The Athletic profiled a landmark ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ordering the Russian Chess Federation to halt chess activities in occupied regions of Ukraine.
Covington partner Dave Pinsky, who served as chief advocate for the Ukrainian Chess Federation in the CAS proceedings, is quoted discussing both the practical and symbolic impact of the decision. “The practical effect is that the CFR (Chess Federation of Russia) cannot organize chess activities in the occupied regions,” said Dave. “But symbolically, it shows that no matter where the world’s attention shifts to, and no matter what the Kremlin thinks, these regions will not be considered part of the Russian Federation for the purposes of everyday life, for the things that people love — sports, culture, chess.”
Since the Russian occupation of Crimea in 2014, there has been almost 3,700 tournaments organized by the CFR on land which the UN General Assembly recognizes as Ukrainian. “It’s important contextually to note that at no point in this process has the CFR disputed that it held hundreds upon hundreds of chess activities in the occupied regions of Ukraine,” added Dave. “It wasn’t a technical violation.”
Dave concluded: “Ultimately, the decision stands for the proposition that no Russian sporting federation — whether chess, whether hockey, whether basketball, whether football — is permitted to organize their sports and regulate their activities in occupied regions of Ukraine.”
The Covington team is led by Dave Pinsky and includes Paris Aboro and Alex Gudko.
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