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In June, Chess.com launched this year's Speedchess Online Championship. After the preliminary rounds, 16 world-class players competed in the main knockout tournament. Four players made it to the final: Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Alireza Firouzja and Hans Niemann.
The semi-final pairings are: Magnus Carlsen against Hans Niemann and Hikaru Nakamura against Alireza Firouzja. The match between Carlsen and Niemann is of course particularly explosive. Carlsen had withdrawn from the 2022 Sinquefield Cup after losing to Hans Niemann because he believed that Niemann had played against him with unfair means, i.e. computer assistance. In an online tournament shortly afterwards, Carlsen refused to play Niemann.
This was followed by an extensive public discussion and a lawsuit by Niemann against Carlsen and all those he felt had defamed him. The case has since been dropped, the parties involved have found a modus vivendi and Carlsen and Niemann have played against each other in online tournaments.
Since then Magnus Carlsen has avoided the Sinquefield Tournament, where he used to play regularly, and has only played as a guest on the Grand Chess Tour.
The Norwegian may have relinquished his World Championship title, but he is still the undisputed number one in the world (in classical, blitz and rapid chess) and therefore the favourite to win the tournament. However, Nakamura and Firouzja are the strongest opponents imaginable in this format and Niemann is a dark horse who can do anything.
Niemann has repeatedly declared that he wants to become world champion, and he has also initiated a series of matches against top players under the evocative title "Hans Niemann against the World". After beating Anish Giri, Nikita Vitiugov and Etienne Bacrot in these matches, Niemann is currently ranked 16th in the world.
In the Blitz live rankings Niemann is 23rd with a rating of 2709. Carlsen is first with 2888, Firouzja second with 2871 and Nakamura third with a rating of 2860.
It is going to be exciting.
The Chess.com Speed Chess Championships consist of three-hour matches with three different time controls:
90 Minutes 5+1
60 Minutes 3+1
30 Minutes 1+1
The number of games is not fixed. Only the time is.
The venue in Paris is the eSpot (Rue de Rivoli), close to the Louvre.
A limited number of spectators are able to follow the events live on site. Chess.com offered tickets for $99 (silver), $200 (silver weekend party), $225 (gold), $349 (platinum) and $1500 (diamond). However, the expensive tickets are already all sold out.
The spectacle starts next Friday, and Nakamura and Firouzja will kick off the event at 16:00 CEST, Carlsen and Niemann will start their match at 20:00 CEST.
Schedule
6 September 2024
Hikaru Nakamura vs. Alireza Firouzja - Live from Paris
16:00 CEST
6 September 2024
Magnus Carlsen vs. Hans Niemann - Live from Paris
20:00 CEST
7 September 2024
Consolation Match (3rd Place Playoff) - Live from Paris
18:00 CEST
8 September 2024
Championship Match - Live from Paris
18:00 PM CEST
