STAVANGER (NORWAY): Viswanathan Anand drew with World champion Magnus Carlsen to tie for the seventh spot before Levon Aronian clinched the title in the 10-player Norway Chess 2017 here on Saturday.
Anand and Carlsen fought for 34 moves in Guico Piano. Anand, playing white, held a slight edge after the opening phase but Carlsen soon gained plenty of active play.
Carlsen sacrificed a pawn without gaining much compensation. Eventually, Anand repeated moves to ensure a draw after sensing the potential of black in the given position. The duo shared the seventh spot with Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave at four points.
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Aronian won the title with six points following a 59-move draw with Wesley So. In the end, only the kings remained on the board.
Earlier, Aronian’s nearest rival Hikaru Nakamura suffered his only loss after facing Fabiano Caruana. Vladimir Kramnik shared the second spot with Nakamura after dismissing Anish Giri in just 20 moves.
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Ninth round: Viswanathan Anand drew with Magnus Carlsen; Wesley So drew with Levon Aronian; Fabiano Caruana bt Hikaru Nakamura; Vladimir Kramnik bt Anish Giri; Sergey Karjakin drew with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.
Standings: 1. Levon Aronian (Arm, 6 points); 2-3. Hikaru Nakamura (USA, 5), Vladimir Kramnik (Rus, 5); 4-6. Fabiano Caruana (USA, 4.5), Wesley So (USA, 4.5), Anish Giri (Ned, 4.5); 7-9. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Fra, 4), Viswanathan Anand (4), Magnus Carlsen (Nor, 4); 10. Sergey Karjakin (Rus, 3.5).