Wearing jeans now fine, FIDE tweaks dress code for Grand Swiss events

Remember Magnus Carlsen’s 'jeansgate' saga when he quit the FIDE World Rapid Championship midway earlier this year? Well, a ban on chess players wearing jeans may be a thing of the past as world governing body FIDE has now eased the dress code at the upcoming Grand Swiss and Women’s Grand Swiss tournaments in Samarkand, Uzbekistan from Wednesday.

 A FIDE statement on Friday said: “Appropriate jeans are now permitted as part of the official dress code. This change offers players more comfort and freedom of choice, while ensuring that the overall appearance of the event remains professional and respectful.”

Five-time world champion Carlsen is unlikely to play in the Grand Swiss event, but the revised FIDE rules mean others will be allowed to play wearing “non-distressed jeans” in three colours: blue, black, and grey.

A photo of the chess ace walking out in a huff from the World Rapids venue in a pair of jeans after being fined had gone viral, and the Norwegian stoked the fire further by singling out FIDE vice-president Viswanathan Anand for blame. Incidentally, the world no. 1, who said he quit the event as a ‘matter of principle’, sold that particular pair of jeans for roughly Rs 31 lakh ($36,100) in an online auction on eBay.

Explaining FIDE’s stance in an interview with Indian Express, Anand said they took the decision after consultations with multiple players and that the climate in Samarkand was a factor. “It is still a hot summer there, so we didn’t want to be too strict with formal suits, allowing players to be comfortable. This is also the longest possible time control, so comfort is the top priority,” Anand said.

Asked if, given a choice between jeans and a formal suit, what he would choose to wear for a classical tournament, Anand said he would “not mind playing in jeans occasionally”.

Arjun Erigaisi, one of the top seeds at the Grand Swiss tournament, welcomed the idea and said he would wear jeans at Samarkand. “Sometimes, the laundry doesn’t come back on time. So having jeans as an option to wear is definitely convenient for the players,” Arjun said. “I like wearing jeans, of course with a blazer.”

The tweaked dress code for the Grand Swiss events also opens the doors for FIDE allowing players to play in jeans at other events like the FIDE World Cup, to be hosted by Goa later this year.

The Grand Swiss events will see the top brass of Indian chess compete: world champion D. Gukesh, R. Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and Divya Deshmukh will lead the 15-strong Indian contingent in the open section which will feature 116 players. In the Women’s Grand Swiss event, the four from India are Koneru Humpy, Vaishali Rameshbabu, Harika Dronavalli and Vantika Agrawal.