Hans Niemann slams GMHikaru for calling opponent’s family “crazies” after losing

Chess star Hans Niemann slammed GMHikaru after the latter lost to Alireza Firouzja and subsequently called his family “crazies”.

Chess grandmaster Alireza is the youngest player to have surpassed a FIDE rating of 2800 and showcased his proficiency during the 2024 Bullet Chess Championship.

He won four matches on the final day, taking home the title and defeating grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura.

And while Hikaru congratulated Alireza on X (formerly Twitter) after the match, a comment he made later has rubbed some in the chess community the wrong way — namely, Hans.

While streaming a chess game, Hikaru spoke with his chat about the championship and stated Alireza played “really, really well”, comparing his performance to that of “a God.”

He then went on to say, “Alireza cares a lot more about all these things. He, his dad, his brother — all those crazies care more about these things than I ever will, unfortunately.”

Hans wasn’t impressed by this label given to Alireza’s family, posting the clip to X and writing, “Why did you personally attack Alireza and his family after the match? Calling them ‘crazies’ seems like a pretty low blow and pretty poor sportsmanship.”

“How can you lose a match and then make personal attacks towards his family?” the chess star said after hearing Hikaru’s comments. “And he calls me immature? What does [Alireza] beating you have to do with his family?”

While Hikaru hasn’t responded to Hans’ comments, one viewer stated they didn’t think the grandmaster “meant it in a malicious way” and was instead “just poking fun after a dreadful match.”

Nonetheless, many felt Hikaru was acting like a “sore loser,” and one person wrote, “Hikaru is the only guy on earth who will repeatedly tell you that he does not care while having a public meltdown right there and then.”