Carlsen Wins First Leg of the Grand Chess Tour; Takes Home $40,000 Prize

The first leg of the Grand Chess Tour (GCT) came to a thrilling conclusion on Sunday, May 12 as five-time World Champion and World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen beat tournament leader Grandmaster (GM) Wei Yi to win Superbet Poland Rapid & Blitz and $40,000 for the first place finish.

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The first leg of the Grand Chess Tour came to a thrilling conclusion on Sunday, May 12 as five-time World Champion and World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen beat tournament leader Grandmaster Wei Yi to win Superbet Poland Rapid & Blitz and $40,000 for the first place finish. (Photo: Business Wire)

“Congratulations to Magnus Carlsen for his win at the Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland, and a big shoutout to all the players for their incredible games! We're looking forward to hosting the Superbet Chess Classic in Bucharest this June. For our Foundation, investing in chess means investing in people. Events like the Grand Chess Tour inspire individuals from all walks of life to start playing chess, and this is truly remarkable,” said Augusta Dragic, President of the Superbet Foundation.

Carlsen delivered a brilliant performance which included ten blitz wins in a row, defeating each of his competitors before overtaking Wei Yi in the final standings.

“I knew if I had a good day that I’d have a chance. I felt calmer today and knew that I’ve done this before. It was an incredible performance by Wei Yi, and I was fortunate to win again today. I’m grateful to everyone who supports me from near and far,” said Carlsen.

Wei Yi finished in second and received $30,000 for his efforts. The Superbet Poland Rapid & Blitz final standings are as follows:

“It was very exciting, and I want to congratulate Magnus with another win. It was an exciting win for him and for the Grand Chess Tour. We look forward to having him play in the SuperUnited Croatia Rapid & Blitz in July,” said Michael Khodarkovsky, GCT Executive Director.

The GCT, a leading global circuit of international chess tournaments featuring the world’s best players, continues next month starting on June 24 in Bucharest, Romania for the Superbet Romania Classic – the first classical event in the 2024 tour.

Sponsored by the Superbet Foundation, the tournament will feature a 10-player round-robin format and a total of $350,000 in prizes. Fans can catch all the action with GMs Yasser Seirawan, Evegeny Miroshnichenko and Cristian Chirila along with International Master (IM) Jovanka Houska on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s Twitch and YouTube channels.

The remaining 2024 tour schedule will include:

• Superbet Romania Classic: June 24-July 6, 2024 in Bucharest, Romania
• SuperUnited Croatia Rapid & Blitz: July 8-15, 2024 in Zagreb, Croatia
• Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz: August 10-17, 2024 in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
• Sinquefield Cup: August 17-31, 2024 in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA

Tour participants are competing for an overall tour prize fund of $1.5 million over the course of the 2024 season. Total cash prizes for each of the two classical tournaments will be $350,000 and $175,000 per event for rapid and blitz. In addition, a bonus prize fund totalling $275,000 will be awarded at the end of the 2024 season.

The prize fund is provided by the 2024 GCT major sponsors Superbet Foundation and the Saint Louis Chess Club, both non-profit organizations that support chess education and the mission to expand the game of chess globally.

For more information, visit grandchesstour.org.

Grand Chess Tour

Grand Chess Tour is a circuit of international events, each demonstrating the highest level of organization for the world's best players. The legendary Garry Kasparov, one of the world's greatest ambassadors for chess, inspired the Grand Chess Tour and helped solidify the partnership between the organizers. All Grand Chess Tour 2024 events will comply with local and regional COVID-19 restrictions. For more information about the tour, please visit grandchesstour.org.

Superbet Foundation

The Superbet Foundation, a non-profit organization, is responsible for coordinating the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives of the Superbet Group. Our goal is to support the advancement of health, education, and sports initiatives, with a special emphasis on promoting the game of chess and its myriad benefits within all the communities we serve.

Saint Louis Chess Club

The Saint Louis Chess Club is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that is committed to making chess an important part of our community. In addition to providing a forum for the community to play tournaments and casual games, the club also offers chess improvement classes, beginner lessons and special lectures. Recognizing the cognitive and behavioral benefits of chess, the Saint Louis Chess Club is committed to supporting those chess programs that already exist in area schools while encouraging the development of new in-school and after-school programs. For more information, visit saintlouischessclub.org.

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