November 22, 2024

Sigrun Øen, Mother Of Magnus Carlsen, Passes Away At 61

Sigrun Øen in St. Louis with Magnus, Henrik, and Peter Heine Nielsen at the 2017 Sinquefield Cup. Photo: Lennart Ootes.

Sigrun Øen (1963-2024), a chemical engineer and the mother of 16th World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen, passed away in Oslo on Tuesday at the age of just 61. She died peacefully with her family around her after suffering a long illness.

Sigrun was the mother of the former world chess champion and three daughters, Ingrid, Ellen, and Signe, and the husband of Henrik. Ellen shared the news of her mother’s death in a Facebook post that linked to a memorial page: “My dear, good mother and the children’s grandmother passed away far too soon. The loss is great.”

On the page Henrik writes: “Farewell my dear irreplaceable Sigrun. Thank you for everything for more than 41 years.”

The sad news explains Carlsen’s withdrawal from the Grand Chess Tour event in Croatia.

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