The teenage chess player reported by world No1 Magnus Carlsen for breaking the rules after the pair took a selfie has thanked the grandmaster and insists she has ‘no hard feelings’ about the incident.
Kazakh chess prodigy Alua Nurman, 18, asked five-time world champion Carlsen for a selfie before the two went head to head at a major chess tournament in Germany.
Carlsen, 35, agreed to the picture, leaning across the board and smiling alongside his opponent.
However, after the snap, the Norwegian got up, found a judge and reported Nurman for having a mobile phone at the table. She was then made to hand over the device.
The incident – which was captured in a video shared online – occurred at the Grenke Chess Festival, where electronic devices are prohibited to mitigate cheating.
It has since sparked debate among chess fans, with some highlighting the mobile phone ban applies to all players and others arguing Carlsen was overly pedantic.
However, Nurman – who went onto take silver in the event’s women’s category – has said she holds ‘no hard feelings’ toward the grandmaster for his decision, and is grateful to him for potentially saving her from disqualification.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, she said it was solely a ‘professional moment.’
She said: ‘Magnus agreed to the selfie without hesitation and did not ask any questions.
‘Before we took the selfie, I clarified with the arbiter if I could keep my phone for the photo and they said it was fine, but they also wanted to make sure everything was fair and there were no distractions.
‘However, a few minutes after the selfie, before the game started, Magnus asked the arbiter to remove my phone from my bag. He did not say anything to me and the phone was then confiscated.
‘It was the right decision by Magnus, as if my phone was not turned off or made a noise, I would have got a forfeit.
‘It was a bit of a surprising moment and it happened so suddenly. But after I was completely fine with it and the game went on smoothly.
‘Magnus is my true inspiration and a living legend to me. It was a pure joy to play against him.
‘For me, it was a professional moment and I have no hard feelings at all.’
Nurman, who was ultimately beaten by Carlsen in the freestyle chess tournament, added it was ‘surprising’ that he got backlash in the wake of the incident.
She said: ‘The game was interesting and a great fight.
‘Magnus is a respectable player, and it was surprising that he got hate after the selfie.
‘I hope everything will now stabilise and this will be a memory in the future.’
Yet this is not the only time a match involving Carlsen has ended in drama.
Only last year, the grandmaster was captured pounding his fist on the table after losing to Gukesh Dommaraju at a game in Stavanger, Norway.
Carlsen caused the entire table to shake when faced with 19-year-old Dommaraju’s victory.
It came as he committed a blunder that handed the Indian world champion a decisive advantage.
After apologising to Dommaraju, Carlsen then exclaimed ‘oh my god!’ before patting his opponent on the back and storming off.
In December 2024, he also quit a major championship after being told he could not wear jeans when participating.
Carlsen was in New York defending his World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship titles when governing body FIDE made the request.
He said he offered to change his trousers for the following day, but was fined and told he needed to change his attire straight away.
The grandmaster then pulled out of the championships and was issued a $200 fine by the governing body, whose offer to change into the correct clothing was rejected.
When told he could not continue in the games, Carlsen reportedly responded with: ‘I’m out, f*** you.’
And in recent years, he has been embroiled in a $100 million libel lawsuit after chess prodigy Hans Neimann accused him of cheating in a tournament.
Niemann, who was 19 at the time, filed the lawsuit in US District Court for Missouri in 2022, accusing Carlsen of slander.
However, the case was ultimately dismissed when Judge Audrey G. Fleissig dismissed the federal antitrust claims in Niemann’s lawsuit with prejudice, and declined to accept jurisdiction over the suit’s libel and slander claims.
