Carlsen Praises Iran's Firouzja As Potential Future World Chess Champion
Sports and Society News Blog
Iranian-born chess grandmaster Alireza Firouzja (currently living in France) finished in second place at the Altibox Norway Chess tournament, after scoring 18.5 points and defeating Polish grandmaster Jan-Krzysztof Duda in the standard game.
Norwegian grandmaster and world's top chess champion Magnus Carlsen won the championship title with 19.5 points. He praised Firouzja by describing him as an emerging talent and a potential future world championship opponent.
Last year, Firouzja, Iran's 16-year-old Chess prodigy and Grandmaster (FIDE rating of 2723, Iran's top ranked and the world’s number two junior player) has announced he will change his nationality after the Iranian chess federation banned him from the upcoming World Rapid & Blitz in Moscow. The federation had objected to Parham Maghsoodloo and Amin Tabatabaei, two other Iranian Grandmasters, playing games against Israeli opponents in a recent blitz tournament. Despite their victory over Israeli opponents, both Grandmasters were reprimanded in Iran because of the hardliners' policy of not recognizing Israel as a legitimate government, but an occupied land (news source). Subsequently, the federation decided to withdraw participation of all Iranian players from the World Rapid & Blitz, but Firouzja did not go along with this decision.
Related:
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