PARIS, AUG 15 (PTI): World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen capped his masterful undefeated campaign by retaining his title after defeating Belarusian chess grandmaster Denis Lazavik in a lop-sided final of the chess competition at the Esports World Cup here on Saturday.
Team Liquid’s Carlsen came with a clear goal and pursued it with unrelenting determination, not losing a single match en route to successfully defending his title. The 35-year-old Norwegian secured a 2-0 (3-1, 3-1) win over Lazavik of AG.AL in the grand final.
Carlsen won USD 250,000 in prize money and 1000 Club Championship points for his side Team Liquid. Denis secured USD 190,000and 750 points for AG.AL. Meanwhile, United States’ Hikaru Nakamura finished third after beating Alireza Firouzja 4-1 in a controversial and chaotic match marred by technical problems and disconnections.
After technical issues in Game 4 and subsequently losing that game against Nakamura, Alireza abandoned the third-place match and left the building. Alireza was trailing 1-3 at that stage with two games left.
Monday, August 24, 2026