World Champion Gukesh calls Carlsen clash a 'fun challenge'

STAVANGER: The youngest world chess champion Gukesh Dommaraju arrived in Stavanger on Saturday for the most-awaited contest of the year at the Norway Chess 2025 scheduled to begin from 26 May here at the Sparebank 1 Sor-Norge headquarters.

For the first time since he was crowned the world chess champion, after beating Ding Liren in a best-of-14-game match in Singapore last year, the 18-year-old will face-off against World No 1 Magnus Carlsen in the classical format.

Speaking about taking on the Norwegian icon Carlsen in his backyard, Gukesh said, “I feel great being here (in Stavanger). I’ve had good memories from Norway. I am sure playing Magnus here in a classical game will be a fun challenge. Also, for the spectators, it is about the world champion versus the No 1 player in the world. It surely sounds very exciting so it’s surely something I am very happy to give, myself and the chess fans. And I hope it will be a treat.”

The last time Gukesh participated in Norway Chess was in 2023 where he finished third, securing the crucial FIDE Circuit points needed to qualify for the 2024 Candidates Tournament. This achievement made him the third-youngest player in history to qualify for a Candidates tournament, following in the footsteps of Bobby Fischer and Magnus Carlsen.

Elaborating on keeping up with the expectations particularly after his recent success, Gukesh said, “It is a new level. But when I see it as a challenge to prove to myself that I can handle this. Even though the expectations are high, I can meet them if I keep working hard and doing my best.”

India’s Arjun Erigaisi will also feature in the Norway Chess which will have one of the strongest line-up including Hikaru Nakamura (USA), Fabiano Caruana (USA), Wei Yi (China) and in Norway Chess Women 2025 Ju Wenjun (China), Lei Tingjie (China), Koneru Humpy (India), Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine), Vaishali R (India) and Sarasadat Khademalsharieh (Spain) will fight for top honours.