Iranian Chess Player Refuses to Play Israeli

By Forward Staff October 27, 2011

A top Iranian chess player was booted from an international tournament when he refused to play against an Israeli.

Iranian grandmaster Ehsan Ghaem Maghami, was supposed to play Israel’s Ehud Shachar in the fourth round of the Corsica Masters, after a computer drew the two against one another, The New York Times reported.

Tournament director Leo Battesti said Maghami cannot choose to avoid the five Israelis out of the 186 players in the competition.

“I told him, you cannot involve your rules in my tournament,” he said.

Iranian athletes and teams often try to avoid competing against Israelis, with mixed results.

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