Chess grandmasters and other players said a secret online account has been found of world championship contender Ding Liren's preparation as he trails by a point in his match in Astana, Kazakhstan, against Russian-born Ian Nepomniachtchi.
When asked at a news conference about the leak at the end of the eighth game of the match on Thursday, Ding replied: "I don't know what you are referring to". Discussion on chess websites of the leak surfaced during Thursday's game.
Ding had the white pieces and gained an advantage going into the middlegame. Nepomniachtchi managed to find a way to draw and leads the 14-classical game match 4.5-3.5 points.
The first player to gain 7.5 points will win the match and a prize of €2 million (US$2.19 million). One point is awarded for a win and half a point for a draw.
Ding earned his spot after reigning champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway decided not to defend his title after 10-years of consecutive wins.
Ding would have used a burner account on the website Lichess.org to prepare for the match with his trainers, several players said. The account, created on Feb 14, features new opening ideas which Ding unveiled in the match.
Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura of the United States, one of the most widely followed leading players, said in a YouTube video on Thursday that he had "no doubt" the account was used by Ding for preparation, given certain moves he played against Nepomniachtchi.
Reuters could not independently verify the claims.
The world's leading players and even those who play competitively at lower levels rely on pre-game preparation in private to be ready to gain an advantage against their opponents.
"Ding has to deal with the fallout of his 'anonymous' pre-match training games being discovered online," chess publication Chess24 reported.