Chinese chess champion suspended after defecating in hotel bathtub
A Chinese chess champion has been stripped of his title after defecating in a hotel bathroom following a tournament victory.
Yan Chenglong's victory at a xiangqi, or Chinese chess, competition was clouded by rumours he cheated using vibrating anal beads that can send and receive wireless signals.
A report in China's Global Times said there was speculation he had defecated in the bathtub to get rid of the cheating device.
But the Chinese Xiangqi Association (CXA) said it was impossible to prove whether he was cheating.
Still, the body stripped him of his title and prize money and suspended him for a year for damaging hotel property and violating "good morals".
The 48-year-old had been awarded 100,000 yuan (£11,000) in prize money, according to the Global Times.
He had reportedly been drinking and partying in his hotel room in China's Hainan Province on 17 December, the night of the competition.
Mr Yan denied the cheating allegations and blamed the incident on having diarrhoea, according to comments to Shangyou News reported by the Global Times.
Read more from Sky News:
Woman 'shot dead by brother in row over Christmas presents'
Toddler opens entire family's Christmas presents at 3am
The cheating allegations are not the first time the chess world has been rocked by claims an anal toy has been used to gain an unfair advantage.
Chess prodigy Hans Niemann was accused of using vibrating beads after beating world champion Magnus Carlsen - considered the greatest player of all time.
He denied the claims and launched a defamation case against Mr Carlsen and Chess.com, which published a report saying he had "likely" cheated in online games but found no evidence for in-person cheating.
