Removed from abating, the scandal is getting worse. Teenage chess sensation Hans Niemann has filed a $100 million libel go well with after world champion Magnus Carlsen accused him of dishonest (with out offering proof) following Carlsen’s defeat on the Sinquefield Cup on September 4.

The lawsuit was filed earlier than a courtroom within the state of Missouri in the future after the tip of the US Championship within the state capital, Saint Louis. In addition to Carlsen, it additionally targets the Play Magnus group of corporations, whose essential shareholder is Carlsen, the digital chess membership Chess.com, its director, Daniel Rensch, and the grandmaster and streamer Hikaru Nakamura. Chess.com, which claims to have greater than 90 million customers, is shopping for Play Magnus for greater than €80 million.

“Niemann is a 19-year-old self-taught chess prodigy. He’s bringing this motion to avenge himself for the devastating injury the defendants have inflicted on his popularity, profession, and life by blatantly defaming him and unlawfully conspiring to blacklist him from the occupation to which he has devoted his life,” reads the start of the 44-page civil motion go well with, which has requested a jury trial.

Niemann’s legal professionals, from the New York legislation agency Oved & Oved LLP and The Gartner Legislation Agency (Missouri), are claiming that Magnus Carlsen, Play Magnus Group, Chess.com and Danny Rensch, about to consummate a merger geared toward monopolizing the chess business, conspired to fabricate and disseminate a variety of libelous accusations in opposition to Niemann with a view to marginalize him from skilled chess. “This isn’t a recreation. The defendants have destroyed Niemann’s life just because he has the expertise, dedication and audacity to defeat the so-called King of Chess. We are going to maintain the accused totally accountable and expose the reality,” reads the go well with.

The authorized motion additionally targets celeb chess streamer Nakamura, who has round 1.4 million subscribers on YouTube, for “colluding with Carlsen and Chess.com, publishing hours of video content material, amplifying and reinforcing Carlsen’s false accusations in opposition to Niemann with quite a few extra defamatory statements.” The lawsuit doesn’t embrace some other grandmasters, though a number of have publicly supported Carlsen’s accusations.

The lawsuit particulars 4 particular accidents Niemann has already suffered in a month and a half: a canceled match in opposition to 17-year-old German prodigy Vincent Keymer; the withdrawal of invites to play the World Chess Championship (organized by Chess.com) in October and the Tata event in Wijk aan Zee (Netherlands) in January; and the withdrawal of a proposal to be a chess trainer “in a prestigious faculty.”

Among the many arguments in favor of their shopper, the plaintiffs cite a report by mathematician Ken Regan, thought-about the world’s main professional in detecting dishonest in chess, whose conclusion is that Niemann has not cheated in face-to-face chess for the previous two years. Additionally they stress that Carlsen has used “his nice social affect” to discredit Niemann, and notice Carlsen’s unsportsmanlike gesture simply days after his Sinquefield Cup loss, when, in a fast on-line event, he conceded to Niemann after making a single transfer.

Niemann’s weakest level is that he has admitted to dishonest at on-line pace video games on the age of 12 and at 16, with out specifying what number of. “It was the largest mistake of my life, I discovered my lesson, I’ve not cheated once more and I’ve by no means achieved it in face-to-face video games,” he asserted. However Chess.com revealed a prolonged report assuring that Niemann cheater over 100 occasions. Niemann’s legal professionals declare this report incorporates a number of falsehoods.

Niemann completed seventh out of 14 on the US Championship on Wednesday with out dropping a single level on the worldwide record regardless of struggling an amazing digital lynching. The event was performed underneath excessive measures to stop dishonest.