An Argentine 10-year-old boy named Faustino Oro did the impossible by beating Magnus Carlsen in a game of bullet chess.

In bullet chess, players usually only have one minute to make all their moves. Given the time constraint, moves don’t necessarily need to be the best, but they must surprise the opponent with rapid, unexpected tactics to succeed.

Carlsen has long held the first position in FIDE’s chess rankings and received the world champion title in classical, rapid, and blitz chess. However, the 33-year-old Norwegian player was beaten by a child during an online game on March 23.

Faustino live-streamed the special moment on his YouTube account, sharing his screen as he took on his prestigious rival on the Chess.com platform. 

A 10-year-old boy surprised the chess community after beating 33-year-old world champion Magnus Carlsen in a game of bullet chess

Image credits: Chess.com ES

The 10-year-old found himself with an advantage towards the end of the game, saying, “If I lose this, I can retire from chess.”

Ultimately, Carlsen ended up retiring from the game after realizing he was in an unwinnable position.

After a sign appeared on his screen announcing that he had won, Faustino celebrated the achievement with an adorable dance.

His swift moves achieved a 90% precision score, according to the Spanish Chess.com YouTube channel.

Faustino Oro live-streamed his achievement from his YouTube channel

Image credits: Chess.com ES 

Faustino began playing chess online when he was only six years old.

In a social media post, Chess.com congratulated the “Golden Boy,” nicknaming him the “Messi of chess” as a reference to the famous Argentine football player.

Magnus Carlsen has received the world champion title in classical, rapid, and blitz chess

Image credits: Magnus Carlsen

The Argentine boy was nicknamed the “Messi of chess”

The 10-year-old “Golden Boy” Faustino Oro beat Magnus Carlsen yesterday in a bullet game!

Messi of chess 🏆🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/eVDGqGjxFl

— Chess.com (@chesscom) March 25, 2024

“I never get tired. I sometimes need to take a break, but I’m never tired of playing,” he explained.

Though he admitted that he was a “bad player” during his first experience with the game, Faustino said he improved after each tournament.

“I try to learn from my mistakes. I’ve never been afraid to lose. If I lose a game, I accept it.”

When asked a month ago what the outcome of a game against Magnus Carlsen would be if the Norwegian grandmaster gave him the chance to have two extra pawns, the Argentine boy responded, “I don’t know. I think he would win, but maybe we would reach a stalemate [draw].”

People reacted to the 10-year-old’s impressive win

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