Norwegian Grandmaster (GM) and World No. 1 player Magnus Carlsen won his first International Chess Federation (FIDE) World Cup title by defeating India’s GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa in the FIDE Chess World Cup 2023 finals.
- The 10th edition of the FIDE Chess World Cup 2023 was held from 29th July to 24th August 2023 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
- Fabiano Caruana of the United States of America(USA) defeated Nijat Asabov of Azerbaijan to secure the 3rd place.
Highlights:
i.Carlsen defeated Praggnanandhaa in the tie-breaker after the two classical games ended in a stalemate.
ii.Praggnanandhaa becomes the first Indian since Viswanathan Anand to reach the Chess World Cup final in 2002.
iii.Praggnanandhaa’s performance in the World Cup earned him a spot in the 2024 FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament in Toronto, Canada.
- Praggnanandhaa (18-year-old) is the third-youngest player to qualify for this event after Carlsen and GM Bobby Fischer.
iv.This was the first time four Indians qualified for the quarterfinals including Praggnanandhaa, Vidit Santosh Gujrathi, D. Gukesh, and Arjun Erigaisi.
Medal Winners:
| Player | Medal |
|---|---|
| Magnus Carlsen(Norway) | Gold medal and Trophy |
| Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa(India) | Silver medal |
| Fabiano Caruana(USA) | Bronze medal |
Prize Money:
- Winner – USD 110,000
- Runner – USD 80,000
- Third Place – USD 60,000
About Praggnanandhaa:
i.He was born on 10th August 2005 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
ii.Praggnanandhaa became the youngest (10 years, 10 months, and 19 days) international master(IM) in 2016.
iii.R Praggnanandhaa Created History by becoming the 2nd youngest chess GrandMaster at 12 Years 10 months and 13 days in 2018 Gredine Open in Ortisei, Italy.
iv.He was the youngest player to defeat then-world champion Magnus Carlsen in a rapid game at the Airthings Masters Rapid Chess Tournament in February 2022.
- He won the Asian Continental Chess Championship in 2022.
Winners of previous editions:
| Edition | Player |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland) |
| 2019 | Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan) |
| 2017 | Levon Aronian (USA/Armenia) |
| 2015 | Sergey Karjakin(Russia) |
| 2013 | Vladimir Kramnik(Russia) |
| 2011 | Peter Svidler (Russia) |
| 2009 | Boris Gelfand (Israel) |
| 2007 | Gata Kamsky (USA) |
| 2005 | Levon Aronian (USA/Armenia) |
FIDE Women’s World Cup 2023:
Alongside FIDE World Cup 2023, the 2nd edition of the Women’s only version of the Women’s World Cup 2023 took place in Baku, Azerbaijan from 29th July to 22nd August 2023.
i.Aleksandra Goryachkina of Russia won the 2023 FIDE Women’s Chess World Cup title by defeating Nurgyul Salimova of Bulgaria in the finals.
- Aleksandra Goryachkina was also the runner-up in the 2021 FIDE World Cup.
ii.Anna Muzychuk of Ukraine won the Bronze by defeating former Women’s World Champion Tan Zhongyi of China in the third-place match.
Prize Money- Women’s World Cup:
Winner – USD 50,000
Runner – USD 35,000
Third Place – USD 25,000
FIDE Ban transgender players to participate in the women’s events
i.FIDE banned transgender women from competing in its official women’s competitions while it performs a “thorough analysis” of the situation, which could take up to two years.
- The ban came into effect from 21st August 2023.
About Federation Internationale des Echecs/International Chess Federation (FIDE):
President – Arkady Dvorkovich
Headquarters – Lausanne, Switzerland
Established – 1924
