Norway Chess R04: Carlsen grabs the lead
In Round 4 the joint leaders Levon Aronian and Fabiano Caruana stumbled whereas Magnus Carlsen did not miss his chance to overtake them and to grab the pole position. The battle between Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Aryan Tari – two players who did not score even a half-point in three rounds – the latter prevailed in Armageddon after the classical game was drawn. The central game of Round 4 Carlsen – Caruana saw a popular line of Nimzo-Indian in which Black (Caruana) reached a satisfactory position although White had some pressure on c4-pawn. Somewhat unexpectedly Fabiano decided to sacrifice this pawn but did not get anything in return. Still, Black could have put a stubborn resistance but after 30… Rc6? 31.c5! Caruana was doomed. Levon Aronian and Alireza Firouzja had a discussion in the Caro-Kann defense. After Black solved all his opening problems and demonstrated accuracy in the subsequent maneuvering game the opponents agreed to a draw on move 31. The Armageddon game was full of swings with the evaluation changing several times in the course of this fast-paced encounter. Levon obtained a great attacking position with White and could have finished off his opponent several times but after failing to find the best continuations eventually collapsed in a knight endgame. Aryan Tari had some chances to score three points in the classical game with Jan-Krzysztof Duda but the Polish GM escaped into a drawn rook ending. For the first time in this tournament, two out of three games came down to Armageddon. After Aryan blundered a piece Jan-Krzysztof came very close to victory but being in a terrible time-scramble, he missed not only a win but also a draw. Photo: Lennart Ootes Official site: https://norwaychess.no/en/
Global Chess Festival Online kicks off on October 10
The sixth edition of the Global Chess Festival founded by Judit Polgar takes place on October 10th, 2020. The event highlights art, education, science, and sport in connection with chess. As tradition has it, the Festival is held on the second Saturday of October and this time this resulted in a special date: 10/10/2020! This year’s festival is special in many ways. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the entire festival has been moved online. Nevertheless, the forum offers you a full and varied program for young and old alike. There are 40+ programs waiting for the guests on a virtual platform that was specially designed for this event. All through the day, there are Champions Talks with celebrities such as Garry Kasparov, Vladimir Kramnik, the Polgar Sisters, Jan Timman, John Nunn, and Simen Agdestein (who discovered and trained the current World Champion Magnus Carlsen). The guests of the festival can listen to lectures on Chess and Decision-Making in Sports, Chess in Prisons and Business Lessons that can be drawn from chess. There is a Master Class by Judit in which she looks at highlights of her rich career, and Judit and Sofia Polgar give simuls. If you want to play yourself you can also sign up for Chess Tournaments open to amateurs in the age groups 4 to 120 with beautiful prizes. Relax while watching a film on Chess Brains or the Polgar family. Check out the full list of programs here. Selected programs: Judit Polgar Method (10:40 CEST) Business Lessons from Chess by Norbert Fogarasi, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley, Hungary (14:30 CEST) Chess and Soccer Champions Talk with Simen Agdestein (ALL DAY) Chess Behind Bars by Carl Portman Dessert with the Polgar sisters by Yasser Seirawan (18:30 CEST) Champions Talk with Chess Scientist John Nunn by Judit Polgar (ALL DAY) 14th World Champion Vladimir Kramnik, AI and the new chess variants (15:30 CEST) A friendly talk by Judit Polgar with Garry Kasparov (19:30 CEST) Champions talk with Chess Artist Jan Timman by Judit Polgar (ALL DAY) If you want to take part in the Global Chess Festival, you can register here. Official website: http://www.globalchessfestival.com/
Play Magnus listed on Oslo Stock Exchange
First chess company traded since the 1990s The ancient game’s biggest investment ever Founded by World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen (Oslo, 8 October 2020) Play Magnus Group, the tech firm founded by World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen, has been listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange today. The company has now gained more than 250 shareholders and is trading on Oslo’s Merkur Market. Shareholders have provided the company with NOK 300 million ($30.2m) in fresh equity, which will be used for technology development and further growth. “This is a milestone in the company’s history, and we are proud that many strong institutional investors have decided to join the team. Now, we are ready to take the next step for the company, and a listing on Merkur Market will be important for the company’s ability to continue its strong growth,” said co-founder and chairman of the board of Play Magnus Group, Anders Brandt. In combination with the capital increase, some of the existing shareholders sold a small part of their shares. The transaction implies a valuation of the equity of Play Magnus Group at NOK 796 million ($85.8m).Following the share issue, the American asset manager Luxor Capital is the largest shareholder with 10.96% of the shares. Magnus Chess, owned by Magnus Carlsen and his family owns 9.5% of the company. The issue was also significantly oversubscribed. In total, the company now has just over 250 shareholders.The World Chess Champion said: “The company’s unique vision is to make chess available to new target groups all over the world. In addition, our model will help many more chess players and coaches to be able to make a living from chess. The company has just started on this journey and I look forward to being part of it going forward.” Play Magnus Group offers services where everyone can play, watch, and learn chess. The group’s services consist of the Play Magnus App Suite, chess24, Chessable and CoChess. In addition, in 2020 the group launched a professional online chess tournament, the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, which gained significant interest and viewership worldwide. Play Magnus Group has more than 3 million registered users across the platforms and approximately 35,000 monthly paying customers worldwide. Play Magnus Group has an annual revenue run-rate of approximately USD 7 million, with around 120% YoY revenue growth for H1 2020. ABG Sundal Collier ASA and SpareBank1 Markets AS are acting as Joint Bookrunners in connection with the Private Placement. About Play Magnus Play Magnus AS was established by Magnus Carlsen, Espen Agdestein, and Anders Brandt in 2013. Play Magnus Group offers solutions for chess players all over the world through its ecosystem of products and services. The company offers eLearning and entertainment services through its market-leading brands: chess24, Chessable, CoChess, Play Magnus, and The Champions Chess Tour. Play Magnus’ group’s vision is to grow chess to make the world a smarter place
Norway Chess R03: Aronian joins Caruana at the top
Fabiano Caruana scored just one point in Round 3 and allowed Levon Aronian to catch up with him after beating Jan-Krzysztof Duda. Magnus Carlsen is just one point behind the leaders after winning the all-Norwegian battle with Aryan Tari. Jan-Krzysztof Duda’s woes continue as he suffered another defeat, this time at the hands of Levon Aronian. After quick exchanges in the opening, the opponents reached an absolutely equal rook endgame but by making one inaccuracy after another the Polish GM found himself in a tough position which he failed to hold. Fabiano Caruana got some initiative with black pieces against Alireza Firouzja but the youngster managed to consolidate his position and the opponents shook hands on move 36. The Armageddon game saw the Queen’s Gambit Accepted with colors reversed in which Firouzja’s pawns on the queenside proved to be much more dangerous than Caruana’s central pawns. Alireza stopped the leader and now sits on 5.5 points. Magnus Carlsen went for a sharp line of the Rauzer with Black but up to some point his opponent Aryan Tari was playing with precision and obtained a promising position. However, the younger of two Norwegians went astray on move 23 and then four moves down the road missed a spectacular blow 26…Re1! Although the World Champion did not take the shortest way to victory, the result of the game was never in doubt. Standings after Round 3:1-2. Aronian, Caruana – 73.Carlsen – 64. Firouzja – 5.55-6. Duda, Tari – 0