Credit : X
Chess Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen has announced the auction of his world famous jeans to support a charitable cause. The Norway player wore the jeans during the FIDE World Rapid Championship in December 2024, where he forfeited the tournament after a heated argument with the competition’s organisers. In the upcoming auction, the highest bidder will take the legend’s jeans home, and the fund extracted from the sale will be used to support Big Brothers Big Sisters. Carlsen’s jeans became a cause of contention during the FIDE competition after an arbiter stepped in and asked the 34-year-old to change the jeans with pants and follow the dress code of the competition.
However, Carlsen refused to abide which led him to pay the penalty of $200. Carlsen looked stubborn as he didn’t change between the rounds. Noting Carlsen’s obstinate refusal, the tournament organisers had a conversation with him which resulted in a heated argument. Eventually, Carlsen left the competition and hit the headlines. Carlsen’s step drew a lot of attention as his jeans became a talking figure in the media circle.
Recently, Carlsen took to X and announced the auction. He wrote, “The forbidden jeans - can now be yours. I am auctioning my jeans. A sentence I never thought I would write. But here we are. All proceeds go to the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. *Game worn.”
Auction to take place on March 1
The auction will be organised on March 1 at eBay and the funds will be transferred to Big Brother Big Sisters, a non-profit organisation which assists children to build their future. The organisation will utilise the money to support youth to make a career in chess.
Carlsen beat American chess Grandmaster GM Nakamura in the grand final of the 2024 Chessable Masters. The star player achieved the victory against his American opponent in an hour. The Norwegian made a comeback in the match after a blunder that led Nakamura to tiebreaks. However, Carlsen didn’t lose hope and got the better of the 37-year-old despite sacrificing his queen.
