Magnus Carlsen and Ju Wenjun winners at Norway Chess tournaments

Credits: Norway Chess / Stev Bonhage

The final round of Norway Chess and Norway Chess Women tournament began with several scenarios that could play out to determine the winner of both tournaments. The final round led to several thrilling games played to fight for the first place.

Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana drew their classical game, meaning they had to continue to fight it out in an Armageddon game. Carlsen won the Armageddon tiebreak and with this win, Carlsen secured at least a share of first place in the tournament, having to wait for the result of the game between Hikaru Nakamura and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu. Nakamura was in a must-win situation, but the game ended in a draw. The 18-year-old chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa won the tiebreak game, finishing the tournament on a good note. It is noteworthy that Praggnanandhaa won important games against both world number 1 Carlsen and world number 2 Caruana in the tournament.

With these results, Carlsen has clinched his sixth Norway Chess title. This is a huge victory for the homecountry hero, as he had not played many classical tournaments recently.

In one of the critical games in Norway Chess Women, Anna Muzychuk, and Humpy Koneru, drew their game, which meant that Muzychuk’s chances of winning the tournament disappeared. In another game, the World Champion Ju Wenjun secured a win against the world championship challenger Lei Tingjie. With this win, Ju Wenjun made history by becoming the first winner of the inaugural Norway Chess Women tournament.

The last game of the tournament was between the young Indian talent Vaishali Rameshbabu and the legendary Pia Cramling. While Vaishali obtained a winning position at some point, it was Cramling who was pushing for a win in the endgame; however, the game ended peacefully. Cramling won the tiebreak game, finishing the tournament on a high note.

As the tournaments have come to an end, we congratulate winners of both tournaments, Magnus Carlsen and Ju Wenjun on their well-deserved win. This year, Norway Chess was bigger than ever, attracting a stellar lineup of competitors and delivering high-stakes excitement from start to finish. The addition of the Norway Chess Women tournament marked a significant milestone, highlighting the event’s growth and commitment to inclusivity in the sport.