Russian Chess Player Accused of Poisoning Rival

The world of chess has had some bizarro controversies of late. This one tops them all. A 40-year-old Russian player has been accused of poisoning a rival by smearing mercury on her chess board, reports NBC News. Surveillance video purports to show Amina Abakarova wandering into a mostly empty room where chess boards are set up and smearing mercury from a thermometer on the board where Umayganat Osmanova would soon be playing, per Chess.com. Osmanova sought medical assistance during her subsequent game after feeling nauseated and dizzy but has recovered.

Police detained Abakarova after reviewing the surveillance footage. "Like many others, I am perplexed by what happened," said Sazhid Sazhidov, sports minister in Dagestan, where the incident took place. "Now she will have to answer for her actions before the law." Abakarova was quoted in Russian media as saying she only wanted to knock her 30-year-old rival out of the tournament, not seriously injure her. Osmanova came back to take second place. (More chess stories.)