Magnus Carlsen suffered a shock defeat to long-time second GM Laurent Fressinet but roared back to secure qualification for Division I in the Champions Chess Tour’s upcoming Aimchess Rapid event. Joining Carlsen in the top tier will be Levon Aronian, Wesley So, and the Venezuelan-born Spanish Eduardo Iturrizaga who all progressed through a challenging Swiss event before winning their respective rapid matches against other top-eight finishers.
The new generation of chess stars is here, with no fewer than nine players aged 19 or younger rated above 2650 at the time. In a 7-part series, we will look at the performances of the top juniors in 2022. Let us start with the clear leader of the pack, Alireza Firouzja. | Find here analysis of a remarkable victory by Firouzja, annotated by Romain Edouard. | Photo: Grand Chess Tour / Lennart Ootes
The SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz tournament, the third event in this year’s Grand Chess Tour, kicked off Wednesday in Zagreb. Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi, the contenders of the last World Championship match, were paired up against each other in the first round and drew their game. Once the day’s action was over, Alireza Firouzja emerged as the sole leader with 5 out of 6 points (wins are worth 2 points in the rapid section). | Photo: Lennart Ootes