Carlsen challenges rest of chess world to unseat him from No 1 position: ‘It’s up to others to make a run’

Magnus Carlsen has ruled the sport of chess for a decade-and-a-half now, having occupied the No 1 slot since July 2011, and could end up breaking the legendary Garry Kasparov's record as the player with the longest consecutive time as the highest-rated player in the world.

The Norwegian Grandmaster had opted out of the World Championship cycle shortly before his title defence in 2023, after being crowned world champion five times in a row. Carlsen, however, shows no sign of losing his spot at the top of the Fide ratings across formats anytime soon despite being semi-retired from Classical chess for the last four years.

Speaking at a recent press conference on the eve of Norway Chess, which currently is underway in Oslo, Carlsen not only reiterated the fact that his attention is now fixed on the faster Rapid and Blitz formats, it's also up to his rivals to try and "make a run" and unseat him from the No 1 spot in the Classical ratings.

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"So there is at least some data to suggest that the rating that I have now is fairly reasonable," said Carlsen, who is chasing a record-extending eighth Norway Chess title.

"And then, yeah, to kind of maintain that level, the times that I play classical, it's kind of up to the others to make a run... and get that first place on the world rankings.

"That's for my priorities. I generally prefer faster formats, at least like a steadier diet of that, but I enjoy everything," he added.

Not chasing records anymore, insists Carlsen

Carlsen needs to stay at the No 1 spot for another five years to break Kasparov's all-time record of 20 years as world No 1. The Norwegian GM, however, insists he's not chasing records anymore.

"I think the one time I talked about getting a record, it was 2900, and that didn't go very well. I'm kind of giving up that hope. So other records, I don't know, I don't play a ton of classical chess.

"But it seems that ever since the Qatar Masters in 2013, all of my performances have been in the same range kind of. Now it's about the right doses," Carlsen continued.

As for the ongoing tournament, Carlsen's title defence began on a shaky note with a stunning defeat at the hands of Alireza Firouzja – whom he lost to for the first time in his career. Reigning world champion D Gukesh and fellow Indian R Praggnanandhaa, on the contrary, had surged ahead by winning their Armageddon encounters after playing out draws against Vincent Keymer and Wesley So respectively.

Also Read | Carlsen admits 'failing' in Firouzja's tests as world No 1 begins Norway Chess 2026 with resounding loss

The home favourite, however, bounced back the very next round by beating Keymer in their Armageddon face-off after a draw in their Classical game.