Chess player Kosteniuk explained her refusal to play for Russia – Kommersant

Chess player Alexandra Kosteniuk, who changed her Russian sports citizenship to Swiss, said that she does not want Russia to use her sports successes. According to the athlete, she refused to compete for Russia due to disagreement with the actions of the country’s leadership.

“It sometimes seems to me that my decision to play under the Swiss flag is a kind of protest, but it is also an escape. I just couldn’t stand it, I couldn’t bear the horror, I couldn’t feel like I was part of it. And she said: that’s it, without me,” she said in an interview on the YouTube channel of blogger Vitya Kravchenko. The chess player noted that she had decided to no longer compete under the Russian flag against the backdrop of the military operation in Ukraine.

According to Alexandra Kosteniuk, she does not intend to live in Russia in the near future, but hopes to return to the country in the future. “I am not a traitor, because I love Russia very much, and I wish Russia all the best. I really want that some time later I can calmly go home, without fear of some strange affairs and patriots who will write a denunciation,” the athlete added.

Alexandra Kosteniuk announced her intention to stop performing under the Russian flag and obtain Swiss sports citizenship in March of this year. The athlete received national Swiss citizenship thanks to her first marriage; her husband was a Swiss citizen; Alexandra Kosteniuk did not refuse a Russian passport. Currently, the chess player is already participating in tournaments under the Swiss flag.

Alexandra Kosteniuk is a 12-time world chess champion, two-time Russian champion, European champion, three-time winner of the World Chess Olympiads as a member of the Russian national team. The chess player holds the title of grandmaster among men. In addition, she won the Swiss Chess Championship twice. In 2022, Alexandra Kosteniuk was recognized as the best chess player in the world according to FIDE.

Alexander Kislov