Safer Play Initiative

Chess should be a safe and inclusive place for everyone. To work further towards this goal, our commission has paired up with the Women In Chess Foundation, a non-profit organization.

We will cooperate with the Women in Chess Foundation on two projects: the in the creation of a Safer Play Policy and the Advocates Initiative.

Safer Play Policy
The ECU Fair Play Guidelines have been updated to encompass both fair play and safer play principles. You can find the full guidelines here: https://www.europechess.org/regulations/tournament-regulations/european-fair-play/

Key updates include:

Clear Definition of Violations: Sexual harassment and assault are now explicitly defined as violations of Fair Play.
Established Complaint Procedures: The guidelines introduce clearly defined complaint pathways, procedures, and sanctions to address incidents effectively.
Support from Trained Advocates: In cases involving sexual harassment or assault, a trained and certified Safer Play Advocate can be consulted by the Ad-Hoc Ethics Tribunal to ensure proper handling and support.

The Advocates Initiative
The Advocates Initiative of the Women In Chess Foundation aims to provide independent advocates at chess tournaments to create a safer environment and support any players who may need it. Advocates are trained to identify and respond to potential safety issues, as well as provide emotional support and resources to players who may be experiencing harassment, discrimination, or other forms of mistreatment. The idea of having advocates on-site is to foster a more inclusive and supportive community for all players, and promote the values of respect and fair play in the game of chess. More information on advocates and the initiative can be found here.

Cooperation with the ECU Federations
The Advocates Initiative of the Women In Chess Foundation aims to provide independent advocates at chess tournaments to create a safer environment and support any players who may need it. Advocates are trained to identify and respond to potential safety issues, as well as provide emotional support and resources to players who may be experiencing harassment, discrimination, or other forms of mistreatment. The idea of having advocates on- site is to foster a more inclusive and supportive community for all players, and promote the values of respect and fair play in the game of chess.

We as ECU women commission, have offered each federation the possibility to to train advocates for free (funding pas provided by the ECU). To date, we have trained over 30 advocates from across just under 20 different federations.

List of ECU acknowledge advocates

Name Federation

Mane Adamyan Armenia

Denise Trippold Austria

Sophie Maquoi Austria

Geert Bailleul Belgium

Maria Anna Stefanidi Cyprus

Mark Bryan Cyprus

Venuše Souralová Czech

Triin Narva Estonia

Johanna Paasikangas Finland

Anna Savilov France

Lilli Hahn Germany

Emmilie König Germany

Lars Drygajlo Germany

Tatiana Flores Germany

Tania Karali Greece

Vera Avramidou Greece

Vasiliki Papageorgiou Greece

Jon Hill Gurnsey

Klára Kovács Hungary

Tamas Gyomber Hungary

Johanna Bjorg Johannsson Iceland

Marco Biagioli Italy

Dominique Dervieux Monaco

Luciano Rietter Portugal

Mariana Silva Portugal

Margarida Coimbra Portugal

Liana-Nicoleta Szabó Romania

Cosma Elena Luminita Romania

Marija Lukic Serbia

Zuzana Paverova Slovakia

Eva Repkova Slovakia

Zilgme Eglite Sweden

Finding an advocate

Would you like to talk to someone about something you experienced at a chess tournament or related event? To get partnered with an advocate feel free to reach out to us at womenecu@gmail.com

All information given to provided will be treated strictly confidential and is never shared with anyone outside of our organisation.