...thought it is time to resuscitate this thread.
today starts a world championship match between a norwegian and a russian, carlsen vs karjakin.
they will play 12 games. most predict that carlsen should win w/o much effort since his rating is much higher.
both are 26, both were prodigies with kajakin becoming the youngest ever grand master at the age of 12 and 7 months... fisher for instance got his gm at 15. there are some curious details, both technical and political, that may interfere.
on the technical level, carlsen leads their personal score 5:1 in full-length games (with 15 or 16 draws). he also is considered irresistible when the position acquires clarity rendering itself to his superior analytical machinery. otoh, i believe karjakin leads magnus in their rapid chess score. he is also considered slightly superior (by some) when the game is still complex and full of options and uncertainties. as always at their level, the home preparation in terms of surprise openings will play a huge role. in that regard, thier support staff will be important. that's where the political dimension may play out.
if i am not mistaken, kasparov (who hates everything putin) is the member of the carlsen staff. on the other hand, per reuters, serhey was born in the part of ukraine (the crimea) that become russia 2 yo and he reportedly was very enthusiastic about the fact. also and incomprehensibly, b/c of the us sanctions, the current president of fide (a russian) could NOT be present in nyc at the opening.
i need to do more reading on who else is the member of each team.
i understand, one can follow the match live, i plan to, including a visit to the seaport district
http://nyc2016.fide.com/