– I was very shocked. It was very sad reading. Ellen Carlsen tells news that she is shocked by the experiences chess player Jennifer Shahade recently shared on social media. In a long post, the American took a strong stand against a high-profile, male chess player in the international community. Shahade claims, among other things, that she and several others have experienced harassment and inappropriate behavior from those involved. Carlsen says she has known the person since she was 15-16 years old, and met him several times over the years. – It is an incredible shame if it is true, she says and points out that the events with the person are not familiar to her. That shoulder is currently under investigation for sexual misconduct, according to Chess.com. In a reply to the website, he says that he cannot comment on the debts as they are now being investigated. According to Chess.com, he nevertheless points out: – I fully cooperate with both requests and look forward to the opportunity to answer these debts and share my side of the story. SIBLINGS: Ellen Carlsen has been a great support player for brother Magnus over several years. She herself actively played chess. Photo: Mads Nyborg Støstad/NTB scanpix / news Sent messages Shortly after Shahade’s post, Carlsen, who is the older sister of Norway’s chess star Magnus, took to Twitter to share her experiences around the topic. “It is not okay and normal for adults to contact minors by phone/SMS/ unless there is a clear practical connection to the tournament,” she wrote. In this interview with news, the former chess player shares his own, personal and uncomfortable experiences from chess at home in Norway. Carlsen says that at the time she understood little, but later realized that it was not right. It must have been regular phone calls and messages from an elderly man. – When you are a young person, you think that it is your own fault or that you have behaved in a way that makes the person think we should be friends. That responsibility should lie with an adult – that you should not contact a young person at all. It’s not okay. She says that chess is one of the few arenas where children and adults compete against each other and are equal across the board. She then points out that it is extra important that the division is also clear between parties. Carlsen himself stopped playing active chess in his mid-20s. CHESS FAMILY: Ellen, here together with sister Ingrid and father Henrik Carlsen. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB – It wasn’t what made me quit, but it made it less tempting to take part in events in Norway. Send notice Shahade’s post made Carlsen decide to take action and report her own experiences. Last month, he sent a notice in the notification portal to the Norwegian Chess Federation. – It was primarily so that you can look at the routines in such a way that you prevent it from happening in the future. If I have experienced it, then surely many others have too. “Who do you contact if this happens?”, she has asked herself. news has previously clarified the topic and last year spoke to several young Norwegian chess players who said they had stopped playing chess on the basis of what they described as a harassing and exclusionary culture in the sport. The Swedish chess star Anna Cramling has also taken a strong stand against the problem. – Should have done it a long time ago In 2022, the Norwegian Chess Federation and the Youth Chess Federation set up a joint notification portal and adopted joint ethical guidelines for Norwegian chess. The association informed news that it had set up a notification committee to make it easier to report cases. Kristine Marie Ganz took up the role of general secretary of the Norwegian Chess Federation in June 2022 and confirms to news that during her time they should have received one notice of what is going on with unwanted attention. It must have concerned an incident several years ago, without wanting to go into detail about what it entails. Nor will she confirm whether it is Ellen Carlsen who is responsible for the notice. Carlsen is now happy that they have set up a notification system and wants even more people to register and use the service, if they experience something similar. – I should have done it a long time ago. You may have a feeling that you have done something wrong yourself. This happened to me even though we had only analyzed one batch together, which is in no way extraordinary. – When you can feel your own shame in such a case, it goes without saying that there may be many young people out there who do not dare to report or who are unsure whether what they have experienced is inappropriate, she continued. Nevertheless, Carlsen points out that action should have been taken much earlier. – Therefore, it is an incredible shame that a few such isolated incidents can destroy so much. She will also praise chess and finally points out that the chess federation and the organizations are largely based on voluntary work. The 34-year-old therefore believes that it can be difficult to identify areas of deficiency that also require follow-up, and to achieve continuity in preventive work over time. – But precisely because so much is volunteer-based, it is all the more important to make it as easy as possible for organisers, clubs and trainers to have good routines.
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Ellen Carlsen sends harassment notice – shocked after shocking posts – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
