Armenian Grandmaster Shant Sargsyan, world No. 74, has defeated world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen in the seventh round of the 2026 FIDE World Rapid Team Chess Championship in Hong Kong, reports Zartonk Media.
After the game, Sargsyan said, “It was my dream,” and described the victory as one of the happiest days of his life.
The 24-year-old Sargsyan, who plays for Sky Chess, secured a remarkable victory over the 35-year-old Carlsen, the world No. 1 and the 16th World Chess Champion, who held the classical title from 2013 to 2023 and is competing for top-seeded WR Chess.
The tournament, organized by FIDE, opened on June 17 and runs through June 19 at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong, the first time the championship has been held in East Asia. It has brought together more than 40 teams and over 300 players from around the world, featuring elite grandmasters, top women players, rising stars, and amateur participants competing in a mixed team rapid format. The competition is played as a 12-round Swiss event with four rounds per day and six-player team matches.
The win stands as one of the most high-profile results of the tournament’s opening stretch and a notable reversal: just last year, Carlsen had defeated Sargsyan at the World Rapid Championship.
