Magnus Carlsen said yes. They bowed. He smiled, genuinely, it seemed, at the photographic evidence she later posted on Instagram. He then stood up, approached the tournament judges and asked them to confiscate his phone.
He also won the game.
Nurman is not a footnote here. She is ranked first among women under 20 years of age in the FIDE world rankings, Asian Blitz champion and silver medalist at the 2024 Chess Olympiad with Kazakhstan. In other words, she’s exactly the kind of young player chess needs people to know about: someone who beat everyone her age and then showed up in Germany to test herself against the best of all time.
The game, according to herself, was really exciting. That part got three likes.
The selfie reached the Internet.
Nurman’s title was Magnus is still Magnus. He said it warmly. Which somehow makes it more fun.