But it is not the only sport or pastime to enjoy such a surge. In October 2020, The Queen’s Gambit became a hit on Netflix, based on the 1983 novel about a female chess prodigy, played by Anya Taylor-Joy, who rises to become the greatest player in the world.
It resulted in a massive swell in interest for chess. Retailers reported sales for chessboards were up as much as 1,000%, according to The New York Times, while new sign-ups to chess.com, one of the world’s biggest online chess websites, were seven times greater than usual.
But it was not only the general public who entered 2021 with a heightened interest in playing chess, which, along with golf and padel, has become one of the major new hobbies for F1 drivers this year.
Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr are the two drivers who have taken chess the most seriously this year. As well as excelling on-track as team-mates, helping lead Ferrari to third place in the constructors’ championship ahead of…
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