Accusations of cheating in the highest tournament levels of chess

[TheMeInTeam]

There's another crucial factor that's not discussed, which is Hans' credibility.

Regardless of whether or not Chess.com has a collaboration with Magnus, there appears to be evidence that Hans has greatly understated the amount of cheating he engaged in during his time with the online platform.

Furthermore, his inadequate post-game analysis and sketchiness of his rating increase pattern appear to further put into question on how authentic he is as a player. These aren't factors that prove he cheated in that match, but are potential red flags.

his credibility matters for liking him. not for lawsuit though, and much less for the goal of making other people also look non credible

Chess.com was hasty enough to release a smug multi-paged report where they admitted they only banned Hans because Magnus said he is cheating, without meaning to ban him if that didn't happen. At the same time, being in talks to buy Magnus' chess app.

yeah. it's why i think they'll have a hard time avoiding discovery. releasing a written statement that says "we engaged in conspiracy to penalize this person in particular which would not have happened but for the conspiracy" is something where the court will raise eyebrows.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Chess dot com report

Oct. 2022 Final H. Niemann Report.pdf

drive.google.com

 

[Kyriakos]

yeah. it's why i think they'll have a hard time avoiding discovery. releasing a written statement that says "we engaged in conspiracy to penalize this person in particular which would not have happened but for the conspiracy" is something where the court will raise eyebrows.

Serves them right (all three) and I hope they pay more than they can calmly handle, even if it's not the full 100 million ^_^

 

[Moriarte]

Chess dot com report

Oct. 2022 Final H. Niemann Report.pdf

drive.google.com

Well written report. Got carried away and read it in full.

I’m impressed by the amount of babysitting titled cheaters get in the name of making chess.com richer! Then again, I guess it’s chess masters and other titled players aged 12-20 who are tempted to cheat and get caught. It’s not hard to see where chess.com is coming from with giving youngsters a pass. It adds up to uncertainty, when such things are handled under the cloak of privacy. Again, it is done in the name of saving face, plus money stream from potential titled player, but I’m not entirely convinced it’s the best way to do it.

From chess.com report:

Either way, we must stand by our findings and ask that you come forward with a more forthcoming confession of the resources you used and how often you used them. If you are to provide an honest admission of your approach in your games on Chess.com, we'd be happy to work with you to open a new, fresh account with title, diamond membership, and a clean slate on Chess.com.

What’s also notable is that Niemann demonstrated the fastest 2500-2700 otb elo rise in recorded history. (Right after being banned for cheating on chess.com in 2020) So… if he is so damn good and he knows it, why did he risk his whole career by repeatedly using outside assistance? Why did he feel the need to use cheats against weaker players, while planning to play (without cheats?) against the best chess players in the world? This “logic” just doesn’t add up in my head.

In Exhibit C (of the report) Niemann confesses that he cheated out of being “bored and wanted to see how good the anti-cheat team was”. How’s that for an excuse?

 

[Kyriakos]

It's not much of an excuse (then again, he was 17 then? I can see someone at 17 doing stuff out of edgelordism), but neither is it believable that only few pro chess players used engines online, merely to get ahead in the rankings race
Why not just have prize-winning tournaments only be otb? Hans is tightly ( ) checked in every one of them, so will others. Chess.com will hate it, but that's tough.

 

[Samson]

Hans Niemann chosen to lead USA at World Team Championship

At a tournament in Jerusalem. Are they just courting controversy to get free publicity?

Hans Niemann is the surprise choice to play top board for the six-player US squad at the World Team Championship in Jerusalem on 19-26 November. It will be the 19-year-old’s first event since launching his $100m lawsuit against the world champion, Magnus Carlsen, and others.​

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Niemann is nationally ranked only No 8, so it is possible that some of those with higher ratings, including Hikaru Nakamura, who is among those being sued, and the current US champion, Fabiano Caruana, have declined to play in the same squad as the teenager.​

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However, it is also true that many of the teams announced for Jerusalem are without their top players. That applies particularly to China, which is returning to competition after missing the Olympiad in Chennai but which will field a team consisting entirely of newcomers.​

 

[TheMeInTeam]

At a tournament in Jerusalem. Are they just courting controversy to get free publicity?

depends how he wound up on top board. difference if other players refused first vs if he was picked right away