Chess: Carlsen Fights Off Gukesh In Zagreb As Chessfest Returns To Trafalgar Square

It looked arsenic if nan Carlsen era mightiness yet beryllium over. The Norwegian, 35, had conscionable mislaid his 2nd crippled successful a statement to India’s world champion, Gukesh Dommaraju, 19, who was connected a streak of 5 successive wins and starring nan Zagreb arena 3 points up of Carlsen. The game was for illustration their first successful Stavanger, wherever Carlsen had spoiled a winning position and images of his disappointment array listen went information nan world. “Now we tin mobility Carlsen’s domination,” said Garry Kasparov.

Except this clip nan sequel was different. The format changed from accelerated to blitz and Carlsen launched his ain eight-game unbeaten streak including a win against nan Indian teen utilizing “old man’s chess” pinch nary tactics, while Gukesh tailspun into a catastrophic tally of 1.5/9. An replacement explanation would beryllium that Carlsen reverted to nan style of Grind Like a Grandmaster, co-authored pinch England’s David Howell.

At nan extremity of nan SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz, portion of nan Grand Chess Tour sponsored from St Louis by nan billionaire Rex Sinquefield, Carlsen banked different $40,000 winner’s cheque, his 4th successful six starts successful Croatia. He scored 22.5/36, Wesley So (US) 20, Gukesh 19.5. There was a 3rd Gukesh v Carlsen game, but that proved a damp squib arsenic nan brace opted for a well-known drafting statement successful nan Ruy Lopez Berlin.

3890 Adithya Vaidyanathan v GM Peter Wells, Cambridge Open 2025. White (to play) had a aureate chance to conclusion nan grandmaster, but missed nan triumph and had to resign conscionable 2 moves connected from nan diagram.

Overall, it remains a successful 2025 for Carlsen, who achieved his sixth successive tourney triumph of nan twelvemonth pursuing nan Chessable Masters, nan Paris Freestyle Grand Slam, nan Grenke Freestyle Open, nan Chess.com Classic and Stavanger.

“When cipher other has a awesome performance, my B-game is usually enough” said Carlsen. “It was a reasonably moreover tourney overall, and cipher could break distant from nan pack. It doesn’t consciousness for illustration I’ve won really. It feels for illustration I conscionable came, played alright, and cipher other did thing special.”

Meanwhile, nan humble Gukesh continues to meditate astatine nan commencement of each crippled and to emphasise that he is still moving continuously successful self-improvement.

Carlsen has different issues. Next week astatine Wynn Las Vegas is nan 3rd of 5 tournaments successful nan $3.5m Freestyle Grand Slam, nan bid based connected random starting positions for each game. In a qualifier for nan last place, Carlsen’s arch-rival, Hans Niemann, unexpectedly won through.

The adjacent limb of nan Grand Slam was planned for Delhi, but it has been cancelled owed to a deficiency of section sponsors. In a simultaneous announcement, Jan Henric Buettner, nan German entrepreneur who has been nan nationalist look of Freestyle, resigned arsenic its main executive and will beryllium replaced by Thomas Harsch. This whitethorn raise questions astir whether Freestyle’s run to summation wider acceptance successful nan chess organization is faltering.

More specifications person been released of Sunday’s free 11am-7pm ChessFest successful Trafalgar Square, for which nan upwind forecast is basking and sunny. You and your children tin play blitz aliases simultaneous games against England’s starring grandmasters, location will beryllium surviving chess pinch quality pieces, a transatlantic prodigy match, puzzle contests, free tuition for chess novices, and overmuch more. Fuller details are besides disposable for different ChessFests successful Portishead connected Saturday, Hull connected Sunday, and Liverpool connected 20 July.

English world tourney victories these days are rare, truthful it is thing to observe for illustration London buses erstwhile 2 travel on astatine once. The 2022 British Champion, Harry Grieve, won nan Vitoria-Gasteiz Open successful Spain, scoring an unbeaten 7.5/9 to separator 2 others connected tie-break and winning a overmuch admired bishop endgame. Meanwhile, astatine nan South Wales International successful Bridgend, nan Kent IM Aaravamudhan Balaji, 21, outpaced respective different GMs and IMs to triumph first prize pinch an unbeaten 8/9.

The Fide Women’s World Cup is nether measurement successful Batumi, Georgia, It qualifies 3 players for nan 2026 Women’s Candidates, truthful has a beardown entry. There person already been immoderate shocks. Aleksandra Goryachkina, 1 of nan favourites, mislaid her first crippled while nan USA’s Irina Krush hung her queen successful an all-US conflict pinch Carissa Yip. Unfortunately, location are nary British entrants. The arena tin beryllium followed regular on lichess.

3980 1 Bxd6! If 1…Qxd6 2 Re8+ Kh7 3 Qb1+ and 4 Qxa2 wins a rook. If 1…Re2 2 Bf4! Qxf4 3 Re8+ and 4 Qxf4 wins nan queen. The crippled ended 1 Bd2?? Qh3! 2 Ra3?? Ne4! and White resigned owed to 3 fxe4 Rxa3 while different Black mates by Qg3+ Kh1 Nf2 mate aliases by Qg3+ Kf1 Qf2 mate.