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Old video of 13-year-old Magnus Carlsen's 'bored' reaction against World Champion Garry Kasparov goes viral

This special chess match and what happened around it are part of a documentary called 'The Prince of Chess.' 

Old video of 13-year-old Magnus Carlsen's 'bored' reaction against World Champion Garry Kasparov goes viral
Magnus Carlsen (L) against Garry Kasparov

Last Updated: 06.49 PM, Aug 24, 2023

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Magnus Carlsen, who went on to win the Chess World Cup 2023 against India's R Praggnanandhaa, has an old video of him doing the rounds on social media. On X, formerly known as Twitter some fans post a video of a young 13-year-old Carlsen getting 'bored' while playing against then-World Champion Garry Kasparov.

One of Magnus Carlsen's most memorable chess moments happened when he was just 13 years old and faced the Russian chess legend Garry Kasparov at a tournament called Reykjavik Rapid in 2004. 

Even though he was very young, Magnus played against the former world champion and the game ended in a draw.

This special chess match and what happened around it are part of a documentary called 'The Prince of Chess.' 

The documentary was released in 2005 and it told the story of Magnus Carlsen, who had become the youngest Grand Master in chess by that time. 

In the documentary, fans could see how Magnus got ready to play against Kasparov in a quick chess game at the tournament. However, Kasparov was late to the table for the game, and it captured the nervous moments that Magnus experienced while waiting. 

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The young Grand Master was seen waiting at the table and even walking around the playing area while waiting for the match to start.

"When I was waiting for Kasparov, I thought, ‘I wish he would turn up soon.’ Then I just tried to keep calm," the 13-year-old Magnus had said.

In the documentary, it was also shown how the young Norwegian teenager tried to pass his time in different ways as he sipped from a glass that seemed to hold a soft drink, went to have a look at the pages of a book and watched other games being played.

Finally, after the famous chess player arrived, the game began and Magnus played with the white pieces and made the first move. 

Since this was a fast game, they also had to be mindful of the time. Magnus took his time but kept challenging the former world champion. In the end, the game ended in a draw. 

This was a big achievement for Carlsen as the 13-year-old genius saw a bright start to his career. As time went on, Carlsen became the world champion about nine years later, in 2013, after beating India's Viswanathan Anand. He also reached the highest rating ever in chess history.

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