The eccentric king of chess says he is the victim of a US-led plot to topple him after a report by his own organisation claimed he has resigned.

Russian millionaire Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, whose presence has provoked a bitter cold war dividing the chess world, was reported to have stepped down from Fide, the game's governing body, on Sunday at the end of a federation board meeting in Greece.

But Russia's TASS news agency quoted Mr Ilyumzhinov as saying: "They wanted to oust me but it didn't work. I haven't signed anything and I'm not resigning.