GM Hans Niemann decisively beat fellow American 2700 GM Awonder Liang in a 12-game match in Paris, France. Niemann went undefeated throughout the fast-classical match, winning three games and securing a final 7.5-4.5 victory. The players competed at the Paris Blitz Society, and Niemann streamed the games live.
Niemann has played a series of matches against top grandmasters in the last couple of years (for instance, he took on GM Anish Giri in 2024), while Liang is taking on a series of challenge of his own this year. In the run-up to the FIDE Candidates Tournament, he beat GM Hikaru Nakamura 6-4 in a match in St. Louis.
Episode 3 Travel Series pic.twitter.com/73CYwC8LWi
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) April 13, 2026
That match featured two games with the same classical time control used in the Candidates, but in Paris Liang and Niemann played two classical games a day, taking advantage of new FIDE regulations allowing 60-minute games with a 30-second increment to count as classical. Commenting online, GM Levon Aronian, who is also expected to play a match vs. Liang, appreciated the format.Â
The match between my fellow Americans @HansMokeNiemann and @awonder676 is very exciting and i love the format, 2 short classical games a day, rated, winner takes it all! The tenacity of Hans is world class, while Awonder , by outplaying him is showing that he is capable of…
— Levon Aronian (@LevAronian) April 13, 2026
The first day of the match featured an accurate draw in game one and a missed opportunity for Liang in game two. Niemann then drew first blood in game three, when Liang passed up a repetition before blundering in the endgame.
The broadcast caught the decisive moment.
Chess is a heartbreaking game… pic.twitter.com/dJmn4dIDgQ
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) April 11, 2026
Liang took a quick repetition in game four and two more accurate draws followed in games five and six. Game seven was Liang’s best opportunity to catch up in the match, as he played a strong opening and reached a winning queen ending. However, one mistake allowed Niemann to escape with a draw.
Niemann kept up the pressure by winning game eight with Black, to take a two-point lead in the match.
It didn’t get any easier for Liang in the ninth game, as Niemann took over early and won the shortest decisive game of the event.
Niemann’s victory brought the score to 6-3 in his favor and Liang would need to win the remaining three games to tie the match. He did not push hard for a comeback, as the next game ended in a repetition after only 15 moves. With the match already decided, the players drew two more games on the final day, resulting in a final score of 7.5-4.5.
The prize fund for the match was a donation of $10,000 by the loser to a charity of the winner’s choice. Niemann hasn’t announced the recipient yet but has been taking recommendations on social media.
The loser of the match against Awonder donates 10k to the Winner’s choice. The match is far from over, but what charities would you recommend? I know Gift of Chess , Chess in the Slums, and Chess in the Schools do amazing work.
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) April 13, 2026
The match has also helped Niemann to climb the rating list, reaching a career-best rating of 2742 and the twelfth spot in the world rankings. Notably, this moves him ahead of world champion, Gukesh Dommaraju.
Liang stays as a member of the 2700-club, finishing the match with a rating of 2704, 31st in the world.