Chess Player Suspended After Allegedly Poisoning Her Rival

A chess player has been suspended by the Russian Chess Federation and is reportedly facing time in jail after she allegedly tried to poison her rival at the chessboard during a tournament.

Amina Abakarova, a 40-year-old chess coach from Makhachkala in the Russian Republic of Dagestan, is accused of trying to poison her rival, 30-year-old Umayganat Osmanova.

The incident unfolded during the Dagestan Chess Championship on August 2, according to a Telegram channel that first reported on the story, and is now making headlines in state-run Russian news media as well as media outlets globally.

Security camera footage shows the incident where Abakarova calmly walked over to the board where Osmanova was supposed to appear 20 minutes later. It was reported that she'd previously asked if cameras were in operation and been told that they weren't. She then smeared what is said to be potentially deadly mercury from a thermometer.

Poisoning incident in Russian 🇷🇺 Chess.
Statement by the Chess Federation of Russia, video from Karjakin's Telegram: pic.twitter.com/5ePqEUMAI1

— Peter Heine Nielsen (@PHChess) August 7, 2024

Osmanova said she began feeling unwell 30 minutes later, complaining of nausea and dizziness, prompting an immediate call for medical assistance. Doctors eventually concluded that poisoning was a likely cause. After reviewing the footage from security cameras, the arbiter reported it to the police and Abakarova was detained, rtv1.com reports.

Osmanova described her ordeal, saying she felt "terrible, disgusting, and morally depressed" when she realized she had been poisoned. She said another player and a member of the organization also became ill.

"I still feel bad. In the first minutes, I felt a lack of air and a taste of iron in my mouth. I had to spend about five hours on this board. I don’t know what would have happened to me if I hadn’t seen it earlier," she told Russia Today.

Abakarova has reportedly confessed that she wanted to "knock her opponent out of the tournament," admitting "personal hostility" toward Osmanova, who had a week earlier won the Dagestan Rapid Championship above her on tiebreaks. The plan was not to harm Osmanova, but to scare her, according to a police report quoted by Russian media. 

Abakarova has now been detained by police and is facing up to three years in jail, according to The Mirror.  Andrey Filatov, the President of the Russian Chess Federation, has also confirmed that Abakarova is temporarily suspended from Russian chess events, pending an investigation into the incident. She is potentially facing a lifetime ban. 

Dagestan's Minister of Sport, Sazhid Sazhidov, is also shocked: "Like many others, I am perplexed by what happened, and the motives of such an experienced competitor as Amina Abakarova are incomprehensible. The actions she took could have led to a most tragic outcome, threatening the lives of everyone who was present, including herself. Now she must answer for what she did by the law."

Despite falling ill, Osmanova fully recovered and continued the tournament, eventually finishing in second place and winning a prize. Abakarova was expelled after the fourth round and is unlikely to play chess again anytime soon.