Magnus Carlsen commented on his game against Chinese GM Zhu Liner in the 5th round of TePe Sigeman & Co 2026. Magnus says his position was dangerous, and notes how he got lost during the game.

Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen

World's No. 1

“This game with Zhu Liner… It was incredibly shaky.

Early on, I thought I was doing everything right. But then I couldn’t figure it out and lost the thread of the game, and she completely outplayed me for a while there. I didn’t like what was going on at all. It was very dangerous for me.

I just feel really, really lucky I managed to survive. Where was the turning point? I have no idea! It was very difficult to calculate and I certainly was not capable…”

The TePe Sigeman & Co 2026 takes place from May 1 to 7, in Malmo, Sweden. The only female player, Chinese GM Zhu Liner, had an advantage in the game against Magnus Carlsen by move 20. Zhu made 1 mistake and 5 inaccuracies and lost the game. Liner played the game with 85.8 accuracy, while Carlsen’s was 92.1.

Credit: Peter Doggers