The Malaysian Insight

IT was a chess tournament, which for eons has been the board game competition of the civilised and intellectual. But this tournament has moved from controversy over whether a competitor’s dress is inappropriate to harassing an official in cyberspace.

And now, far beyond the kings, queens and pawns on the 64-square board, National Scholastic Chess Championships 2017 tournament director Sophian Yusof has lodged a police report saying Facebook account holders have twisted the incident involving a 12-year-old competitor.

“We believe police will investigate the entire incident. And then we will take action based on their findings,” Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) information officer Amirul Mohamad told The Malaysian Insight.

He said since the tournament director had lodged a police report, the federation has decided to drop its internal probe.

The controversy began when the schoolgirl withdrew from the National Scholastic Chess Championships 2017 after being told her dress was deemed “inappropriate” by the organisers.

Amirul also noted that tournament chief arbiter Chan Kwai Keong had handed the girl’s withdrawal letter to the tournament’s Appeals Committee.

Despite that, the schoolgirl’s coach Kaushal Khandhar highlighted the incident on Facebook on April 27 and the issue has escalated a few notches. As of today, his posting has been shared some 2,650 times.

Besides attacking Sophian on his own Facebook account, critics are now circulating a picture of him and calling for his removal as the MCF assistant secretary.

Amirul also said MCF was aware of the WhatsApp pictures and social media posts calling for the Sophian’s removal.

The Malaysian Insight learnt that the girl’s coach and mother have also hired lawyers but this could not be confirmed as both have refused to take calls or answer text messages. It was the coach who highlighted the issue on social media. 

Sophian has also hired a lawyer but has refused to comment as investigations are under way.

According to MCF, the 12-year-old chess player was not forced to withdraw from the tournament because of “indecent dressing” but had done so on her own accord.

It was reported that the girl was midway playing her game in the second round at the National Scholastic 2017 chess tournament held in Sekolah Sultan Alam Shah, Putrajaya, from April 14-16, when she was informed of her “inappropriate” dressing.

It was reported that the arbiters noticed that her skirt appeared too short when she was seated. After her match, she was asked to change before the next round the following day. The tournament, consisting of seven rounds, was played over three days.

Amirul had said while dress codes were a part of all internationally recognised chess tournaments, violations rarely, if ever, led to disqualifications.

Although there are no specific dress codes in chess competitions, arbiters or organiser may from time to time advise players on their attire or conduct. – May 2, 2017.