The International Chess Federation suspended grandmaster Sergey Karjakin for six months after he came out in support of Russia amidst their invasion of Ukraine.
"Many people ask if I regret my public support of the special operation," Karjakin opened on Twitter. "After all, I have already lost my invitations to Western tournaments and may lose an invitation to the candidates' tournament. My answer is simple. I am on the side of Russia and my president. No matter what happens, I will support my country in any situation without thinking for a second."
This doubling down on Twitter saw Karjakin facing even more backlash from both fans and other chess players, but it doesn't stop there. As reported by Kotaku, Karjakin has also been spreading Russian propaganda against Ukraine, furthering dogma pushed by the Russian government to justify the invasion and senseless attacks on Ukrainians.
"The statements by Sergey Karjakin on the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine has led to a considerable number of reactions on social media and elsewhere, to a large extent negative towards the opions expressed by Sergey Karjakin," the Federation's ruling opened. "A necessary condition for the establishment of guilt is that the statements have reached the public domain.
"The EDC Chamber finds, on the standard of comfortable satisfaction that the statements of Sergey Karjakin, which, by his own choice and presentation, can be connected to the game of chess, damage the reputation of the game of chess and/or FIDE. "
Interestingly, Karjakin represented Ukraine until 2009 when he switched to Russia. He became a grandmaster at only 12 years old, and so he has had a long career in the game, but his comments have seen him expelled from the tournament and the community at large. He has been supporting Russia since the conflict began but the repercussions of doing so have only just caught up to him.
But in better news, Fortnite has managed to raise $36 million in only one day to fund charities helping those in Ukraine. Proceeds from Fortnite will continue to be donated until April 3.