World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen’s fiery reaction after losing to D Gukesh in Norway Chess here was probably because he saw his authority in the game being challenged by someone so young, feels five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand, who also indicated that FIDE could discuss the incident "very soon”.
Frustrated by the loss to Gukesh in Round 6 of Norway Chess, Carlsen slammed his fist on the table, sending the pieces flying all over before shouting “Oh my God” and leaving the playing arena in a hurry, as millions of followers across the world watched the spectacle – some bewildered, some bemused.
Anand, who is known for his calm demeanour and gentlemanly style, said the 34-year-Norwegian desperately wanted to win against the Indian world champion and “draw some line in the sand”. "But beating Gukesh mattered a lot to him. In this game against Gukesh, I think something he wanted to establish. He wanted to draw some line in the sand and tell all these kids 'hang on a few years’, whatever. But this meant a lot. I think a 2-0 (win against Gukesh) here, he would have been very, very happy,” Anand said on the sidelines of Norway Chess.
The fact that he lost from a winning position perhaps exacerbated the frustration, opined Anand, who is International Chess Federation’s (FIDE) deputy president and is here for broadcasting commitments as well. “Against any opponent on earth, he would have hated losing such a good position. I mean to miss that the knight comes back. I felt exactly the same way when I blew my game against Magnus three years ago in 2022 in Norway,” added Anand.
Anand averred that several factors could have been responsible for the meltdown. “Certainly, the game meant a lot to him and he came close and he slipped, but it could also be fatigue. It could be this new time control in Norway Chess. Here we have this thing where we have Classical chess and then we have a sudden-death Armageddon tie-break,” he said.
The chess legend added that he had seen “enough anger” on the table during his playing career to call it an aberration. “Yes, I’ve seen enough anger. All this has been around for a while, people screaming and cursing. I think it was in Delhi (2000 World Championship), where after his game with Estonia’s Jaan Ehlvest, Vassily Ivanchuk threw a chair across. So, the only difference is the camera, not the incident. And, the other thing I would say is that this game between Gukesh and Carlsen was very intense. I mean, maybe Magnus isn’t that excited about classical chess, but he’s certainly taken on Gukesh in the format,” Anand said.
Anand hinted that the issue will be discussed by FIDE, when asked if soft warnings might be necessary in the future for such actions. “Laws mean definitions. It gets tricky. I guess it will come up in FIDE discussions,” he said.
Chess in Olympics?
On whether he foresees chess being included in the Olympic programme sometime in the near future, Anand said FIDE was “trying hard” to liaise with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and he hoped it could be there in some form or the other. “Yes, I very much hope so. I don’t know if, at some point, the IOC decides various forms of engagement, either through esports or through the regular games and something. But we are trying very hard in that area," said Anand.
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