Chess poisoning: CCTV captures Amina Abakarova smearing mercury on board to poison rival in Russia

A chess champion has been caught on CCTV smearing a board with mercury to poison her childhood rival before a match.

Amina Abakarova, 43, was filmed as she walked into the tournament hall in southern Russia, and took what appeared to be a vial out of her bag.

She went on to pour the contents of the vial – which turned out to be mercury – over a chess board and tried to conceal the liquid by wiping the board with a chess piece.

The board targeted by Abakarova was due to be played by Umayganat Osmanova, 30, with whom she is said to have been at odds for years.

Abakarova attacked her rival Ms Osmanova to take revenge for insulting her and her family, according to other competitors at the Dagestan Chess Championship in the city of Makhachkala.

Witnesses said that Abakarova had behaved suspiciously 20 minutes before the contest started, asking if the cameras were set up to record the games being played were working yet.

When she was told they were not, she decided to carry out her plan, glancing around to make sure no one was looking as she approached Ms Osmanova’s table.

But she did not realise the cameras had actually been switched on in the tournament hall ready for the event on August 2.

Ms Osmanova, who later sat at the table where the poison was, reportedly became dizzy and nauseous shortly after her game started.

She was taken to hospital with suspected mercury poisoning.

When the CCTV footage from the tournament was examined by a judge, the police were called.

Sazhid Sazhidov, Russia’s minister of sport, told the Telegraph he was ‘perplexed’ by Abakarova’s attack and that her motives are ‘incomprehensible’.

Russian police confirmed that an investigation has started under the charge of ‘inflicting bodily harm’.

Chess officials have stripped Abakarova of her title of Dagestan Chess Champion.

The Russian Chess Federation said it was considering banning her for life, but will wait for the result of the police investigation.