission, I don’t care. I’m here to win and that’s my goal regardless.
Chess.com, the game’s largest online platform, has confirmed that it removed Niemann from its site for cheating.
They then released a bombshell 72-page report on the American, accusing him of cheating more than 100 times and more recently than he admitted.
@hans_niemann Instagram
Niemann even offered to strip naked to prove he wasn’t cheating
The chess prodigy is accused of breaking the rules as recently as 2020, with the report noting “many remarkable signals and unusual patterns along Hans’ path as a player”.
Niemann beat 15-year-old Christopher Yoo in the first round of the US Chess Championship and remained defiant.
“I think this game is a message for everyone,” Niemann said. “It all started with me saying that chess speaks for itself, and I think this game speaks for itself and showed the chess player that I am.
“It also showed that I won’t back down and play my best chess here no matter how much pressure I’m under, and that’s all I have to say about this game. Chess is about themselves, that’s all I can say.
I think we can all agree that, for the good of the sport, they have to get to the bottom of it…
