Kirill Serhiyovych Shevchenko (; born 22 September 2002) is a Ukrainian

chess grandmaster Grandmaster (GM) is a title awarded to chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain. Once achieved, the title is held for life, though exceptionally the t ...

suspended by FIDE for cheating currently playing for Romania.

Chess career

Born in 2002, Shevchenko earned his

international master FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...

title in 2016 and his grandmaster title in 2017, at the age of 14 years 10 months. In February 2018, he competed in the

Aeroflot Open The Aeroflot Open is an annual open chess tournament organised through the joint efforts of the Chess Federation of Russia and the Russian Ministry of Sport with the sponsorship from the Russian flag carrier, Aeroflot. It is played in Moscow, ho ...

and finished 51 out of 92, scoring 4½/9 (+2–2=5). In March 2018, he competed in the

European Individual Chess Championship The European Individual Chess Championship is a chess tournament organised by the European Chess Union. It was established in 2000 and has since then taken place on a yearly basis. Apart from determining the European champions (open and women's) ...

and placed 32nd, scoring 7½/11 (+6–2=3). In November 2021, Shevchenko won the Lindores Abbey Blitz tournament in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

, Latvia. He finished clear first on 14/18, half a point ahead of

Fabiano Caruana Fabiano Luigi Caruana (born July 30, 1992) is an Italian and American chess grandmaster who is the reigning four-time United States Chess Champion. With a peak rating of 2844, Caruana is the third-highest-rated player in history. Born in Mia ...

and

Arjun Erigaisi Arjun Kumar Erigaisi (born 3 September 2003) is an Indian chess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, he earned the title of grandmaster at the age of 14 years, 11 months, 13 days. In September 2024 he became India's top rated player, and in December 2 ...

. Later in the month, he represented Ukraine at the

European Team Chess Championship The European Team Championship (often abbreviated in texts and games databases as ''ETC'') is an international team chess event, eligible for the participation of European nations whose chess federations are located in zones 1.1 to 1.9. This more ...

. He played on board 4, scoring 4½/8 (+1–0=7), as Ukraine won gold.

Controversies

On 14 October 2024, he was expelled from the Spanish Team Championship after being accused of cheating by using his mobile device in his games against

Francisco Vallejo Pons Francisco Vallejo Pons (born 21 August 1982) is a Spanish chess grandmaster. He is a five-time Spanish Chess Champion. He achieved the Grandmaster title at the age of 16 years and 9 months. He won the under-18 World Chess Youth Championship ...

and

Bassem Amin Bassem Amin (; born 9 September 1988) is an Egyptian chess grandmaster and medical doctor. He was awarded the Grandmaster title by FIDE in 2006. Amin is the highest rated Egyptian and African player and the only medical doctor to have a FIDE pea ...

. His victory against Vallejo and draw against Amin were both changed to losses. Following the incident, Shevchenko was suspended by

FIDE The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( , ), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national chess federations and acts as the Spor ...

for 75 days, ending one day after the World Blitz Championship. In December 2024, Shevchenko's

Chess.com Chess.com is an internet chess server and social networking website. One of the largest chess platforms in the world, the site operates on a freemium model in which some features are available for free, and others are available via subscription ...

account was banned for violating the platform's Fair Play Policy. In March 2025, Shevchenko was given a three-year suspension relating to his October 2024 cheating incident, with one year suspended, making him eligible to play again after 18 October 2026.FIDE EDC Chamber decision on the incident involving GM Kirill Shevchenko

, 26 March, 2025 This makes him the highest-rated player to have been suspended for cheating.

References

External links

* * * 2002 births Living people Chess Grandmasters Chess players from Kyiv Ukrainian chess players Romanian chess players Ukrainian emigrants to Romania Naturalised citizens of Romania Cheating in chess {{Ukraine-chess-bio-stub Chess Olympiad competitors