It was held in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands from 15–31 January 2021, but was not open to visitors ("online only").

The tournament was won by Jorden van Foreest, who defeated Anish Giri in an Armageddon playoff.

In his final round matchup against Radosław Wojtaszek, the arbiters suggested mid-game that the two move to a different table, irritating Firouzja.

[7][8] The game ultimately ended in a draw, and Firouzja placed fifth in the tournament with a score of 8/13 (+4-1=8).

Firouzja accepted the organizers' apology, but demanded a financial compensation for the incident as part of negotiations for his participation in 2022.