Zhu Jiner With 'Deep Anger And Frustration' After Dress Code Incident In New York
GM Zhu Jiner, the world's 10th highest-rated female player, has called out FIDE for giving her a fine for allegedly violating the dress code policy, claiming it disrupted her performance and contributed to her being knocked out of the 2024 Women's World Blitz Championship.
The 22-year-old Chinese grandmaster, who won bronze in the 2023 Women's World Blitz Championship, reached the knockout stage in 2024 and faced GM Vaishali Rameshbabu in the Quarterfinals on New Year's Eve. Zhu lost the match 2.5-1.5 and was eliminated from the tournament, which awarded her a $10,000 prize, while the champion GM Ju Wenjun cashed in $60,000.
In an open letter shared with Chess.com, Zhu says she was approached during the first game of the match and informed that her boots violated the dress code and she would be fined $200. The grandmaster is angry and frustrated by the decision, as she says she followed the official dress code policy, and should not have been penalized.
The actions of the FIDE officials during this crucial stage disrupted my performance, and as a result of this interference, I lost the match, missing the opportunity to advance to the semi-finals—a deeply unfortunate outcome.
According to Zhu, she had worn the same outfit during the Women's World Rapid Championship without any prior objections, adding:
As a player, I have always believed that the utmost respect for the rules and the players is essential. However, the way this official enforced the rules was neither fair nor respectful. The clothing I wore—a sweater, trousers, and boots—did not violate any official dress code guidelines. I wore these boots throughout the tournament without any objection from anyone. To suddenly face such interference in the middle of the match, especially when I was so close to reaching the semi-finals, is truly inconceivable
To suddenly face such interference in the middle of the match, especially when I was so close to reaching the semi-finals, is truly inconceivable.
—Zhu Jiner
Speaking to Chess.com, Zhu says the FIDE official and one other person, initially asked her to change both her trousers and shoes.
"When I pressed for the reason, he didn't mention my trousers again, and simply said that I could continue participating if I changed my shoes."
Zhu pointed out that FIDE’s dress code regulations for women allows for suits, dresses, trousers and... boots.
Suits, dresses, skirts, blouses, turtlenecks, shirts or polos, trousers or slacks, jackets, vests, sweaters, scarves, footwear (boots, flats, mid-heel or high-heel shoes), and jewelry (earrings, necklaces, etc.), as well as national costumes clothing (with prior approval from the FIDE Technical Delegate).
The 22-year-old says she was informed she would be fined $200 per game if she did not change her shoes, after initially being told she could only continue playing the match after changing shoes.
"Breaks between games during the knockout stage typically lasted around three minutes, and no more than five minutes. There would be little time to change shoes," she argued. It's not clear whether FIDE would allow Zhu extra time to change.
According to the decision, the footwear was ruled to be "inappropriate" as it was "laceless white winter or snow boots." Zhu provided Chess.com with a picture of them.
[Update: Chief Arbiter Alex Holowczak informed Chess.com after the publication of this story that neither he nor any of the arbiters were involved in the decision to fine Zhu, contradicting the Appeals Committee's statement. Instead, the responsibility at that point had been handed over to "special assistants."]
"I stopped arguing about it, I wanted to focus my energy on the chess during the tournament and minimize the impact of this incident on my game," she says. "When I was informed of the fine, it wasn’t just the end of a game—it came just minutes before the start of another one. This will definitely distract the player."
Zhu added, "They fine the players, but don't even have a clear understanding of their own rules. This is a completely wrong approach to treat players."
They fine the players, but don't even have a clear understanding of their own rules. This is a completely wrong approach to treat players.
—Zhu Jiner
Following the conclusion of the tournament, Zhu appealed the fine, and her appeal was accepted by the Appeals Commitee (led by FIDE Deputy President GM Viswanathan Anand) on January 7.
The Appeals Commitee votes to overturn the decision to fine GM Jiner and to issue a warning. This decision is consistent with actions taken against other players who received warnings for their clothing violations during the tournament.
Zhu is disappointed with the outcome, telling Chess.com: "They avoid the question about the fairness of the fine and did not respond to my request for an apology from the officials."
She added, “The problem isn’t just the fine being overturned, it’s that the officials' actions were thoughtless, disrespectful, and showed a lack of understanding of the players' needs and the rules. This is disrespectful to players."
The officials' actions were thoughtless, disrespectful, and showed a lack of understanding of the players' needs and the rules. This is disrespectful to players.
—Zhu Jiner
FIDE: 'No Time To Communicate Expectations'
Lukasz Turlej, FIDE's General Secretary, shared his response to Zhu's open letter with Chess.com. Turlej does not address Zhu's main points, but defends the dress code policy saying it encourages players to dress professionally. He noted that many players reach out in advance in order to make sure they are compliant with the standards:
We genuinely hope that the overall standard of dress will continue to improve from event to event. Not only does this reflect positively on the sport, but it also helps players enhance their marketability and secure better sponsorship opportunities in their home countries.
We understand that it was not possible to address this matter with you before the game, as you arrived very close to the start of the final matches. Unfortunately, this left no time for us to communicate our expectations directly beforehand.
Turlej confirmed that the fine has been replaced with a warning and that the matter is "considered resolved".
Sutovsky: 'Difficult To Avoid Similar Situations'
In response to Zhu's letter, GM Emil Sutovsky, FIDE's CEO, stated to Chess.com:
"We will examine it all closer, but there is an obvious need for a dress code at FIDE top events. We don't accept the narrative 'who cares what they dress to play chess,' he said, adding. “It is not just an open event. It is the World Championship, and yes, we expect players to respect that."
Sutovsky noted that the dress code was developed by players via FIDE’s Athlete’s Commission, and that players could have raised concerns prior to the event. "The issue is often used to picture FIDE as an outdated body that does not care about players… and that is unfair."
FM Joran Aulin-Jansson, FIDE Vice President, confirmed to NRK this week that FIDE will thoroughly assess the dress code policy for future events. Sutovsky, however, tells Chess.com: "Similar situations are difficult to avoid—unless it is totally restrictive or totally lifted—and FIDE won't opt for any of these approaches.”
Similar situations are difficult to avoid—unless it is totally restrictive or totally lifted—and FIDE won't opt for any of these approaches.
—Emil Sutovsky, FIDE CEO
Zhu’s experience is the latest in a series of dress code controversies during the World Rapid & Blitz Championships. In New York, GMs Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi were both fined for alleged dress code violations.
OOTD pic.twitter.com/9reOP6zuJv
— Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) December 28, 2024
Carlsen refused to change his attire and withdrew from both the rapid and blitz after he was fined $200 for wearing jeans, but then made a U-turn to rejoin the blitz after negotiations with FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich that relaxed regulations and allowed jeans and other "elegant minor deviations."
Dear participants of the World Blitz Championships in New York,
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) December 29, 2024
Let me begin by thanking all of you for your commitment to compete fairly and for bringing joy to millions of spectators all over the world.
It is my distinct pleasure to congratulate the winners, Humpy Koneru and… pic.twitter.com/8jHN3OD4aX
It's not the first time the policy has sparked debate in the chess world. In the 2023 World Rapid Championship, popular streamer and FM Anna-Maja Kazarian was fined $100 for "not complying with the official dress code."
One of the arbiters stopped me and asked me if I could change my shoes because they were “strange shoes” and considered “sports shoes”
— Anna-Maja Kazarian (@AMKazarian) December 27, 2023
It hurts to even walk in those and I definitely don’t want to use my Burberry sneakers for sports 🤨 pic.twitter.com/5OD1CwlbBt
Kazarian, like Zhu, noted the impact went far beyond the financial penalty, writing, "Besides my entire tournament being ruined by FIDE, I slept very poorly and had no appetite all day."
Tarjei J. Svensen is a Norwegian chess journalist who worked for some of the country's biggest media outlets and appeared on several national TV broadcasts. Between 2015 and 2019, he ran his chess website mattogpatt.no, covering chess news in Norwegian and partly in English.
In 2020, he was hired by Chess24 to cover chess news, eventually moving to Chess.com as a full-time chess journalist in 2023. He is also known for his extensive coverage of chess news on his X/Twitter account.
