Vachier-Lagrave and Assaubayeva are the 2021 World Blitz Champions

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave won the world title in blitz chess after beating Jan-Krzysztof Duda in a playoff. Alireza Firouzja scored as many points as MVL and Duda, but had an inferior tiebreak score. The women’s world title went to 17-year-old Kazakh star Bibisara Assaubayeva. | Photos: Rafał Oleksiewicz, Anna Shtourman / FIDE