Magnus Carlsen has publicly announced that he will not play in the 2024 Candidates tournament. Can he change his mind at all? Is there a deadline to decide whether or not to play in the Candidates? If so, when is the deadline?
1 Answer
After the FIDE world on 16th August 2023 in Baku, Azerbaijan, Magnus announced that he would not compete for the world title:
"Under the current format there is absolutely no chance. I think everybody should operate under the assumption that I will not play at the Candidates and that everybody else who is in the semifinals is qualified for the Candidates,"
While he has continued to play chess at the highest levels, he has not contested the world championship title since winning against Nepomniachtchi in November 2021, that and his announcement of 16th August 2023 make it highly improbable he will change his mind.
The pathways to contest the world title match are as given by FIDE here and in addition a helpful page here
The deadline in practice would equate to the date when the full lineup of the Candidates 2024 tournament is announced.But, Magnus could still in theory join in on the candidates Tournament in Toronto, Canada in April 2024 and after that when there are pathways open to him for example by way of contingency (with players dropping out) and as mentioned in the comments by virtue of having the highest Elo rating of all FIDE professionals.
However, this by no means a realistic prospect.
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The deadline in practice would equate to the date when the victor of the Candidates 2024 is announced : do you mean when the line-up of the Candidates is announced ? Obviously it is too late to compete when there is already a victor...– EvargaloCommented Nov 13, 2023 at 8:56
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@ Evarglo :Yes & No : In the event of a player dropping out of the Candidates lineup and indeed even more speculatively after the "winning candidate" is anounced coupled with unlikely change of mind by Magnus he could still step in late ( this is an unlikely scenario ! ) which is by no means a realistic prospect .– schweppzCommented Nov 13, 2023 at 20:19