The Norwegian grandmaster and 16th world champion, Magnus Carlsen, triumphed over American player Hans Niemann in the 11th round of the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship taking place in Doha, Qatar.

With this victory, Carlsen has moved to the top of the championship standings, surpassing Russian player Vladislav Artemiev. With two rounds remaining, the Norwegian leads Artemiev by half a point. Just yesterday, on December 27, Artemiev defeated Carlsen in the 7th round of the championship.

This is not the first time Doha has hosted the World Rapid Championship. The city previously held the tournament in 2016. Back then, Ukrainian player Vasyl Ivanchuk claimed the gold in rapid chess, while Russian grandmaster Sergey Karjakin topped the blitz event. Additionally, Ukrainian Anna Muzychuk won both women’s tournaments with different time controls.