Carlsen to rejoin chess championship after jeans dispute resolved

The world’s greatest chess player, Magnus Carlsen, has said he will return to major chess tournaments after the sport’s governing body approved a change in his dress code.

Carlsen withdrew from the World Rapid and Blitz Chess tournament in New York on Friday, where he was defending his title, after being told he could not continue playing in jeans.

The International Chess Federation (FIDE) later announced that it would change its dress code to allow “minor variations” in its list of official dress codes.

The 34-year-old said he will return to the tournament on Monday and will continue to wear jeans when playing.

Carlsen, a five-time chess champion, was fined $200 (£159) last week for breaching the tournament’s dress code.

He said he was wearing jeans at the lunch meeting, and “didn’t even think” to change them to a different pair of pants for the race.

He had already performed several times in a shirt, blazer, and jeans after being told he had broken the dress code.

The officer said he promised to change his trousers the next day but was told to change them quickly which he refused.

Carlsen then withdrew from the race and said he was leaving the city.

“No one wants to go back.

Announcing the change in the dress code on Sunday, the president of Fide Arkadi Dvorkovitch said: “The principle is simple: it is still necessary to follow the official dress code, but small beautiful deviations (which, in particular, include appropriate jeans that match the dress. jacket) are allowed. “

He said tournament staff would need to help judge whether the costumes fit the liberal rules, and added that he hoped players would “not spoil the fun” at the New Year’s tournament by “abusing this flexibility”.

In a televised address on Sunday, Carlsen said, “Oh, I’m playing in jeans tomorrow.”

Fide has previously stated that its dress code was designed to “ensure fairness and professionalism for all participants”.

Carlsen is a famous figure in chess who has attracted controversy in recent years.

The Norwegian became a grandmaster – the highest level in chess – at the age of 13, and for a long time he was considered a maverick in the chess world.

In 2023, he settled a long-running dispute after accusing an American rival of plagiarism.

Carlsen said this after an unexpected defeat by 19-year-old chess master Hans Niemann at the 2022 games.

Niemann denied the claims and filed a $100m (£79m) defamation suit against Carlsen, Chess.com and another US grandmaster.

Last August, Chess.com reported the case had been settled out of courtand that Carlsen now admitted that Niemann did not cheat.