Chinese Chess Champ Defecates In Hotel Bathtub After Win, Stripped Of Title

The world of Chinese chess is in turmoil following rumors of cheating and a scandal involving inappropriate behavior. The national champion was stripped of his title on Monday after a victory celebration took a bizarre turn, culminating in him defecating in a hotel bathtub.

Xiangqi, or Chinese chess, has been hugely popular for hundreds of years across Asia -- and 48-year-old Yan Chenglong beat dozens of contenders last week to win the title of "Xiangqi King" at a national tournament hosted by the Chinese Xiangqi Association (CXA).

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What happened?

Yan was awarded ?10,991 after defeating contenders at the Chinese chess competition final in Hainan Province on 17 December. However, things got ugly and how.

The CXA on Monday announced that Yan would have his title revoked and prize money confiscated after had been caught "disrupting public order" and displaying "extremely bad character".

The association was also forced to address rumours circulating online that Yan had cheated during the competition by using anal beads equipped with wireless transmitters to send and receive signals.

How did he cheat?

Yan allegedly clenched and unclenched rhythmically to communicate information about the chess board via code to a computer, which then sent back instructions on what moves to make in the form of vibrations, according to reports circulating on the Chinese social site Weibo.

The association said that Yan drank with others on the evening of 17 December and excreted in the bathtub the next morning, according to state media Global Times.

His behaviour "damaged the hotel's property, violated the public order and good customs and caused a negative impact on Chinese chess", CXA said. "Based on our understanding of the situation, it is currently impossible to prove that Yan engaged in cheating via 'anal beads' as speculated on social media," the CXA said.

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Earlier, the CXA had published a social media post congratulating Yan and other players for their "spectacularly heated high-level gameplay". The post included a photo of Yan on stage, flanked by two runners up, proudly holding up his prize certificate.

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