Episode 2: The Players - Magnus Carlsen (Part 1)

Magnus Carlsen accused Hans Niemann of cheating at the 2022 Sinquefield Cup - but the story leading up to how he got there actually started over 30 years ago. Magnus was captivating the chess world way before this scandal: from breaking records and claiming his place among the greatest players of all time, to winning on and off the chessboard in poker and fantasy football, to selling a multi-million dollar website and app - Magnus is a cultural phenomenon. But like many phenomena, he’s not entirely…knowable. Even authors writing entire books about him can’t get an interview with the man himself (but we got an interview with one of those authors to talk about that). Hosts Jess and Ryan take it upon themselves to try and figure out why Magnus so publicly accused Hans Niemann of cheating, how he’s been allowed to behave like no other chess player possibly can…and what he stands to gain from the scandal.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode briefly mentions autoerotic asphyxiation (skip from 9:30 to 9:46), sexual abuse (27:30 to 29:00), and child abuse (turn this episode off at the 61-minute mark and pick up with the next episode). Please take care.

Hosted by good producer / bad chess player Jess Schmidt and first-time podcaster / good chess player Ryan Webb, this series explores the events leading up to and following the Sinquefield Cup cheating scandal and tries to unravel the truth of what really happened - or, failing that, what the heck these events could mean to chess.

Thanks for listening!

If you’d like to read a time-coded transcript of this or any other episodes, visit rookedpodcast.xyz/transcripts.

Written, hosted, and produced by Jess Schmidt and Ryan Webb.
Edited, mixed, and mastered by Jess Schmidt.
Music by Lorna Gildfedder.
Executive producers are Rooney and Indigo Schmidt-Webb (ruff, ruff! Awooooo!)

Featured in this episode:
Brin-Jonathan Butler, author of The Grandmaster: Magnus Carlsen and the Match That Made Chess Great Again
Bill Cole, The Mental Game Coach
David Franklin, Associate Professor of Law
James Canty III, FIDE Master and Chess Streamer
Mike Boyd, Youtuber
“Magnus Carlsen, World Chess Champion, is Kind of a Dick” https://www.vice.com/en/article/dpwy5w/magnus-carlsen-world-chess-champion-is-kind-of-a-dick
“On the Probability of Magnus Carlsen reaching 2900” https://arxiv.org/pdf/2208.09563.pdf
Best of Magnus Carlsen - Funniest Moments Part 1
Best of Magnus Carlsen - Funniest Moments Part 2
Magnus: "Why am I spending time playing classical chess which I find stressful and boring?"
Magnus Carlsen Strikes Back at Maurice Ashley! | 2017 Paris Grand Chess Tour
Magnus Carlsen: After No Rivals, Hikaru is my Second Main Rival
DRUNK Magnus Carl