World No.1 chess player Magnus Carlsen’s popularity in India was on full display as he was mobbed by numerous fans in Kolkata. During his visit, Carlsen won the rapid and blitz titles at the Tata Steel Chess India tournament on Sunday.
After winning the rapid title, Carlsen won the blitz crown with a round to spare. He defeated India’s Arjun Erigaisi in the second last round before getting the better of Vidit Gujrathi in the last one to take the title with three successive wins. The World No.1 tallied a total of 13 points in the blitz.
Meanwhile, in a heartwarming gesture, a 20-year-old Indian chess player touched the feet of World No.1 Carlsen in a video that is doing the rounds on social media. Carlsen was handing a trophy to Bristy Mukherjee, who won the All India Women Rapid event (Event B). The young Indian star greeted Carlsen by touching both of his feet before collecting her trophy. Carlsen was left surprised before blushing while seeing this gesture from the Indian.
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This was the second double for Carlsen in Kolkata after he had won both the titles in 2019 too. Wesley So, the Filipino-American chess grandmaster, came second. India’s Erigaisi finished third, while other Indians R Praggnanandhaa and Gujrathi came fourth and fifth, respectively.
Meanwhile, numerous fans mobbed Carlsen during his visit to Kolkata. People tried getting a glimpse of the World No.1 and sought autographs from him.
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Carlsen reflected on his performance in the tournament. “It was a really, really nervy day. I was lucky that Wesley was the one who went on a big streak because he couldn’t realistically catch me. Overall, the tournament win is good. The score is not great but very decent, so I’m happy,” Carlsen said.
“I’m heading to Singapore in a few hours to promote Freestyle Chess with Fabiano Caruana. I’ll be playing a match with Fabi in a few days. It should be fun, and being a tourist at the World Championship for a couple of days will be exciting,” the World No.1 added.
