Magnus Carlsen scored 4½/6 points to claim outright victory in the inaugural edition of the Casablanca Chess Tournament. On the second day of action, Carlsen beat Bassem Amin and signed draws against Hikaru Nakamura and Vishy Anand. Nakamura finished in second place with 3½ points. | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Casablanca Chess made a strong impression on the first day of play in Morocco. The innovative format, where games start in positions selected from historical encounters, brought excitement to both participants and spectators. Following three rounds, Magnus Carlsen is leading with 2½ points after grabbing wins over Viswanathan Anand and Hikaru Nakamura. | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Today, 14.30 local time, the first round of the Candidates Tournament 2024 in Toronto will start. Yesterday evening, the tournament kicked off in Toronto with the inaugural press conference and the Opening Ceremony at the welcoming 1 Hotel Toronto, a sustainable sanctuary in the heart of downtown. | Photos: Michal Walusza
Actually more players in the top 100: 13 US grandmasters vs 12 from Russia, down from 22 five years ago. But even the total is closing: In total Russia still has 246 grandmasters, compared to 101 from the US. Many Russian GMs from the older generation, like Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik, have dropped out of the rating list, but the main reason for the decline is the reaction of players to Russia's war invasion of Ukraine. | Newsweek photo Getty