It was a distinct privilege for me to meet Russian grandmaster and former world chess champion Anatoly Karpov once in Nassau and subsequently in Curacao. Readers would recall that Karpov became world champion in 1975 on default when America’s Bobby Fischer failed to defend his championship title. It was an honour for me, therefore, to dine with the inimitable 12th world chess champion! At the end of last year, Karpov gave an in-depth interview to the Russian newspaper Sport Express. The interview was enlightening and explored topics associated with chess and some which weren’t, but which readers may still find captivating.
Here is an excerpt of the Sports Express interview:
SE: What was your most unusual New Year?
AK: I can remember the New Year that I celebrated the least. I spent the entire night from 1971 to 1972 playing chess. It was