There were no claims of anal beads vibrating in morse code or steel conkers hidden in his pockets, but chess grandmaster Kirill Shevchenko was kicked out of a tournament in Spain all the same: he allegedly used his mobile phone during a match. Shevchenko, ranked 69th in the world, roused suspicion after spending long periods away from the board. The device was found in a toilet cubicle with notes in handwriting similar to his own.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Silla – Integrant Col·lectius said it "rejects in the strongest and most blunt way whichever practice of illegal and/or illicit strategy used in an unsportsmanlike way to gain an advantage," adding that it had terminated its relationship with Shevchenko.
Romanian chess authorities said they're still waiting on "solid evidence" but made clear they're ready to cut him loose. Shevchenko denied the allegations of wrongdoing.
We have proven over the years that we take all anti-cheating rules very seriously and will continue to do so. We have had, have and will have zero tolerance for violations of fair-play rules! But such serious allegations must necessarily be backed up by solid evidence, and so far only circumstantial evidence has been made public.
Even with the radio off a cellphone can run Stockfish locally to a 3300 ELO standard—only 400 short of the most powerful hardware, 1000 points higher than Shevchenko plays at, and far stronger than even the top players.
