Magnus Carlsen Suffers Surprise Blitz Defeat to Bulgarian Chess Creator 'Witty Alien'

The 'shirtless guy' who shocked world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen, widely regarded as one of the greatest chess players ever, recently suffered a surprise defeat in a blitz game against Bulgarian chess creator Volen Dyulgerov, better known online as Witty Alien or the "shirtless guy" these days. The upset happened on September 30 during Chess.com’s first Chess Club Showdown.

Who is Witty Alien?

Dyulgerov, born in 1999, is a Candidate Master (CM) from Bulgaria. His highest FIDE rating was 2200, reached in 2023, while his rating stood at 2181 in September 2026. Although he is a decent over-the-board player, he has become much more popular through online chess and content creation. Known for his energetic personality, Witty Alien has built a following on YouTube and online chess platforms. Chess.com named him Creator of the Month in July 2024 and credited him with the popular Alien Gambit. His Chess.com blitz rating is around 2612, while Carlsen’s is about 3396, making the victory even more unexpected.

Magnus Carlsen was visibly stunned

The game, which ended in the five-time world champion visibly looking stunned after the defeat to the Bulgarian, was part of the Chess Club Showdown, a two-hour five-minute blitz event featuring nine chess clubs.

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Amateur players had the chance to face major stars such as Carlsen, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Anish Giri. Carlsen represented Team Liquid Chess Club, which finished second in the main arena with 2312 points. 9z Globant topped the standings with 2368 points and later won the final 53.5-45.5. Also Read: ‘Sometimes in chess, there are just these blind spots’: Nihal Sarin looks back at his Chess Olympiad loss to Uzbekistan | Exclusive Carlsen managed to win both of his games on board one during the final, but he had already suffered a defeat earlier in the event. That loss came against Witty Alien, who produced one of the biggest surprises of the tournament by taking down the world-class Norwegian in blitz.

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