The chess world’s triple French threat
During the 2010 FIDE (International Chess Federation) Olympiad Tournament held in Russia, chess officials alleged that a trio of Frenchmen were involved in a chess cheating scheme. According to reports from that time, the French Chess Federation alleged that grandmaster Sebastien Feller, alongside compatriots Cyril Marzolo and Arnaud Hauchard were all involved in a rube goldberg-esque operation to help the chess master cheat during his games.
The French federation alleged Marzolo would watch the games online and use chess software to give Feller the next best possible move. Marzolo would then send “coded” texts to Hauchard. Then, this third accomplice would sit at a specific table in the competition hall, where each individual table represented a square on the board, indicating where Feller should put his next piece.
All three were suspended by the International Chess Federation. Although the trio originally denied the allegations, Marzolo eventually confirmed he was party to the scheme.
