The Chinese chess world has once again broken out in a fake chess scandal! Following last year's world No. 1 Wang Tianyi was banned for life for buying and selling chess games, three top players: Zheng Weitong, Zhao Xinxin, and Wang Yang were also banned for life by the Chinese Chess Association on the 12th Beijing time for involving match-fixing chess transactions.

Zheng Weitong (middle) and Zhao Xinxin (left) won the gold and silver medals in Hangzhou Asian Games chess.

According to the "China Review News Network", Zheng Weitong and Zhao Xinxin won the gold and silver medals in the individual competition respectively at the Hangzhou Asian Games, and helped the Chinese team win the team gold medal together with Wang Yang. The trio were once the best in the chess world, but now they are banned forever for violating the rules.

The ban was not limited to Zheng Weitong, Zhao Xinxin and Wang Yang, and 41 players were banned for different years, which once again hit the image of Chinese chess.

Since April 2023, the exposure of audio recordings of suspected fake chess players has led to investigations. The Chinese Chess Association said that it will continue to severely punish all violators in accordance with laws and regulations, and stressed that it will take a zero-tolerance attitude to eliminate unhealthy trends in the industry.