The decision announced Wednesday by Magnus Carlsen, the reigning world chess champion, to skip the chance to defend the crown in a match next year means that there will soon be a new titleholder.
And for chess, that could be the hard part. There is a real possibility that whoever wins next year’s world championship match, which will now be played between Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia, who won the candidates tournament earlier this month to become the prescribed challenger, and Ding Liren of China, who finished as runner-up, will be seen as an illegitimate, or at least severely diminished, champion.
Arkady Dvorkovich, the president of the International Chess Federation, the game’s governing body, acknowledged as much on Wednesday after Carlsen announced his decision to surrender the championship he has won five times.
“His decision not to defend the title is undoubtedly a disappointment for the fans and bad news for the spectacle,” Dvorkovich said in a statement released by the federation, which organized the world championship match. “It leaves a big void.”
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