In an interview with Vita Kravchenko, the 12th world champion Anatoly Karpov shared his views on chess player Alexandra Kostyuk, who changed her Russian sports citizenship to Swiss and criticized her homeland. Karpov quotes his words “Sports Express”.
“Didn’t Russia help him when he wasn’t a champion yet? Russia helped him from beginning to end. He was lucky when he became world champion; He played against a tired chess player in the final. But that’s not even what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the financial side of the matter. Now he has become world champion and apparently his position has changed,” said Karpov.
Explaining the reasons that pushed him to change his sports citizenship, Kosteniuk said that “they use his name” in Russia. The athlete emphasized that he did not deny that Russia was his country, but only “geographically”. At the same time, Kosteniuk admits that he is not sure of the correctness of his decision, which became for him not only “a kind of protest”, but also an escape. He stated that he was taught that it was not right to leave the country in difficult moments.
Kosteniuk acquired Swiss citizenship through his first marriage; her husband was Swiss. Despite this, he continued to play for the Russian national team, but due to FIDE’s sanctions against Russian chess players, he was forced to participate in competitions under the flag of the international federation.
Media reported that Kosteniuk will only be able to play for Switzerland from January 1, 2024. The athlete himself had previously admitted that he did not want to break ties with Russia. For him, Russia is the roots that he cannot erase from his life.
Former MP Svetlana Zhurova accepted The return of athletes who changed their sports citizenship.
Source: Gazeta
Gregory Robert is a sports aficionado and a writer for “Social Bites”. He provides in-depth coverage of the latest sporting events and trends, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the world of sports.