On September 2022, American grandmaster Hans Niemann faced off against Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen in the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis, Missouri. Niemann emerged victorious, but Carlsen accused him of cheating, triggering a major legal dispute between the two.
Last month, the pair reached a settlement in a $100 million (£79 million) lawsuit. Niemann, at the center of the controversy, vehemently denies using a vibrating sex toy for cheating purposes.



On Monday evening, Niemann spoke to Piers Morgan Uncensored about the scrutiny he has faced since being accused of cheating.
"It is very disheartening to be accused of cheating after that victory," he said.
"These things happen and I managed to learn a lot during that time and it really has taught me a lot of very important lessons about life and chess."
Speaking to Morgan, Niemann expressed his belief that the past year has only served to bolster his determination. He emphatically asserted to the host that he did not engage in any form of cheating.

Morgan went on to discuss the allegations that Niemann was receiving signals through a remote-controlled sex toy.
"To be clear, on the specific allegation – have you ever used anal beads while playing chess?" Morgan asked.
The 20-year-old replied: "Well, your curiosity is a bit concerning, you know – maybe you're personally interested, but I can tell you, no.
"Categorically, no, of course not."
Niemann also filed a lawsuit against the online platform Chess.com following an inquiry by the company, which asserted that he had "likely" engaged in cheating in over 100 online games.

While Niemann acknowledged that he had cheated on two occasions in online matches on Chess.com when he was 12 and 16, he vehemently denied doing so in the Sinquefield Cup or in any in-person game.
He then filed the defamation lawsuit in October 2022 against Carlsen, Chess.com, and Hikaru Nakamura, a US grandmaster who Niemann accused of "amplifying and attempting to bolster Carlsen's false cheating allegations".
That case was later dismissed, leading to out-of-court discussions to resolve the issue.
Last month, Chess.com said it stood by its report on Niemann, "including that we found no determinative evidence that he has cheated in any in-person games".

Carlsen, 32, said he acknowledged and understood the report, "including its statement that there is no determinative evidence" of wrongdoing by his rival.