Ian Nepomniachtchi: the challenger who tried it twice

In recent chess history, the name Ian Nepomniachtchi — “Nepo” to everyone — appears twice in a row next to the same phrase: World Championship finalist. He was challenger in 2021 (against Carlsen) and again in 2023 (against Ding Liren). Losing the world’s most important match twice could define a career; for Nepo, what defines him is having gotten there twice, with a style as brilliant as it is volatile.

Who is Nepomniachtchi

He was born on 14 July 1990 in Bryansk, an industrial city in southwestern Russia. He learned to play as a child and progressed through the Russian chess system, which in the 2000s was still one of the most demanding in the world. At 18 he was already a Grandmaster.

What Nepo had from a young age was an uncommon tactical creativity: he saw combinations others didn’t, played boldly even when the position called for caution. That trait would make him legendary on the circuit; it would also cost him games at the most important moments.

The elite circuit and the two Candidates

Nepo took a while to settle in the world top 10 — he spent years between 15th and 25th place while winning minor tournaments and performing erratically — until in 2018-2019 he made the definitive leap.

In 2020 (played in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), he won the Yekaterinburg Candidates Tournament and became Magnus Carlsen’s official challenger. It was the first time a Russian had challenged for the title since the Karpov-Kasparov era.

After losing that match, he won the 2022 Madrid Candidates Tournament and became challenger again. Twice in the same cycle. An unprecedented achievement in the modern era.

Dubai 2021: the mistake that defined a match

The Dubai match against Carlsen was even until game 6, which became the longest in World Championship history (nearly 8 hours of play, 136 moves). Nepo held a solid position for hours, but at the moment of greatest resistance, he made a serious mistake.

Carlsen converted the advantage and won that game. What followed was an unprecedented psychological collapse: the Norwegian won the next four games with crushing clarity. The final score, 7.5-3.5, didn’t reflect the level of the match up to game 6. The question “what would have happened if Nepo had held that game?” remains unanswered.

Astana 2023: so close

The Astana match against Ding Liren was a different story. Without Carlsen’s weight — unbeatable in matches — and with Ding arriving with doubts about his form, Nepo had real chances. The match was even, erratic for both, with games of variable quality.

After 14 classical games: 6.5-6.5. Into the tiebreak. Nepo played well in the rapid games, but in the decider Ding found the key move and won the decisive game. The difference was minimal, but enough.

Nepo lost his second World Championship.

His chess DNA

In our chess DNA system, Nepo represents the high-voltage creative genius profile: aggression, top-level tactics, and an unpredictable style dangerous for any opponent. If your GM twin is Nepomniachtchi, your strength is in complicated positions where your creativity overwhelms the opponent; your biggest challenge may be consistency and solidity in moments where caution would be worth more than talent.

Keep exploring

• Magnus Carlsen, his rival in the 2021 Dubai match
• Ding Liren, who beat him in the 2023 Astana match
• Gukesh Dommaraju, the current world champion
• Alireza Firouzja, one of his most direct generational rivals
• All players