Carlsen lost everything in the Speed Chess Championship
Carlsen overwhelmed Nepomniachtchi in the match on the evening of September 15, because he guaranteed victory even though there were still 15 minutes of play left. The Norwegian player won 5.5-3.5 in blitz 5+1 (5 minutes for each side, adding one second after each move), 6-3 in blitz 3+1, and 9-3 in blitz super lightning 1+1.
However, Carlsen made a move that was considered stupid, in game 25 against the Russian player. He uses the white queen to capture the black pawn on a6, not realizing that the black knight is holding this piece on c7. Nepomniachtchi did not miss the opportunity, catching the queen and forcing his opponent to immediately lose this game.
Carlsen raised his hand in confusion, then smiled after this mistake. Nepomniachtchi just looked down, raised his eyes and was also somewhat surprised. Even though it was only a formality, this loss still caused Carlsen to lose some bonus money. Because according to the tournament rules, a bonus will be given based on the score difference between the two players.
Carlsen's mistake attracted hundreds of thousands of views on social networks. The Chess platform commented: "Sometimes the greatest chess players in history also lose their queens. So if you make the same mistake, it's okay."
Carlsen will meet Wesley So in the semi-finals, while the other semi-final match takes place between Hikaru Nakamura and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. The number one player said that if he makes it to the finals, he will most likely have a rematch with Nakamura. The Japanese-American player has reached the finals all seven times the tournament was held, losing the first two times to Carlsen, and winning the next five times.
The semi-finals are scheduled to take place on the evening of September 19 and September 20, Hanoi time.
