RIYADH – Riyadh has refused to issue visas for Israeli players who were expected to take part in a Saudi-hosted chess tournament, the World Chess Federation said. Israel says it is considering a response.
The speed chess tournament, named after King Salman, will see “the world’s highest IQs and greatest chess players compete,” an ad from the Saudi Center for International Communication (CIC) says. It does not mention that Israeli players have been left out of the elite club.
https://twitter.com/CICSaudi/status/944611097419702274
The event scheduled for December 26-30 has been mired in controversy from the very start. In mid-November, the World Chess Federation (FIDE) already warned that there “may be problems for players from certain countries” with obtaining visas for the tournament.
At that time, FIDE said that it had “not been advised that any player will not be able to participate.” It also said that it was working with the organizers to “ensure that visas will be issued to all players who have confirmed their participation.”
On Sunday, however, FIDE Vice President Israel Gelfer confirmed to journalists in Athens that visas for seven Israeli players who planned to take part in the competition “have not been issued and will not be issued.” At the same time, he said that the tournament would go on as planned.
