The World Freestyle Chess Championship in Germany has come to an end, and at the end of the tournament there is both the expected scenario and good news for us: Magnus Carlsen once again rose to the top, and Nodirbek Abdusattorov returned with a medal.
In the final, Norwegian legend Magnus Carlsen defeated American Fabiano Caruana with a score of 2.5:1.5, becoming the 21st world champion in his career. This is another big step for Carlsen: even in such a delicate format as Freestyle, he has become a "school" for his opponents in terms of experience, managing emotions and getting out of difficult situations.
Two Uzbek grandmasters also participated in the tournament and were in the spotlight. The biggest joy came from Nodirbek Abdusattorov: he defeated the host country's Vincent Keimer 2.5:1.5 in the match for 3rd place and won the bronze medal. This result also brought him $40,000 in prize money. More importantly, the 21-year-old chess player also earned a ticket to the 2027 World Freestyle Championship. That is, this is not just a "success today" - this is an open door to the future.
For information, Abdusattorov lost to future champion Magnus Carlsen 1:3 in the semifinals. But such defeats are sometimes the best lesson: to come back even stronger at the same stage tomorrow.
Another Uzbek chess player, Javokhir Sindarov, lost to Levan Aroyan (USA), finishing the tournament in 8th place and was limited to $10,000 in prize money. This is not a bad result either - in Freestyle there are surprises in every game, it does not forgive a single mistake.
The conclusion is the same: Carlsen is the champion as usual, but the main signal for us is Abdusattorov's bronze and a ticket to 2027. The time is coming when the name of Uzbekistan will be heard more often in this format.
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