NPR

The cheating scandal roiling the chess world has a new wrinkle

World champion Magnus Carlsen abruptly resigned after making a single move in his highly anticipated rematch with Hans Niemann. Calls have increased for an investigation.
Magnus Carlsen (left) and Hans Niemann face off at the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis on Sept. 4. The two had a rematch on Monday, but Carlsen only played one move before resigning from the game.

The cheating controversy gripping the world of elite chess was already enigmatic — but it deepened even more this week, when world champion Magnus Carlsen abruptly resigned after making a single move in his highly anticipated rematch with Hans Niemann.

Carlsen, 31, and Niemann, 19, were facing off in the Julius Baer Generation Cup roughly two weeks after Niemann defeated Carlsen — a win that was immediately thrown into question by a cryptic tweet from Carlsen that seemed to suggest Niemann was cheating.

The drama threw chess into a tizzy, and fueled

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