Who is Magnus Carlsen’s wife Ella Malone? All about Norwegian chess master’s personal life amid Gukesh loss

Magnus Carlsen, who announced his wife Ella Malone’s pregnancy last month, is making headlines for a different reason.

The Norwegian grandmaster faced a defeat during Round 6 of Norway Chess 2025 on Sunday, June 1, against Indian GM Gukesh Dommaraju. Carlsen immediately punched at the table before shaking hands with his opponent after losing the game. Magnus was visibly disappointed after his defeat but gave Gukesh a pat on the back in acknowledgment before storming off.

After the game, Dommaraju described his win as “just a lucky day,” stating he would lose “99 out of 100 times,” per Chess.com. Remarking on his first classical win against the Norwegian GM, who is considered one of the best chess players ever, Gukesh said (via Chess.com),

“I mean, [it was] not the way I wanted it to be, but okay, I'll take it.”

Despite his recent setback, 2025 has been great for Magnus Carlsen. Earlier this year, he married his girlfriend, Ella Malone. The pair tied the knot on January 4 in the Vestre Aker borough of Oslo, Norway. Their wedding ceremony took place at the famous Holmenkollen Chapel.

Ella Malone, the daughter of an American dad and a Norwegian mother, was born in Hong Kong. In a conversation with Askild Bryn and Odin Blikra Vea on their chess-centric “Sjakksnakk” podcast, she spoke about growing up, studying, and residing in various places across Southeast Asia (primarily Singapore), Norway, the USA, the UK, and more.

During the chat with the chess podcasters, Ella Malone revealed that apart from being Magnus Carlsen’s partner, she’s also his secretary and manages his schedule. She revealed,

“We work together. I manage his schedule and I talk to organizers and set up interviews and all the stuff so I mean it works really well. I'm not just sitting around uh at the hotel board you know twirling my fingers watching his games so I have, like, a lot to do, but honestly I love it. [...] I like the chess community. I love it.”

She has been quite supportive of her GM husband and has accompanied him at different events since early 2024. As mentioned, the pair is now expecting their first child.

Ella Malone was first seen publicly with Magnus Carlsen in February 2024

It is unclear when the Norwegian chess GM met and started dating his future wife, but they were first seen together publicly last year. In February 2024, Magnus Carlsen was in Weissenhaus, Germany, for the Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T. Challenge when he first stepped out with Ella Malone as a couple.

Talking about their first public appearance, Malone revealed on the Sjakksnakk podcast in January that their plan was not to be seen together, which, according to her, was a challenging task. She told Odin and Askild,

“There was one of these videos, I think, the first day we arrived at the playing arena. That… We get out of the car, the cameras are there, I'm going this way, but I don't know where to go. And then he's going that way, and then it was just like… It looked a bit strange so we decided, after that awkward moment, that we'd be together.”

Talking about what made her fall for her future husband, Ella Malone shared that Magnus was sweet and shy when she initially met him. She added that Carlsen is “incredibly intelligent” and said,

“He's just genuinely like he's a breath of fresh air. I don't think a lot of people know that. He's just so authentic and unapologetically himself and he inspires me and I love that about him.”

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Malone, who is expecting her first baby with Magnus, proclaimed that her husband is great with kids, especially his nephews. Ella asserted that the chess GM would be an amazing father.

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