Norwegian Wins Monopoly World Championship

Bjorn Halvard Knappskog of Norway has won the 2009 Monopoly World Championship. The 19-year-old student is the first world champion from Norway, and the youngest person ever to win the title. He was awarded a $20,580 prize, the amount of money included in the standard Monopoly game.

Entering the semi-finals, Knappskog was seeded 16th out of 16 players. He won at the final table in a game that involved the national champions from the United States, Russia, and New Zealand. Russian Oleg Korostolev and American Richard Marinaccio were eliminated first, setting up a showdown with Geoff Christopher of New Zealand.

"This was the best game in the tournament for me," Knappskog said. "I was really happy to be here whether I won or lost, but I'm also very happy to have won."

The first Monopoly World Championship was held in 1973. This year's event was held in Las Vegas and featured 42 players.

More information is available at Monopoly.com and at the Monopoly World Championships YouTube Channel.

More About Monopoly:

• How to Win Monopoly
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Most Visited Monopoly Properties

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