World No. 1 hopes freestyle chess boosts game's profile

Magnus Carlsen has done it all in chess – the world No. 1 player has won five world titles, five world rapid golds, seven world blitz crowns and is the reigning World Cup champion.

- Melvyn Teoh

His peak rating of 2,882 is also the highest in the sport's history.

Considered one of the greatest chess players, the Norwegian is now moving on to a new challenge.

The 33-year-old is in town to launch his latest pet project, the Freestyle Chess World Championship Tour, on the sidelines of the Nov 25-Dec 13 Fide World Championship.

Freestyle chess is a form of the game where the pieces are randomised. The first and eighth ranks on the board where the king, queen, bishops, knights and rooks sit are randomised, with the pawns on the second and seventh ranks being the same as classical chess.

Speaking at the Ritz-Carlton Millenia on Nov 23, he told The Sunday Times: "I really hope that this can be a big part of the future of chess. Nowadays, everything is moving a bit quicker. In normal chess, quicker chess is becoming more and more important.

"What we're seeing as well is that the original format has been diluted because it's too analysed. So we really wanted to create something new. And I think this can be very exciting."