Magnus Carlsen claimed his sixth World Rapid Championship title with a score of 10.5/13, finishing a full point ahead of the field. The women’s crown went to Aleksandra Goryachkina, who defeated Zhu Jiner in a blitz playoff.
The 2025 FIDE World Rapid concluded in Doha on Sunday evening with new World Champions in both the Open and the Women’s competitions.
After a stumble on day two, Magnus Carlsen came back on the final day of the rapid in full force, scoring three consecutive victories – against Sarana, Niemann and Erdogmus. The Norwegian entered the final round with a one-point lead over Vladislav Artemiev and Hans Niemann. Facing Anish Giri as White, he quickly drew, which was enough for Carlsen to claim his sixth crown in the World Rapid (2014, 2015, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2025).
“It was a big field with a lot of strong players. The serious advantage that I have is that I play for first place when I’m appearing here, while most other players are thinking about getting a good prize and maybe a medal. That gives me a huge psychological advantage,” said Carlsen after his victory.
When asked to compare this Rapid crown to the previous five, Carlsen remarked: “What stands out is that I managed to beat everyone who is not a top player, something I’m very happy with. Overall, except for the start on day two, which was horrendous, everything else was really good for me here.”
The second place in the World Rapid was shared by four players, all on 9.5 points: Vladislav Artemiev, Arjun Erigaisi, Hans Niemann, and Leinier Dominguez Perez. Artemiev – the only player to defeat Carlsen in the event – took silver, while Arjun Erigaisi claimed bronze. Hans Niemann missed out on a medal by 0.5 Buchholz points (a tie-breaking system in chess that ranks players based on the sum of points of all of their opponents in the tournament).
In the Women’s Rapid, three players were tied for the lead before the final round: Zhu Jiner, Aleksandra Goryachkina, and defending champion Humpy Koneru, all on 8/10 points. In Round 11, both Zhu and Goryachkina drew their games. Koneru, the only leader with a chance to take sole first place, had a completely winning endgame against compatriot Shri B. Savitha but misplayed in time trouble, allowing Savitha to escape with a draw.
According to the regulations, in case of a tie for first place, only the top two players (based on tiebreaks) went to the playoff finals. To Koneru’s misfortune, she wasn’t one of them.
Instead, Goryachkina and Zhu contested two blitz games. Goryachkina quickly won the first and drew the second to secure the title. This is the first World Rapid crown for Goryachkina, who was the World Champion challenger in 2020 in classical time control.
Zhu Jiner, who led for most of the tournament, finished in second place. After winning gold in New York in 2024, Humpy Koneru takes home the bronze medal from Doha.
The action continues on Monday, December 29, with the start of the two-day World Blitz Championship in both the Open and Women’s categories.
Written by Milan Dinic
Photos: Anna Shtourman and Lennart Ootes
Where to follow: The action can be followed live on the FIDE YouTube Channel, featuring expert commentary by GMs Maurice Ashley, Peter Leko and IM Jovanka Houska.
About the event: The FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2025 are taking place in Doha, Qatar from 25 to 30 December, bringing together the world’s elite chess talent for a thrilling end-of-year showdown. Held at the Sports and Events Complex, Qatar University, this edition features both Open and Women’s events in Rapid and Blitz formats, with a total prize fund of over €1,000,000. Doha returns as host after nine years, underscoring Qatar’s growing stature in the chess world.
Official website: worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/
