– He is an extraordinary talent. Clear. It’s not unusual to be a grandmaster when you go to school in NTG.

NRK met Simen Agdestein and Elham Amar on the chess line at NTG in Bærum.

The 18-year-old chess student quickly became the talk of the Norwegian chess community after his impressive results online and across the board.

The big game didn’t just earn him the title of true grandmaster. According to Agdestein and Chess.com journalist Tarjei Svensen, Amar also occasionally destroys the top list of the fastest branches on the Chess.com site.

– You are ranked as one of the best in the world online. I can say that for sure, Agdestein said, looking at the student who is a self-taught chess player.

– About 3,000 in online rankings

According to Amar himself, he has achieved a rating of around 3000 on Chess.com. The point system on the website is different from the point system on the chessboard and is a few hundred points higher on average.

Stars like Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura are at best in the 3100-3200 range.

– Elham has been one of Norway’s best blitz players since he was 11-12 years old, so it’s no surprise that he also wreaks havoc online, says Svensen on Chess.com.

Currently, NRK has not been able to find Amar in any top lists on its website. Chess journalists believe things for a reason That is that great talent often switches accounts.

– Many of the best players play anonymously so they can test openings and the like that can’t be used in other preparations, Svensen said.

Met Niemann at a major tournament

It’s clear that Amar doesn’t really like talking about his own accomplishments on Chess.com. But he acknowledged that he had delivered solid results from the boys’ room.

– Yes, my online ranking is quite good, he said simply.

– You don’t really care about rankings?

– I don’t use online to be the best on the website. “I use it to get better in tournaments,” he answered.

The strategy seems to be working. In a short time, Amar went from someone who was rarely invited to tournaments to receiving inquiries from organizers all over Europe. This week he plays the prestigious Grand Swiss Open tournament on the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea.

In the first game, he met world star Hans Niemann, who for a long time has often been discussed in conflict with world number one tennis player Magnus Carlsen.

– I can meet the strongest players in the world on the Isle of Man. I want to beat them. I want to win the tournament, laughs Amar.

– Do you have a chance to beat everyone?

– Yes of course.

– Faster than me in the head

Agdestein, who was Norway’s first grandmaster, is confident his pupil will go far. He says that players as young as 18 can benefit from having a truly unique playing style, which includes a number of modern and unusual variations of well-known chess openings.

– Elham usually tricks me. He’s much faster than me in terms of heads, so I usually do something stupid. He’s a dangerous type, says Agdestein, who rarely sees a player who knows as little about chess openings as Amar.

– He is relatively empty in openings. He is very good at being uneducated. There is huge potential.

Amar himself took the stamp of great talent with extraordinary poise. This summer he will finish at NTG.

He wasn’t sure where things would go next, but one thing was certain: He wouldn’t be studying anymore.

– School is boring. It’s more fun playing chess, said Amar.