FIDE strips Grandmaster title of player for cheating, banned for three years

Former world No. 75 chess player Kirill Shevchenko has been banned from FIDE-rated events for three years and stripped of his Grandmaster title after being found guilty of cheating during the Spanish Team Championship in October 2024.

The ruling, issued by FIDE's Ethics and Disciplinary Commission, comes after Shevchenko confessed to hiding a phone in a bathroom during the tournament, making him the highest-ranked Grandmaster to receive such a ban.The ban will be effective from October 19, 2024, until October 18, 2026, with one year suspended contingent on good behaviour until October 18, 2027. The immediate revocation of Shevchenko's grandmaster title accompanies the disciplinary action.What happened in the incident?The cheating scandal unfolded during the Spanish Team Championship between October 12-18, 2024, when tournament officials discovered a mobile phone in a private restroom near public facilities on October 13. The phone was accompanied by a note stating "Do not touch! The phone is left for a guest to answer at night."Tournament authorities learned that a cleaning staff member had found another phone in the same bathroom the previous day.

The discovery prompted an investigation after two grandmasters, Francisco Vallejo Pons and Bassem Amin, raised concerns about Shevchenko's extended absences from the chess board during matches.The 22-year-old Shevchenko was subsequently expelled from the tournament. While he admitted to concealing a phone in the bathroom, he initially denied using it for engine assistance during games. However, FIDE's ruling noted that Shevchenko later acknowledged using the Lichess app on the phone.How FIDE responded to allegationsThe case went through multiple stages of review. The First Instance Chamber of FIDE's Ethics and Disciplinary Commission, chaired by David Hater with members Olga Baskakova and Alan Borda, initially issued a three-year ban in March 2025 but did not revoke the Grandmaster title. Both Shevchenko and FIDE's Fair Play Commission filed appeals, leading to the final decision."FIDE takes cheating cases among top players with the utmost seriousness. We are working hard on both prevention and swift, appropriate sanctions. Ensuring fair play is non-negotiable – it is essential to the credibility and future of our sport," said Dana Reizniece, Deputy Chair of the FIDE Management Board.