Chess cheating saga continues as Magnus Carlsen quits Niemann rematch after one move

The strangest ongoing saga in sport has taken another twist, after chess legend Magnus Carlsen quit a rematch against Hans Niemann just one move in.

If you’ve not been across it, chess has been rocked by bizarre cheating revelations over recent times.

Niemann has emerged as one of biggest prospects in the game over the past two years and he previously ended Carlsen’s 53-game unbeaten streak.

The success has led to plenty of speculation about him, and things took a turn when Carlson took the decision to withdraw from a tournament involving Niemann without fully explaining why.

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Things took another very unexpected turn after player Eric “ChessBrah” Hansen tried to claim that Niemann was cheating by having signals conveyed to him via 'anal beads'. It gained traction after it was circulated online and the likes of Elon Musk commented on the rumours.

Now, Carlsen has resigned in protest after making just one move during the rematch against Niemann.

He took the organisers of the Julius Baer Generation Cup by surprise after he signed off from the virtual game and left the stream of the match which was playing out over Microsoft Teams and on the online chess platform Chess24.

Carlsen didn’t say a word as he left the match, and the commentators were left stunned by his actions.

Carlsen is one of the most celebrated names in the game of chessDean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

“What?,” announcer Peter Leko said, visibly shocked. “No. No. What happened? That’s it?”

His co-announcer Tania Sachdev added: “What? We’re going to try to get an update on this. Magnus Carlsen just resigned. Got up, and left. Switched off his camera, and that’s all we know right now.”

“Wow. Speechless,” Leko added.

Niemann: I Have NEVER Cheated Over The Board | Round 5www.youtube.com

“This is unprecedented. I just, I can’t believe it. Did that just happen, Peter? Magnus just refusing to play against Hans. He will play the tournament, but he is saying I will not play the game against him. That’s making a very big statement,” Sachdev added.

Who knows where this outrageous saga will take the game of chess next…