Chess-Carlsen puts meltdown behind him to win Norway Chess tournament
Chess great Magnus Carlsen recovered from his meltdown against world champion Gukesh Dommaraju last weekend to win the Norway Chess tournament on Friday.
The Norwegian world number one drew his last game against India's Arjun Erigaisi but it proved enough for him to finish on 16 points, half a point ahead of American Fabiano Caruana.
Indian Gukesh, who lost to Caruana in the final game, ended up third on 14.5 points.
"It's a huge relief after a day like this, a tournament like this," Carlsen said.
Last Sunday, Carlsen had Gukesh on the ropes for much of their game but his composure cracked under the pressure of a ticking clock and he committed a blunder that handed Gukesh a decisive advantage.
Carlsen slammed his fist on the table after the defeat before exchanging a quick handshake with Gukesh, apologising for his outburst and storming off.
"Obviously my struggles here have been well documented but at least I fought until the end," the five-time classical world champion, who did not defend his title in 2023 citing a lack of motivation, said.
"I'm not going to say that this tournament was my last (in standard chess) for sure, but I enjoy other forms of chess a lot more."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Independent Singapore
an hour ago
- Independent Singapore
Magnus Carlsen won 7th Norway Chess title after dramatic final round
Photo: Magnus Carlsen won the Norway Chess title for the seventh time after the unexpected turn of events during the competition. Carlsen made a strong comeback to secure a draw in a tough classical game against Arjun Erigaisi, and this result kept him out of reach of well-known rivals like D Gukesh and Fabiano Caruana. With this, he ensured his victory. Tournament highlights At the start of the final round, Indian Gukesh was only half a point behind Magnus Carlsen. Carlsen then faced Arjun Erigaisi, and following the first 34 moves, things were tough for the World No. 1. Erigaisi had then built a clearly better position and showed his sharp tactical skill. However, in just six moves, Carlsen turned the game around. With two knights and a rook, he gave a sudden counterattack and coordinated his pieces to challenge Arjun's king. Carlsen secured the draw through a three-fold repetition, enough to claim the title. Furthermore, the outcome could have gone to a tiebreak if Gukesh had drawn against Fabiano Caruana, which nearly happened. Caruana was winning on move 47 but blundered with a pawn push. Gukesh had a great chance to turn the game around, but on move 48, he made a mistake by using his queen to take a bishop and chose to promote a pawn to a queen. Caruana used this mistake to his advantage to trap Gukesh with a knight fork, which made Gukesh lose the game. With this, Gukesh missed out on the title, and also finished in third place, having Caruana overtaking him to finish second place. Here is the final standing at the end of the 2025 Norway Chess Tournament: Magnus Carlsen – 16 Fabiano Caruana – 15.5 D Gukesh – 14.5 Hikaru Nakamura – 14 Arjun Erigaisi – 13 Wei Yi – 9.5 In a social media post, Carlsen shared: 'Norway Chess and Norwegian football✔️✔️' Netizens flooded the post with praise, celebrating Magnus Carlsen's win. One wrote, 'Imagine being in your worst form ever and still end up winning the toughest classical tournament of this year!!! Aura of the god of chesssss, the greatest chess player everrr! GOAT Sven Magnus Carlsen 😭' Another said, 'Always the G.O.A.T. and the KING 👑 of chess.' A third chimed in, 'Congrats, No. 1. You showed exactly why you're at the top. You're not just a champion—you're a true inspiration.' On the women's side, Koneru Humpy missed out on winning the tournament when she failed to defeat world champion Ju Wenjun in the final round of the classical game. Anna Muzychuk took home the women's title, even after losing the Armageddon game to R Vaishali in the last round.
Straits Times
19 hours ago
- Straits Times
Norway dare to dream big again after a quarter century of heartbreak
Soccer Football - World Cup - European Qualifiers - Group I - Norway v Italy - Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway - June 6, 2025 Italy's Riccardo Orsolini in action with Norway's Antonio Nusa Lise Aserud/NTB via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NORWAY OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NORWAY. Soccer Football - World Cup - European Qualifiers - Group I - Norway v Italy - Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway - June 6, 2025 Norway's Erling Haaland scores their third goal Cornelius Poppe/NTB via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NORWAY OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NORWAY. Soccer Football - World Cup - European Qualifiers - Group I - Norway v Italy - Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway - June 6, 2025 Norway's Erling Haaland celebrates after the match Cornelius Poppe/NTB via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NORWAY OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NORWAY. After a quarter of a century of near misses and heartbreak, Norway's rout of Italy in their World Cup qualifier has reignited the country's hope of a return to international football's biggest stage. There was little doubt that Norway were the better team on Friday as they easily dominated Italy in Oslo, pushing on until the scoreboard read 3-0 and taking a big step towards next year's World Cup. For supporters of the Norwegian team, the result has sparked a glimmer of hope in hearts that have been broken many times over the past decades. Norway have not participated in an international football tournament since the European Championship in 2000, which was hosted in Belgium and the Netherlands. There have been many close calls since then, with the margins consistently going against the squad, but now there is a shift in attitude after Norway dominated against the four-times world champions. "I am 100% sure", former Norway, Denmark and Iceland coach Age Hareide told newspaper VG when asked if Norway would go to the World Cup. SOLID STATISTICS Norway are in pole position in Group I with nine points out of nine and a goal surplus of 10. Israel, Estonia and Moldova are the other nations in the group. The Football Meets Data statistics platform gives Norway a 77% chance of winning the group and qualifying directly for the tournament hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Key striker Erling Haaland, who put himself on the scoresheet against Italy, agreed with the statistics. "We are too good not to play in championships. I will play both the World Cup and the European Championship. Not to put pressure on myself but I will," he told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. While World Cup fever in Norway is reaching a point not seen since 1998, when Norway last participated, manager Stale Solbakken, wise from experience, is lowering expectations. "It is a coach's misfortune that I have to concentrate on the next match, so you can enjoy yourselves and ask those questions. I would have liked to say that it was 100% certain but I can't," he told reporters after Friday's game. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
19 hours ago
- Straits Times
Italy already fear missing yet another World Cup after Norway nightmare
Soccer Football - World Cup - European Qualifiers - Group I - Norway v Italy - Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway - June 6, 2025 Norway's Sander Berge hits the post as Italy's Gianluigi Donnarumma looks on Lise Aserud/NTB via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NORWAY OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NORWAY. Italy's World Cup qualification campaign has barely begun and already the country is worried about the shocking possibility of failing to reach the final tournament for a third consecutive time after a humiliating defeat by Norway. Norway already had two wins under their belt in Group I before Friday's match in Oslo, while Italy had yet to play, having been involved in the Nations League quarter-finals in March, losing out to Germany. A 2-1 defeat at the San Siro in the first leg left Italy chasing the tie in Germany and they found themselves 3-0 down at the break before staging a second-half comeback to salvage a draw, and some pride. It was the same story on Friday for Italy at the Ullevaal Stadium, at least as far as the opening act went. Norway roared into a 3-0 lead in the first half but this time there was no Italian fightback in a goalless second half. "Enough!" screamed the Gazzetta dello Sport front page on Saturday, after Italy suffered their third loss in a four-game winless run, with the newspaper adding that for Italy the "World Cup is already at risk". Next year's World Cup takes place in the United States, Canada and Mexico but in the two decades since Italy won the tournament for the fourth time, they have struggled to perform or, more recently, to even get there. Berlin 2006 seems a lifetime ago now, with Zinedine Zidane sent off for his head butt to Marco Materazzi's chest and Italy lifting the trophy after a penalty shootout win over France. The next two World Cups saw Italy exit at the group stage, and while they triumphed at Euro 2020, on either side of that success they missed out on the World Cup after playoff defeats to Sweden and North Macedonia. With Italy now playing catch-up and only the group winners qualifying automatically, La Repubblica's front-page headline "Azzurri humiliated in Oslo, the playoff nightmare returns" hints at the frightening possibilities ahead. Italy's loss came less than a week after Inter Milan's 5-0 mauling at the hands of Paris St Germain in the Champions League final and on both occasions the tired-looking losers were outclassed by a hungrier, more creative side. Italy manager Luciano Spalletti was spared following last year's dismal Euros but is now under real pressure and nothing but a convincing win at home to Moldova on Monday will do, with media and fans increasingly calling for a change of leadership. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
