Magnus Carlsen needed an Armageddon tiebreak yet again, but found a way to get past Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and reach the finals of the Opera Euro Rapid online chess tournament. The World Champion will take on Wesley So, who finished off Teimour Radjabov in their semifinal to advance. Carlsen Advances Despite […]
Tag: Magnus Carlsen
Magnus Carlsen Survives Day 2 Disaster, Advances to Opera Euro Rapid Semifinals
Magnus Carlsen lost two games in under 25 moves each, but still rallied to beat Daniil Dubov in an Armageddon tiebreaker and reach the semifinals of the Opera Euro Rapid online chess tournament. Carlsen will now face Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in a two-leg semifinal beginning on Thursday. Carlsen Squeaks Out Win […]
Opera Euro Rapid: Carlsen Qualifies First, Nakamura Falls Short of Knockout Rounds
Magnus Carlsen cooled down from his torrid pace over the first two days of the Opera Euro Rapid, but still qualified as the top seed heading into the quarterfinals of the online chess event. Carlsen started the tournament with a 7/10 score, then scored 2.5 points on the final day […]
Magnus Carlsen Looks to Regain Form as Opera Euro Rapid Begins on Saturday
Sixteen of the world’s top grandmasters will compete for a $30,000 first prize in the Opera Euro Rapid online chess tournament, with round-robin action starting on Saturday. World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen comes into the tournament as a +150 favorite to grab the title, according to Unibet, despite the Norwegian’s […]
Tata Steel Masters: Giri Maintains Lead Ahead of Saturday Showdown with Firouzja
Anish Giri held off World Champion Magnus Carlsen on Friday, doing enough to secure a draw and maintain his half-point lead at the Tata Steel Masters heading into a critical clash with Alireza Firouzja in Saturday’s penultimate round. Giri drew comfortably with Black against Carlsen, leaving him a half-point ahead […]
Anish Giri Takes Lead at Tata Steel Masters Heading into Final Rest Day
Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri defeated Radoslaw Wojtaszek on Wednesday to take the solo lead at the Tata Steel Masters, but three players are within a half-point of him with just three rounds left to play. Giri sits at 7 points after 10 rounds heading into Thursday’s final rest day in […]
Magnus Carlsen Grinds Out Critical Win, Caruana, Giri Grab Share of Lead at Tata Steel Masters
World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen methodically outplayed Swedish grandmaster Nils Grandelius on Tuesday to earn a much-needed win in Round 9 of the Tata Steel Masters. Carlsen struggled to find points in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands, having failed to win since a first-round victory over Alireza Firouzja. Three Tied for […]
Magnus Carlsen Suffers Shock Loss at Tata Steel Masters, Firouzja Claims Lead After 8 Rounds
Russian grandmaster Andrey Esipenko scored the biggest win of his young career on Sunday, stunning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen in the eighth round of the Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands. The 18-year-old Esipenko beat Carlsen in their first-ever classical chess meeting, thoroughly outplaying the Norwegian from […]
Tata Steel Masters: Four Share Lead as Carlsen Limps to Sixth Straight Draw
Five of seven games provided decisive results on Saturday in a bloody seventh round of play at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament. The results knocked Nils Grandelius out of the lead and left four players tied for first, while World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen continues to struggle to find points […]
Fabiano Caruana Aims for Back-to-Back Titles at Tata Steel Chess Tournament
The Tata Steel Chess Tournament stands as one of the most prestigious chess events in the world. For over 80 years, top grandmasters have traveled to Wijk aan Zee in the Netherlands to battle for one of the game’s true major titles. And while organizers have diminished the spectacle this […]
Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura Eliminated in Stunning Airthings Masters Quarterfinal Matches
Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura entered every online chess tournament of the COVID-19 era as the clear favorites to make the final. But neither will reach that stage at the Airthings Masters, as both grandmasters fell in shocking fashion in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Skilling Open champion Wesley So also […]
Airthings Masters: Carlsen, So, Nakamura Take Top Seeds Heading into Quarterfinals
The cream rose to the top during the preliminary rounds of the Airthings Masters, with World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, and Wesley So sitting tied for first during the round-robin portion of the tournament. Carlsen, So, and Nakamura each scored 6.5/11 in the preliminary rounds, enough to lead […]
Airthings Masters Delivers Christmas Cheer for Champions Chess Tour Fans
World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen, Speed Chess Championship winner Hikaru Nakamura, and Skilling Open winner Wesley So lead the field of 12 grandmasters who will compete in the Airthings Masters beginning on Dec. 26. The Airthings Masters is the second event and the first major of the Champions Chess Tour, […]
MVL Upsets Carlsen, Faces Hikaru Nakamura in Speed Chess Championship Final
French grandmaster Maxime Vachier-Lagrave pulled off a major upset in the Speed Chess Championship on Friday, defeating World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen 13-11 to reach the finals of the online blitz and bullet tournament. Vachier-Lagrave outscored Carlsen in both the five-minute and three-minute portions of the match, then held on […]
Magnus Carlsen Battles Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in Speed Chess Championship Semifinals
World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen returns to action on Friday when he’ll take on French grandmaster Maxime Vachier-Lagrave for the right to face Hikaru Nakamura in the Speed Chess Championship final. Nakamura booked his place in the final with a tight 13.5-12.5 win over fellow American Wesley So on Wednesday. […]
Carlsen, Nakamura Heavy Favorites in Speed Chess Championship Matches
Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen came into the Speed Chess Championship as the top two seeds and the prohibitive favorites to reach the final. On Thursday, both will get the chance to prove their dominance and move into the semifinals, though they’ll face dangerous Russian opponents gunning for upsets. Carlsen […]
Wesley So Upsets Magnus Carlsen in Final to Win Skilling Open
Magnus Carlsen won three of the four regular-season events on his namesake online chess tour earlier this year, along with the Grand Final. But Wesley So showed that it may not be as easy this time around, upsetting the World Champion to win the Skilling Open. After two days of […]
Skilling Open Final: Carlsen, So Battle for First Champions Chess Tour Title
Magnus Carlsen looks to continue his dominance of the online chess scene while Wesley So will attempt to put his stamp on the new Champions Chess Tour as the two world-class grandmasters face off in the final of the Skilling Open. Carlsen and So will battle in the first of […]
Skilling Open Semifinals: Carlsen Battles Nepomniachtchi, Nakamura Faces So
Hikaru Nakamura came back from down a set, and then again down a game in blitz tiebreakers to get past Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and advance to the semifinals of the Skilling Open online chess tournament. Nakamura moved on to face fellow American Wesley So, while World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen will […]
Skilling Open Quarterfinals: Carlsen, Nakamura Top Round Robin; Firouzja, Le Out on Tiebreaks
Alireza Firouzja lost his final two games on Tuesday to fall into a five-way tie for sixth place and miss out on the Skilling Open quarterfinals on tiebreaks, despite winning six games in the round-robin. Both Firouzja and Le Quang Liem missed out on qualification on eight points, the same […]