Norway Chess always charms the year as one of the most compelling events to look out for, and 2024 is no different. Five-time winner and world number-one GM Magnus Carlsen, last year’s winner GM Hikaru Nakamura, and the 17th World Champion GM Ding Liren elevate the stakes.

This prestigious event has added features such as the Women’s Tournament where prize fund will be MATCHED with the Open section. Additionally, the “side event” is a world-record-breaking blitz match that can literally keep us at the edge of our seats from sunrise to sunset. Everything will be covered live by Chess24’s YouTube channel. There you can witness the non-stop action wherever you are in the world. 

Let’s dive in.

Format!

In its 12th edition, Norway Chess is a 6 player double round-robin known for its format’s exciting variety. The scoring, unique as ever, inspires motivated gameplay from the participants. 

Classical draws won’t be enough to coast toward the end-zone. Armageddon matches determine once and for all who wins a given showdown. After a draw in the classical game, worth 1-point, players are immediately tasked with duking it out over the board in rapid fashion. 10 minutes for the player with white, and 7 minutes for black and draw-odds. The person who wins this match receives another precious half-point. These definitive tie-breakers have proven to be the difference between a win and a loss, as we have seen last year.

In 2023, Hikaru Nakamura trailed Fabiano Caruana by 2.5 points in the final round where Nakamura accumulated three armageddon wins while Caruana won only two. Had Caruana won an additional armegeddon, he would’ve had more chances for the title even if he lost. But as history has shown, Caruana could not salvage the draw while Nakamura crashed through to get the classical win he needed for sole first place. 

Schedule and Players!

The Blitz Tournament, on May 28 starts off everything for Norway Chess before the classical games begin on May 29. We’re due for a full day of mental melee mashes, followed by an additional 10 rounds of classical games and armageddons to decide the overall victor. 

Each day will be packed with powerhouse play and the players themselves will reveal their hidden insight at the end of their rounds. Having the players report to the commentator’s room is a transparent gift. The discussion allows us to peak in the sharp minds of the elite few. We have some of the most relevant players sharing their detailed thoughts with us. 

We have a slammin’ slew of super-grandmasters to look forward to:

With this immaculate roster, it’s hard to guess a “favorite.” But Magnus Carlsen is most likely looking to reclaim the crown on his home turf despite it being his first classical (non-960) tournament this year since skipping Tata Steel! GM Praggnanandhaa and GM Alireza Firouzja, confirmed participants in Candidates Tournament in April, might have some unused ideas in store from home preperation.

We know Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, and newly crowned World Champion Ding Liren are the highlights but Norway Chess didn’t stop there…

Norway Chess Women’s Tournament; The New Addition

What makes this event even more spectacular is the fact that, for the first time, Norway Chess will also feature a Women’s Tournament with a field led by current World Champion GM Jun Wenjun and last year’s challenger to the thrown, GM Lei Tingjie! GM Anna Muzychuk, a World Rapid and Blitz Champion will not be one to gloss over if the armageddon matches are reached. GM Koneru Humpy just missed out on the Women’s World Rapid crown last year, 2023, but I think this list of quick-minded players shows that the armageddons will definitely be full of fire. Not to mention the fifth woman ever to achieve the Grandmaster title, Pia Cramling. The Women’s Tournament will consist of the strongest ladies on the chess world’s leaderboard. 

Just look at this lineup of established and up-and-coming players: BBB

The fresh element, however, is the fairness being displayed OFF the board. Norway Chess are matching the prize fund for both the Open and Women’s tournament respectively. You can read NM and Events Correspondent Vanessa West last year’s report about Norway Chess’ 2023 announcement on their anticipated addition. In their most recent press release, the organizers acknowledge that “The scarcity of women in top-level privately held competitions is a complex issue, with limited invitations and unequal prize money being contributing factors.” Up-and-coming phenoms like GM Vaishali Rameshbabu are clearly making magnificent strides in the chess world. This initiative by event organizers can be the turning point for many young women and girls and “…serve as an inspiration for young female chess players to pursue a professional career.” as stated by Norway Chess’ Benedicte Westre Skog & Kjell Madland. This move hopefully will not only set a precedent, but set a norm.

Our aspiration is for the tournament to serve as an inspiration for young female chess players to pursue a professional career.

Guinness World Record Attempt or The Longest Blitz Match

What do Usain Bolt, Beyonce, and Magnus Carlsen all have in common? They know that records are made to be broken. Two courageous chess players will be present at the legendary Norway Chess site hoping to add their names in the history books by playing a record 60 hours of chess! 

How long can the brain blitz through endless endgames? 

Askild Bryn and Odin Blikra Vea will take Kasparov’s debut title “The Test of Time” to heart as they play nearly non-stop for 60 hours. They are allowed 5 minutes of rest after every hour of play but also have the possibility to add rest depending on their play’s duration. As in, blitzing for 4 hours would allow them to accumulate 20 minutes of rests, and so on. Back to back, they’ll bolt through games like Usain, betting their melatonin on breaking the record that was previously set at 56 hours! We’ve seen attempts like this before.

• “You Won’t Break My…” Sleep Schedule 

Bring out the popcorn and keep it coming. Starting on June 2, 10 am (CEST) to June 4 10 pm (CEST) we will follow Askild and Odin on an odyssey of blitz. The time control is 5 min/G. Each game will be displayed on a professional DGT board and we might be able to read through Beyonce’s extensive resume by the time they conclude the match! Here’s a piece on chess-related world records!

Watch the blitz marathon on Chess24 and observe how two humans bear through fatigue. Will they make it through the waking hours? Will they endure two and a half days of mental play? 

Mark your calendars for May 28 and get ready for a series of events you won’t be able to forget. 

SKOL!