Hans Niemann calls out Magnus Carslen, says ‘you tried to ruin my life’
American grandmaster Hans Niemann has launched another attack on Magnus Carlsen for breaking the rules after he agreed to share the World Blitz title with Ian Nepomniachtchi at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championship.
Magnus Carlsen and Hans Niemann have a rocky past: the world no 1 had accused the American of cheating which had led to an expensive lawsuit. The duo had come to an out-of-court agreement eventually.
You broke the rules on camera, you only thought they would agree to your proposal because you dropped out of the blitz and made ridiculous demands. FIDE will hopefully take a stand and remind us all that no player is above the game. They failed to hold you accountable when you… https://t.co/qKJtsXOvj3
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) January 2, 2025
“You broke the rules on camera, you only thought they would agree to your proposal because you dropped out of the blitz and made ridiculous demands,” Niemann wrote on X.
“FIDE will hopefully take a stand and remind us all that no player is above the game.
“They failed to hold you accountable when you tried to ruin my life, I hope they’ve learned their lesson.”
Magnus : “If they like refuse, we can just play short draws until they give up.”
Isn’t this match-fixing, @FIDE_chess? Dubov & Nepo were double forfeited last year for pre-arranging a draw, why wasn’t similar action taken this time around? pic.twitter.com/WjyteaztLi
— Abhiraj (@mytywarriorking) January 1, 2025
A video showed Magnus Carlsen joking with Ian Nepomniachtchi that if FIDE did not agree to let them split the World Blitz title, they could just keep “playing out short draws until FIDE give up.”
The joke raised temperatures on social media with players like Hans Niemann and Srinath Narayanan and chess legend Susan Polgar calling it out for impropriety.
Magnus had clarify his stance on the X. He wrote, “I’ve never prearranged a draw in my career. In the video I’m joking with Ian in a situation with lacking decisive tiebreak rules. This was obviously not an attempt to influence FIDE.
I’ve never prearranged a draw in my career. In the video I’m joking with Ian in a situation with lacking decisive tiebreak rules. This was obviously not an attempt to influence FIDE. It was said in the spirit that I thought FIDE would agree to our proposal. If anything it was a… https://t.co/5y6cGwmzGf
— Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) January 1, 2025
“It was said in the spirit that I thought FIDE would agree to our proposal. If anything it was a bad joke given the gravity of the situation.
“I think the match itself showed two players playing high level chess, equally matched and both deserving of a win.”
No player is above the game. FIDE’s decision will define chess’s future. I hope they choose the right side of history. https://t.co/00FpYLut11
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) January 2, 2025
FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky has lambasted Carlsen in a long post.
“FIDE also won’t keep silent. At least I won’t – and I am there to stay for quite some time,” he wrote.
Niemann replied to Sutovsky: “No player is above the game. FIDE’s decision will define chess’s future. I hope they choose the right side of history.”
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