After losing his game of round 5 from the US Chess Championship, GM Christopher Yoo destroyed his scoresheet, stormed out of the playing hall, “and struck a videographer from behind”. The Saint Louis chess club and the organizers of the US Championship did not approve of the reaction of Christopher Yoo and expelled him from the US Championship.
More: 2024 US Chess Championship / US Chess Championship live / Round 5 video
Statement of the Saint Louis Chess Club
Reactions to Cristopher Yoo case
IA Chris Bird, Chief arbiter: “Today will go down as a very sad day in the history of US Chess Championships.” He added, “I’ve seen the video of the assault, on a female, not that it matters. For someone who purports to represent women in chess this is in really bad taste”
GM Ian Nepomniachtchi: “I don’t know all the details, but I think this decision is too harsh. Emotions (sometimes too strong and painful to handle) are an integral part of the game. It seems to me that the organizers and arbiters could be more lenient and limit themselves to the first and last warning.” Later he added, “Of course, if there’s even the slightest chance that he did it intentionally, then that changes things completely.”
FM Bomo Kigigha: “I hope this emulates other organizers to take stern action against players who can’t control their emotions after playing badly.”
Snorri Kristjansson: “You shall not pass!”
Marius Călin Chereches: “The whole story is bizarre. C. Yoo is a young player who got upset for losing the game he thought he would win at one point. Why don’t you simply penalize him on prize money? And all references to the arbiter touching him? Let us be normal human beings. PC will kill us one day.”
Michael Mkpadi: “It’s a weird one, if I was beaten by Fabiano Caruana I’d be framing that scoresheet and hanging it on my bedroom wall”
