Praggnanandhaa scripts history, becomes 1st Indian to win Norway Chess title

Praggnanandhaa (Pic: IANS)

Indian chess celebrated another historic milestone on Friday as Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa became the first Indian player ever to win the prestigious Norway Chess title in Oslo.

The 20-year-old prodigy secured the championship by defeating Germany's Vincent Keymer in the final round, completing an extraordinary comeback campaign that will go down in tournament history.

The tournament featured an exceptional line-up, including world number one Magnus Carlsen, current world champion D Gukesh, Alireza Firouzja, and Wesley So, cementing its status as one of the most demanding competitions in world chess.

Praggnanandhaa's decisive last-day victory followed a sensational streak of wins against Firouzja, Carlsen, and Gukesh over the preceding four days of play. Notably, the young Indian also achieved a rare double victory over Carlsen during the event.

Heading into the final round trailing leader Wesley So by half a point, Praggnanandhaa knew that only a victory would maximise his title chances. Playing with the white pieces against Keymer, the Indian Grandmaster exploited his positional advantages to seal the crucial point.

The impressive performance earned him the maximum three points for a classical win, pushing his final score to 18 points and guaranteeing the tournament's top spot on the final leaderboard.

Meanwhile, Wesley So, who held the pole position before the final round, settled for a draw in his classical encounter against Alireza Firouzja. Though the American grandmaster later secured a victory in the Armageddon tiebreak to claim extra points, it was not enough to overtake the surging Indian. Firouzja ultimately wrapped up his successful Oslo campaign in third place.

Carlsen beats World champion, Gukesh

In the final match of the day, Magnus Carlsen secured a classical win against World Champion Gukesh. The Norwegian icon relentlessly pressed his advantage in a marathon battle to finish his home tournament on a high note before the local crowd.

With all ten rounds concluded, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu officially claimed the Norway Chess 2026 championship with 18 points. Wesley So finished as the runner-up with 17 points, while Alireza Firouzja rounded out the podium positions in third with 15.5 points, marking a glorious day for Indian sports.

(With ANI inputs)