Grandmaster under fire after mocking chess player’s prayer

A BRITISH chess grandmaster has been caught in a row over Christianity after he mocked a rival’s religion.

Nigel Short, the only Briton ever to challenge for the world title, appeared to taunt Wesley So, the US champion, after an opening match loss at the Candidates tournament in Berlin.

Mr So, a Christian who prays before every match and thanks the Lord for his victories, got off to a bad start at the world championship play-off event on Saturday, losing in 33 moves to Fabiano Caruana, a fellow American.

Mr Short tweeted: “Congratulations to Fabiano Caruana on the first victory in the Berlin Candidates. The Lord deserted Wesley So today. Apparently, he didn’t pray fervently enough.”

The England international, who is an atheist, prompted an angry response from chess fans and was accused of being “hateful” and “classless”.

Mr Short defended his comments, saying: “Why hateful? This is a man who publicly credits all his victories to the Lord. There must be some logical explanation when he loses, mustn’t there?”

Responding to claims he failed to respect Mr So’s deeply held beliefs, Short added: “It may well be a dearly held belief, but that does not mean it is either sensible or worthy of respect, does it?”

Mr So has previously complained about the abuse he receives for his Christian beliefs. Writing in Christianity Today last year, he said: “People plead with me to at least keep quiet. They say thanking God publicly makes me look ridiculous.”