What is behind reports that Xiangqi champion Wang Tianyi has been released from prison?

Reports that former xiangqi champion Wang Tianyi has been released from prison have spread across Chinese social media, prompting excitement among fans. But the information remains unverified, and reliable material cited in the reports does not support the claim.

The confusion appears to have come mainly from videos and posts on Baidu, Huya and xiangqi-focused accounts. One video carried a title about “Wang Tianyi’s life after leaving prison,” a formulation that easily led viewers to believe he had been freed. A WeChat account also claimed that Wang had received a pardon in July, but said the information had not been made public.

No major Chinese news outlet has confirmed the alleged pardon. Reports from Economic Observer and Gansu Daily instead said Wang may not complete his sentence until January 23, 2027. He was detained for investigation on April 23, 2024, and later received a sentence of two years and nine months. Chinese law allows time spent in pretrial detention to be deducted from a prison term.

Wang was convicted in the match-fixing scandal that followed the 2023 “recording gate” case. The Chinese Xiangqi Association later found that Wang and Wang Yuefei had bought and sold games and manipulated results over a long period and at high frequency. Wang received a lifetime competition ban and lost all of his technical titles, including the grandmaster designation.

At his May 9, 2025 trial in Hangzhou’s Shangcheng District People’s Court, prosecutors accused Wang of buying 22 games for a total of 942,000 yuan and accepting 116,000 yuan in two cases involving the sale of games. He pleaded guilty and accepted a sentence of two years and nine months, plus a fine. Despite the scandal, he remains a closely followed and admired figure in the xiangqi world, which helps explain the excitement surrounding the unconfirmed release reports.