Carlsen resigns on move 2

[Keith Arkell]

All hail King Hans - trashes a hotel room and gathers even more fans. What strange times we live in!

I'm forcibly reminded of the Al Capone story: They couldn't get him for his gangster stuff, so the got him on tax evasion instead.

[Geoff Chandler]

I imagine his bedroom, mouse, keyboard and monitor also takes a bit of hammering as well. Someone has put together a video of his best moments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfLNNyz7sPw

[Paul Heaton]

Hans’ YouTube videos seem to show the Gherkin in the background. So far as I could tell the traffic seemed to be driving on the left too, and the blackboard in the restaurant he went to had prices in £. Is he living in London now? Transferring his registration to the ECF really would be a coup.

To answer my own question, now chess & bridge post a photo of him shopping in their store on Baker St. On his videos he talks about making plans for filming in the London apartment on what sounded - to me- a long term basis.

[Matt Mackenzie]

My view of Niemann was and remains that if he really is a cheat*, there would have been more obvious giveaways by now.

(* I mean at top level classical chess, we all know he cheated online as a junior - so have loads of other people and it proves nothing conclusive)

[LawrenceCooper]

Magnus-Hans in Titled Tuesday just now, decided by a mouse slip but still a game with plenty of interest.

https://www.chess.com/events/2024-title ... _Hans_Moke

[Nick Burrows]

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article ... dium=email

[Matt Mackenzie]

Stopped reading at "WINNING streak of 125 games" tbh.

Please get people who at least understand the very basics of chess to write these stories.

[Ian Thompson]

Stopped reading at "WINNING streak of 125 games" tbh.

I didn't get very far through it either. I was surprised to read "... as [Niemann] was recovering at home in London." Has he been seen in London?

[Kevin Thurlow]

"I didn't get very far through it either. I was surprised to read "... as [Niemann] was recovering at home in London." Has he been seen in London?"

I did read somewhere that he is now resident in London - I'm not saying that they were correct.

[Nick Burrows]

Stopped reading at "WINNING streak of 125 games" tbh.

I didn't get very far through it either. I was surprised to read "... as [Niemann] was recovering at home in London." Has he been seen in London?

It goes on to say he had a 6 month rental.

I found the picture it paints of his character very interesting. It also suggests that him and Carlsen settled out of court which I didn't know.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Stopped reading at "WINNING streak of 125 games" tbh.

Please get people who at least understand the very basics of chess to write these stories.

It is actually a very good article. I would encourage you to read the whole piece, if only for the quotes from other chess people and the bits about his family circumstances and background.

Regarding Niemann being resident in London, a chess friend of mine saw him shopping in the Chess and Bridge shop, so it must be true.

In all seriousness, there is a photo, and I believe it is common knowledge. No reason to doubt that. What I am less clear on is whether he is still based here (either the six months might still be in progress, or he might have extended his rental).

[Nick Burrows]

It's an important article in the sense that the magazine has 1.8 million weekly readers.

[Geoff Chandler]

The article appears to be laden with hearsay and mistakes. It claims Magnus accused a photographer of helping Hans.

"The two were in a secure, isolated room. The only other people present were Al Lawrence, the managing director of the U.S. Chess Trust, and a few individuals working for the tournament, including the renowned chess photographer Lennart Ootes. Toward the end of the game, Carlsen got up, approached Ootes, and accused him of aiding Niemann, saying there was a “massive tell.”

Seeking confirmation of this rumour or piece of fabrication to add more spice to the article the journalist continues;

" (When I asked Carlsen to clarify his suspicions, his father, Henrik, replied with a series of insult-laden emails. “You have obviously learned very little,” he wrote. “I call bull**it on you. Case closed. Do not contact us again.”)

Magnus later 'tweeted' (Or X'd whatever it is called these days)

""I would like insincerely apologize to the @NYMag writer who had her feelings hurt.

She presented a lot of misleading and/or erroneous claims, the most egregious of which was that I accused the photographer, Lennart Ootes of aiding with cheating. I never did such a thing, I merely pointed out that someone who may or may not have knowledge of engine evaluations entering the room or going up to a board at certain times, can unknowingly give players tells. This is a problem that other people have brought up later as well.
(but who is counting) Responding politely to a journalist who presented lies as things she had “learned” did not interest us".

I wonder if any of this will be in the book/film/T.V. series...

[Christopher Kreuzer]

It was such a long article I had forgotten that element (the "insult-laden email") which struck me as strange. Yes, these are inaccuracies, and they do bring into question the overall quality of the piece. But it is an in-depth piece that will end up influencing later writings on the topic unless the inaccuracies are addressed. Hopefully a better piece remains to be written about all this.

[Geoff Chandler]

Hi Chris,

It is possibly a stirrer with fake news, rumour and speculation to give the book/film a hype.
I cannot see it being done as a film without some extra spice to keep the non-chess players (NCP's) interested. The theme will have to be David v Goliath.

I've given an idea of how I think Hollywood will present it at chessgames.com.

"From the article we read Hans's father lost money in the 2008 financial crash and filed for bankruptcy. The family moved to Holland. Hans was good at chess as a child and other children did not like playing him (because he was so good.)

Hollywood will have the family fleeing the USA overnight to escape debt collectors to live in an Albanian one roomed bedsit. Because he plays chess Hans is a loner with no friends apart from his pet dog 'Bobby'. (a heart warming clip of Hans trying to teach 'Bobby' to play chess because he is alone and has no one to play chess with.)

Against him we have Magnus who is very rich, a playboy, a male model, exaggerate he (like every other player) is a sore loser...the perfect villain. Chop it up so it appears that if Hans is not banned for life then Magnus will resign his title. (both things happened in the same year, that is good enough for Hollywood.)

Add in for effect; 'Bobby' is run over in mysterious circumstances, Greta Thunberg and Hans get married...(they were both born in the same year, that is good enough for Hollywood.)"
The NCP's will lap it up.