Whether it's Ukrainian peace negotiators or political opponents, no one poisons their rivals quite like the Russians do.
Seemingly unrelated, no one takes the game of Chess as seriously as the Russians.
But sometimes the two Russian pastimes cross paths, like this moment in a Russian championship chess tournament:
That's Amina Abakarova, who up until last week was number one in a women's chess match. However, last week her 30-year old rival, Umayganat Osmanova, pushed her into second place.
And in the video, you can see Abakarova breaking open a mercury thermometer and rubbing the heavy metal on Osmanova's pieces.
Liquid mercury from thermometers can be dangerous if touched with the skin, but the real danger is inhalation or in the worst case, swallowing the substance, which can be fatal.
Osmanova, the victim, said,
I still feel bad. In the first few minutes, I felt a lack of air and a taste of iron in my mouth. I had to spend about five hours on this board. I don't know what would have happened to me if I hadn't seen it earlier.
After the security footage was reviewed, Abakarova was arrested.
If she is found guilty of attempted poisoning, she faces up to three years in jail. The Russian Chess Federation has temporarily suspended her and, pending its own investigation, is likely to issue a lifetime ban from the game.
And of course, because she's Russian, Osmanova powered through and finished second in the tournament.
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