Featured Image Credit: NurPhoto / Contributor / Getty
Looks like it's checkmate for Magnus Carlsen, but this time, the chess grandmaster didn't even have to move a piece on the board before attempting to best his opponent. For those who might think of chess as something of a 'slow' game, you've clearly never seen The Queen's Gambit. While admittedly not typically as dramatic as footballers rolling around on the pitch while pretending to be injured, there's a surprising amount of drama both on and off the board.
You might've heard of chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, a 35-year-old who made headlines in 2025 when he forced ChatGPT to surrender in a history-making game. He's also turned up late to his own game and still managed to nab victory, as well as issuing a bombshell statement that claimed fellow player Hans Niemann had been cheating. The latter scandal has even become the focus of its own Netflix documentary called Untold: Chess Mates.
There's no escaping the skills of Carlsen as the world No.1, but now, he's gone viral for his social media skills rather than his chess prowess.
The latest drama involved 18-year-old Alua Nurman, who was due to face Carlsen in a match at Germany’s Grenke chess festival. Considering Carlsen is effectively the Taylor Swift of the chess world, Nurman couldn't help but ask him for a selfie.
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Carlsen leaned across and was all smiles with the 2024 Kazakhstani chess Woman Grandmaster, but we imagine the smile was soon wiped from Nurman's face. After Nurman put the phone in her bag and got ready to start the game, footage shows Carlsen calmly rising from the table and telling International Chess Federation (FIDE) officials that she had an electronic device. This was then confiscated, although Nurman didn't face any further punishment.
There's no suggestion that Nurman was trying to cheat, but previously, bad actors have been known to download apps that act as a guide and then consult them on their next move during toilet breaks. With the Grenke festival boasting a $67,000 grand prize, organizers are right to take this kind of issue seriously. Commenters are divided, with some arguing it was an act done in bad faith, while others are saying Carlsen did it for Nurman's own sake, ensuring she couldn't be disqualified for having a device at all if it was somehow uncovered later.
None of this mattered anyway, as Carlsen beat her. The festival continued, and Carlsen put up a good fight, but ultimately, it was German grandmaster Vincent Keymer who took the crown in the Freestyle Chess Open A. Keymer finished tied on points with France's Maxime Vachier-Lagrave but bested him following a tiebreak.
Carlsen was frustrated by a tiebreak draw with Keymer on the penultimate day, blaming conditions at the tournament. Speaking to Norwegian channel TV2, Carlsen vented: "Now it’s sunny outside, and it’s f**king one million degrees in the playing hall. It didn’t feel like there was any oxygen getting to my head at all."
As for Nurman, don't feel too bad for her because Carlsen only helped raise her profile. Posting on X, the Women's Chess Coverage account cheered: "Alua didn’t just take a selfie w/ Magnus, she also earned the IM title, had the best tournament performance of her career, got her highest-rated win ever, & became No. 1 in the girls’ junior rankings!"
She also seemed in high spirits as she took to Instagram after the match and wrote: "Dream come true!! 🥹💫 truly enjoyable game thank you so much everyone for your warm support🤍."
