Magnus Carlsen wins 4th Norway Chess

“I came away with absolutely everything I could have hoped for,” said Magnus Carlsen after winning Norway Chess for a 3rd year in a row and a 4th time in total. He did it with another Armageddon win over his World Championship Challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi, who called his own performance “completely disgusting”. Alireza Firouzja took 2nd place for a 2nd year in a row with a stunning win over Richard Rapport that completed a 4-game winning streak. It was a tough end for Richard, but left both in the World Top 10 for the 1st time in their careers.

Going into their final day clash Magnus, who had won his last four classical games in a row, knew that a draw in the first game against Nepo and a win in Armageddon would guarantee him at least a playoff for 1st place. For Ian, meanwhile, there was nothing to hope for in terms of the tournament — his one win, two losses and seven draws left him out of the battle for the top places.

That didn’t stop it being a tense struggle in classical chess, with both players not hiding the fact that they wanted to be solid, though Ian, with the white pieces, could allow himself the more ambitious goal of applying some pressure at no risk to himself. After another little dance with the ceremonial opening move…

See also:

• Official website
• Norway Chess games with computer analysis and live commentary on chess24
• Firouzja-Carlsen in Norway Chess, Nepo late arrival
• Norway Chess 1: Carlsen beats Firouzja as Rapport enters Top 10
• Norway Chess 2: Nepo beats Firouzja with King’s Gambit
• Norway Chess 3: Magnus and Nepo scrape wins before showdown
• Norway Chess 4: Carlsen gets to torture Nepomniachtchi
• Norway Chess 5: Karjakin takes down Carlsen
• Norway Chess 6: Carlsen storms back to beat Firouzja
• Norway Chess 7: Carlsen, Rapport and Firouzja all win
• Norway Chess 8: Carlsen hunts down Rapport
• Norway Chess 9: Carlsen wins a 4th in a row, Firouzja enters Top 10