Magnus Carlsen was the youngest player ever to win the title of World Chess Champion in 2012. Back then, the late CBS News correspondent Bob Simon interviewed the 21-year-old Norwegian prodigy. In light of Carlsen, now 25, having won his third consecutive World Chess Championship in New York City last week, 60 Minutes is airing “The Mozart of Chess” interview again (December 4).
[Magnus Carlsen Destroys Wall Street Wizard — Blindfolded]
The segment includes footage of Carlsen playing against 10 players with his back to them, unable to see the board. “He was able to blindly keep track of the 320 pieces and the infinite number of moves.” At the 2016 World Chess Championship (the first held in New York since 1995), Carlsen beat a new challenger, Russia’s Sergey Karjakin, who is 26. According to organizer’s website: “this is the first time that two players who have come of age in the computer era are fighting for the title and represent a generational shift in chess.” They claim 10 million people watched the championship online. 60 Minutes airs Sundays at 7pm on CBS.
