Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the International Olympic Committee recommended that the Russian and Belarusian sports federations and their teams be excluded from international sporting competitions. No international sporting events were awarded to Russia or Belarus either. However, Russian and Belarusian athletes who wished to compete as individuals were not affected by the exclusion. The World Chess Federation (FIDE) also followed this recommendation. Russian players have been and continue to be permitted to participate in individual sporting events as neutral athletes under the FIDE flag, but not as Team Russia or Team Belarus.

However, since this decision was made, the Russian authorities have been working through diplomatic channels to overturn or circumvent it, leveraging their influence within various countries and sports associations.

The exclusion of the Russian and Belarusian chess teams was most recently discussed at the FIDE General Assembly during the last Chess Olympiad in Budapest in September 2024. Chess plays a special role in Russia, as it has long been closely linked to the government as a national sport, both in the Soviet Union and subsequently in Russia. The successes of Soviet and then Russian chess players in individual and team competitions were used for propaganda purposes. High-level chess tournaments also served to showcase the Soviet and Russian position. The importance of organised chess in Russia is evident from the fact that the supervisory board includes former Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

The president of the autonomous Russian republic of Kalmykia served as president of the World Chess Federation for a long time. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who belonged to the Russian nomenklatura with close ties to the Russian government, was elected to office in 1995. The government would send him as a seemingly harmless emissary when Russian allies found themselves in a tight spot. It was no coincidence that Ilyumzhinov was the last high-ranking official guest of Hussein and Gaddafi shortly before their downfall.

When it came to organising and paying for expensive, high-class tournaments, Ilyumzhinov could ask the Russian government for support, and they would usually be willing to help. One of the oligarchs would then be commissioned to sponsor the event through his company. In 2014, for instance, FIDE was unable to find a host for the world championship rematch between Carlsen and Anand. The Russian government, and officially the Russian Chess Federation, stepped in and the championship took place in the now empty sports facilities of the Sochi Winter Olympics. Vladimir Putin personally attended the closing ceremony and congratulated Carlsen.

After Ilyumzhinov became untenable due to his involvement in dubious banking and oil deals in Syria – the US Treasury had blacklisted him, after which FIDE was unable to find a bank to handle its financial transactions – another Russian, Arkady Dvorkovich, was elected as his successor. Dvorkovich's father was a well-known chess referee in the USSR, and Arkady Dvorkovich also had good contacts in the chess world – and in Russian government circles. Dvorkovich was at times an economic advisor to the government, then deputy prime minister. He was then the main organiser of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. From there he came to FIDE.

Arkady Dvorkovich at the opening ceremony in Linares

After his election, the new FIDE president did a good job. He appointed experts to the committees and acted decisively in various decisions. Russia will have been pleased that it could continue to exert influence in the World Chess Federation through Dvorkovich. Then, however, came the attack on Ukraine. One can imagine that Dvorkovich, as Russia's representative at the head of a sports association that is important to Russia, soon came under pressure to lift the sanctions against Russia. This proposal was soon put forward repeatedly. 

Photo: FIDE

However, at the FIDE General Assembly in Budapest in autumn 2024, the majority of delegates voted against the complete lifting of sanctions against Russia and Belarus. Many delegates feared that deviating from the general policy of the IOC would have an adverse effect on relations with the Olympic Committee. A similar situation occurred with the Russian-controlled International Boxing Association (IBA), when the IOC withdrew its recognition of the IBA as a sports association.

In May 2025, the IOC reaffirmed its decision to exclude the Russian and Belarusian sports federations and their teams. They will also not be permitted to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo. The IOC said that the recommendation made by the IOC Executive Board in March 2023 regarding teams of athletes with Russian passports remains in place. This is based on the fact that a group of neutral individual athletes cannot, by definition, be considered a team. However, the IOC recommendation does not affect individual athletes, who will be permitted to compete in Italy as "neutral athletes".

However, at the FIDE General Assembly, delegates voted in favour of a motion to consult with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on the possibility of lifting some restrictions on children and vulnerable groups.

Live video of the General Assembly

However, a Russian team is currently participating in the Women's Team World Championship, which began on Monday in Linares. They are competing as a "neutral team" under the flag of the World Chess Federation.

George Mastrokoukos is not the only one who views this as a flagrant violation of the IOC's recommendations. This could further jeopardise chess's already precarious status as a recognised sport within the IOC.

According to George Mastrokoukos, FIDE justified this decision as follows: At the FIDE Council meeting in July 2025, it was decided that a team of Russian players could participate under a neutral flag, provided that the International Olympic Committee did not object. The FIDE Council then sent a letter to the IOC with this request, but received no reply. This was interpreted as tacit consent.

On Monday, the official start of the tournament, the Ukrainian association lodged an official protest with the Spanish organising association, Peter Heine Nielsen reports on X. Ukraine also has a team competing. However, it is difficult to imagine the two teams playing each other.