Indian chess ace Harika among players who were sent sexually abusive mail

Indian chess ace Dronavalli Harika was among the several players who were allegedly sent sexually abusive mail during an event in Latvia in November last year.

The Indian Grandmaster, ranked 11 in the world, said she was not aware of it until the last day and that the organisers of the Grand Swiss tournament in Riga and the FIDE (international chess federation) handled the issue efficiently.

“…there is a letter sent on my name in Riga which I wasn’t aware of until the last day. Not to cause any kind of disturbance, FIDE held the issue until the last day and handed over the letters to police.

“I was informed on the last day about the issue and I handed over the legal case to FIDE,” Harika told PTI.

She further said she did not open the letter nor did she face any problem.

“Neither I opened the letter nor faced any kind of problem. Riga organisers and FIDE handled the issue really efficiently,” she added.

On its part, FIDE said it took action when the letters were received during the event and it was reported to the police in Latvia which is investigating.

“FIDE took action when letters were received during the Grand Swiss tournament in Riga. We reported it to the police right away on behalf of the players, to minimize distractions to them. We can confirm that the Latvian Police took it seriously and it is actively investigating,” FIDE said.