Intense Competition in the Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

Fighting for spots in the knockout: Carlsen and Abdusattorov lead in Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

The Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam kicked off with a bang as six rapid round-robin games were completed on the opening day. World Champion Magnus Carlsen and Nodirbek Abdusattorov emerged as joint leaders, both with an impressive 5/6 points.

Carlsen, the favorite in any tournament he enters, showcased his dominance with five wins but suffered a single loss to Indian GM Arjun Erigaisi. On the other hand, Abdusattorov, a late replacement for Hans Niemann, remained unbeaten with four wins and two draws to match Carlsen’s score.

French GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave is close behind the leaders with 4½ points, displaying a solid performance and remaining undefeated. GM Ian Nepomniachtchi follows on 4 points, keeping the pressure on as the tournament progresses.

However, at the bottom of the standings, Richard Rapport and Vidit Gujrathi find themselves in a tough spot with only 1 point each after six rounds. Reigning World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju and Germany’s Vincent Keymer are also under pressure with 1½ and 2 points respectively.

One of the standout moments of the tournament so far was Vidit Gujrathi’s falter on move 115 against Carlsen, where a drawn position suddenly turned into a win for the World Champion. Rapport also missed a big chance against Abdusattorov in a wild game that saw big swings in evaluation.

With the knockout stage looming, the competition is heating up as players fight for a spot in the next round. Stay tuned for more exciting chess action from Paris!