New in Chess Classic Finals: Carlsen wins first set

5/2/2021 – In a hard-fought first set of the New in Chess Classic finals, Magnus Carlsen grabbed the lead by scoring a 3-1 win over Hikaru Nakamura. After drawing the first two games and losing the third encounter, Naka had a better position in a must-win situation. The American mishandled his advantage and Carlsen ended up scoring a second win in a row. Meanwhile, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Levon Aronian tied the first set in the match for third place. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Carlsen vs. The Challengers: 19.5:2.5

4/21/2021 – Magnus Carlsen loves chess and he loves a challenge. On Monday, after commentating round 8 of the Candidates for several hours live, the World Champion played a 22 game 3+0 Banter Blitz match against the "Challengers", 20 of the world's most promising juniors. Carlsen convincingly won the match with a score of 19.5-2.5. He only lost against Nihal Sarin and Awonder Liang and drew against Vincent Keymer.

The Elephant Gambit

The Elephant Gambit (1.e4.e5 2.Nf3 d5!?) has never really been given the attention it deserves. It is a very useful surprise weapon. Let us list the advantages of playing this particular opening: 1) Shock value 2) It is very aggressive. Black can take over the initiative early. 3) Many tricky lines 4) Unorthodox. Black is basically taking the game to the opponent as early as move two. Not many openings do that! It's a perfect opening for young players and club players to adopt. Let Andrew Martin select a repertoire for you on this 60 mins, which, if used with discretion, will rack up the points. I am sure that you will enjoy this unusual tour of the Elephant Gambit.