Hikamura addressed speculation about his presence at the same hotel as Javokhir Sindarov and Bibisara Assaubayeva in Cyprus. The American grandmaster explained that tournament organizers provided all participants in the Candidates event with vouchers covering a week-long stay at the venue in Paphos. He emphasized that his decision to use the voucher at the same time as Sindarov was purely circumstantial.

Nakamura noted that his travel to the region was already planned before the hotel stay. He had attended a Chess.com event in Greece and decided to extend his trip to Cyprus afterward. His proximity to the area made using the provided voucher a natural choice, though he estimates that many other players and their teams will opt not to use their complimentary weeks.

The American grandmaster made clear that he maintained professional distance from Sindarov during their overlap. Although Nakamura saw Sindarov and his entire team at the hotel, including at meals, he refrained from engaging in training games or offering advice. Nakamura felt it inappropriate to interfere with Sindarov's preparation without an explicit invitation.

Nakamura noted the irony that another prominent player did not make the trip despite being in the region. A gambling conference was occurring simultaneously at the same location, featuring involvement from companies connected to that player's sponsor. This confluence of events represented a missed opportunity for additional chess activity during the period.