Reuters. Levon Aronian claimed his first Freestyle Chess Grand Slam title on Sunday (July 21), securing a victory over Hans Niemann in the final.
Aronian, 42, earned the $200,000 first prize after converting a dominant second game following an opening draw. Earlier in the week, he eliminated Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura in a series of decisive matches. Niemann, meanwhile, settled for the runner-up position and a $140,000 payout.
Carlsen defeated Nakamura in their third-place showdown, dubbed "El Chessico," to secure $160,000. The pair drew their first game, but Carlsen leveraged his position in the second to clinch the win. The result maintains Carlsen's lead in the overall Grand Slam Tour standings, despite falling short of the championship match in Las Vegas.
In other placement matches, Fabiano Caruana overcame Arjun Erigaisi 2-0 to take fifth place, while Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu edged Wesley So 1.5-0.5 to finish seventh.
