Karpov responds to Dvorkovich: 'blatant cheating'

In a letter published at the Karpov 2010 campaign website, Anatoly Karpov has responded to Arkady Dvorkovich' remarkable move to already announce the Russian Chess Federation's nomination of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov. "I must state that the world chess community has been cheated in the most blatant manner," says the former World Champ.

Yesterday we reported about the announcement by Arkady Dvorkovich, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Russian Chess Federation (RCF) and Advisor to the President of Russia, that the RCF has nominated Kirsan Ilyumzhinov as FIDE President candidate. As Mig writes, this was quite a remarkable move. A meeting was scheduled for mid-May for the RCF's supervisory council to decided and vote, and suddenly Dvorkovich comes with the 'news' that the RCF is endorsing Ilyumzhinov.

In reaction to the RCF's nomation, Ilyumzhinov's advisor Berik Balgabaev said in the Russian newspaper Komersant that Karpov, despite his popularity, should count on "no more than 30 votes" out of 170 federations. He also remarked that this year's elections will be "less interesting" than the previous presidential election in 2006, when Bessel Kok got the support of 54 federations.

Karpov has already responded with a letter published at the Karpov 2010 campaign website:

I must state that the world chess community has been cheated in the most blatant manner. According to the RCF charter adopted on February 19, 2010, the Chairman of the Supervisory Council is not empowered to take decisions of such importance unilaterally. The argument proffered by Mr. Dvorkovich, that he consulted with some Council members by telephone, is ridiculous. Instead of telephone calls, the responsibility of the President is to organize meetings with all 32 elected members for a thorough debate followed by a vote.

The assertions of Mr. Dvorkovich to portray a clear advantage to Mr. Ilyumzhinov in the election race is a broad and malicious distortion of a campaign that has only just begun. What is more, Mr. Ilyumzhinov has yet to receive official support from any major chess federation, while several – Germany, France, Spain, Egypt, and the US – have already endorsed my candidacy.

Though his actions are unprecedented, Mr. Dvorkovich has made no secret of his alliances in this matter. This entire charade does little more than demonstrate the desperate situation of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov after 15 years of his inglorious rule of FIDE. The many intrigues and scandals visited upon FIDE by the Kalmyk President have made it impossible to attract the financing of chess competitions by legitimate corporate sponsors. As I wrote in my campaign mission statement, “A Champion of Change,” chess today is in a grave crisis and the only solution is a complete replacement of the current leadership of FIDE and the rejection of their compromised methods.

I cannot refrain from employing some chess terminology. The unsound Dvorkovich-Ilyumzhinov Gambit is nothing but a way to exert psychological pressure on many hesitant chess federations, where awareness of the need for change in the chess world is paralyzed by belief in the political invulnerability of Ilyumzhinov. At the same time, two senior Russian officials are ready to sacrifice the prestige of our country to achieve their disreputable goals, displaying contempt for law and public opinion.

I can look back on 25 years of defending the honor of my country at the highest level. After waging a hard struggle for the presidency of FIDE I believe I can reform this organization by putting intellectual modernization and a cleansing of corruption at the forefront. This I will do in full agreement with the tasks placed before our nation by Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.

Anatoly Karpov Moscow April 22, 2010