Magnus Carlsen claimed his sixth World Rapid Chess Championship title with a score of 10.5\/13, finishing a full point ahead of the field. The women\u2019s crown went to Aleksandra Goryachkina, who defeated Zhu Jiner in a blitz playoff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After a stumble on day two, Magnus Carlsen came back on the final day of the rapid in full force, scoring three consecutive victories \u2013 against Sarana, Hans Niemann and Erdogmus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Norwegian entered the final round with a one-point lead over Vladislav Artemiev and Hans Niemann. Facing Anish Giri as White, he quickly drew, which was enough for Carlsen to claim his sixth crown in the World Rapid (2014, 2015, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was a big field with a lot of strong players. The serious advantage that I have is that I play for first place when I\u2019m appearing here, while most other players are thinking about getting a good prize and maybe a medal. That gives me a huge psychological advantage,\u201d said Carlsen after his victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When asked to compare this Rapid crown to the previous five, Carlsen remarked: \u201cWhat stands out is that I managed to beat everyone who is not a top player, something I\u2019m very happy with. Overall, except for the start on day two, which was horrendous, everything else was really good for me here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second place in the World Rapid was shared by four players, all on 9.5 points: Artemiev, Arjun Erigaisi, Hans Niemann, and Leinier Dominguez Perez. Artemiev \u2013 the only player to defeat Carlsen in the event \u2013 took silver, while Arjun Erigaisi claimed bronze. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Niemann missed out on a medal by 0.5 Buchholz points (a tie-breaking system in chess that ranks players based on the sum of points of all of their opponents in the tournament).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the Women\u2019s Rapid, three players were tied for the lead before the final round: Zhu Jiner, Aleksandra Goryachkina, and defending champion Humpy Koneru, all on 8\/10 points. In Round 11, both Jiner and Goryachkina drew their games. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Koneru, the only leader with a chance to take sole first place, had a completely winning endgame against compatriot Shri B. Savitha but misplayed in time trouble, allowing Savitha to escape with a draw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the regulations, in case of a tie for first place, only the top two players (based on tiebreaks) went to the playoff finals. To Koneru\u2019s misfortune, she wasn\u2019t one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Instead, Goryachkina and Jiner contested two blitz games. Goryachkina quickly won the first and drew the second to secure the title. This is the first World Rapid crown for Goryachkina, who was the World Champion challenger in 2020 in classical time control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jiner, who led for most of the tournament, finished in second place. After winning gold in New York in 2024, Humpy Koneru takes home the bronze medal from Doha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The action continues today with the start of the two-day World Blitz Championship in both the Open and Women\u2019s categories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n