Carlsen, Magnus (Sven Magnus Øen Carlsen), 1990–, Norwegian chess player. He became a grandmaster in 2004 at age 13, becoming the youngest player to achieve this honor, and in 2006 he won his first Norwegian championship. In 2009 Carlsen bested a field of internationally renowned grandmasters to win the Nanjing Pearl Spring tournament, a Grand Slam event that some enthusiasts regard as one of the great contests in chess history. In Jan., 2010, at age 19, he was ranked as the world's number one chess player, the youngest player in the history of the game to be so ranked. Carlsen's play has been characterized as largely positional (or defensive), with similarities to Anatoly Karpov and José Capablanca. In 2013, he defeated defending champion Viswanathan Anand to win the International Chess Federation (FIDE) world championship, and has thrice defended (2014, 2016, 2018) that title.
See S. Agdestein, Wonderboy (2004); F. P. Miller et al., ed., Magnus Carlsen (2010); Ø. Asbjornsen, dir., The Prince of Chess (documentary film, 2005).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Games and Hobbies: Biographies
