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- "It's dangerous for leading chess players to go out in India — they'll tear them up for souvenirs"
"It's dangerous for leading chess players to go out in India — they'll tear them up for souvenirs"
Yan Nepomnyashchy, the strongest Russian chess player, has confidently won a major tournament in Moscow. The rating favorite scored seven out of nine points, beating his closest pursuers by half a point (Rapport, Esipenko, Matlakov, Lobanov, Tabatabai, Goganov, Niemann and Daneshvar) and winning important points in the overall standings of the FIDE Circuit – 2025. After graduating from the Aeroflot Open 2025, in an interview with Izvestia and Sport–Express, Jan spoke about his meeting with the 10th world champion Boris Spassky, his bright victory in New York and his attitude to the challenge from Hans Niemann.
"Niemann's slightly more balanced behavior would have been closer to me"
— How would you describe your fourth victory at the Aeroflot Open?
— The tournament went pretty smoothly for me, but I finished it with a +5 score. The last two games were very short. In the eighth round with Niemann, it was the second round of the day. He surprised me in the opening, plus, as I said before, I'm not a big fan of playing games with this chess player. So it turned out to be a quick draw, which more or less suited me from a sporting point of view. It wasn't like any of the competitors would score 2 out of 2. In the final round, I had to play with Alexey Goganov. He has a low rating now, but he is a good chess player who has repeatedly participated in the superfinals and won the Top League. And in general, it is clear that he is on the rise, he has a fireproof repertoire of whites. I can hardly imagine how, in the Catalan beginning, black went out to fight, avoiding serious risks. Plus, I didn't have to win. In any case, you can add the tournament to your asset.
— How did you react to Niemann complaining about you after the face-to-face draw?
— What did you complain about? For a draw?
— Because of the quick draw. "Instead of trying to blacklist me, let's solve the issue at the chessboard. I'm tired of people cowardly hiding behind baseless accusations," Hans wrote.
— I'm sorry, since he had such an ordeal.
— And how did you react to his challenge to the mini-match?
— Well, again, I don't really like the approach itself. Rather, it resembles some kind of anecdote. 100 thousand there, 100 thousand here. It's more like a hype. He called everyone. Hans will be playing a match with Daniil Dubov in Moscow the next few days (March 7-8). They have a history of relationships that began earlier than in New York. And at the 2024 World Cup, it received publicity. I don't have that kind of history with him. The only thing is, when we played the rapid and Blitz Team World Cup in Astana, he was able to surprise me with his behavior at the board at the very beginning of the game (although I thought it was impossible). But I have nothing against him personally. Yes, he is not the most likable person in the world of chess, but I would like to note that he is making great progress. This is noticeable in all types of control, in online chess, live. I've added ratings everywhere.
Russian chess player Daniil Dubov
Obviously, it's not for me to teach him. It's none of my business. But a little more balanced behavior would be closer to me. On the other hand, we need interesting personalities in the world of chess. Hans is undoubtedly one of them.
— There is information that he held training camps with Vladimir Kramnik and Boris Gelfand. Is it very useful at his age?
— At any age, it is important to study with strong chess players. You can always progress if you have the strength and desire to learn. This is the right approach. He is only 21 years old. I repeat, he is progressing very seriously.
"Spassky is an outstanding personality, a very great gentleman in chess"
— Levon Aronian said that he was lucky enough to have lunch and talk several times with Boris Spassky, who died on February 27. Did you have any memorable meetings with the 10th world champion?
— Unfortunately, we didn't know each other. If my memory serves me correctly, we were photographed at the "Match of the Century" in 2002 (the Russian national team and the world team, represented by Judit Polgar, Vishy Anand, Boris Gelfand and other famous grandmasters, met in Moscow. — Izvestia). By the way, it was held nearby in the Column Hall of the House of Unions (the Aeroflot Open is played at The Carlton. — Izvestia). You could look at all the great leaders of world chess at that time and champions of the past, including Boris Vasilyevich. It's clear that I've heard a lot of funny and sad stories about him. An extraordinary personality. A very great gentleman at chess.
World Chess Champion Boris Spassky
— Star coach Vladimir Chuchelov helped you at the Aeroflot Open. Are you officially working now?
— I don't really understand what officially means. Vladimir has many students. He's also assisting me in this tournament now.
— Can I call him your coach?
— You can, yes.
— When did you start working together?
— We have been cooperating a little bit since the summer of 2024. Since he lives in Belgium and I live in the Moscow region, we work mostly online. Vladimir came to his hometown for this tournament. Thank you to him for his support and all-round help.
— What are your plans for the near future?
— Of the classic tournaments, I have so far confirmed only the Bundesliga. A weekend in March and a weekend in April. There are no more invitations. We'll see. Maybe some more tournaments will appear on my calendar.
Grandmaster Yan Nepomnyashchy
— What about the Superfinal this year?
— I can't say anything about it yet. I don't know the terms, conditions, or composition. But if there are decent conditions, and not a sample of conditionally 2010, then, probably, we can think about such a possibility. To attract all the strongest. It is clear that this is not my prerogative, but a matter of the Federal Tax Service. And, of course, I want Russia to have its own super tournament. There is no major launch in Poikovsky anymore, and this is a big loss.
— They want to revive it this year. In August, Ugra is planning to host a super tournament with the participation of 2,700+ players. Have you been invited?
— I haven't heard anything yet. If there is one, I'll think about it. The main thing is that there are no overlaps.
— Will you play in the Global Chess League – 2025?
— I don't know yet. This tournament will be held at the end of the year, it is of a commercial nature. No points are awarded in the FIDE Circuit.
— And what about the rapid and Blitz team World Championships?
— I was planning to play, our team is playing. I don't know what will happen with obtaining a visa, as the tournament will most likely be held in London. If I get it without a month's delay, I'll play it. But the visa issue is urgent.
"It's better for a chess player not to go outside in India once again"
— I am glad that all the key events of the year will take place in places where there will be no serious visa problems.
— At the moment, I have no problems with visas. There will be an active Schengen for some time. In fact, the story of London last year was new to me, out of the ordinary. As for the venues, I am sure that there will be good conditions in Samarkand. But the World Cup in India is a little confusing for me. There is some time before this tournament, there will be an opportunity to prepare. I played in Calcutta once, I didn't like it.
— Problems with food?
— In general. Climate, environment. It is clear that there is a huge chess boom. The fans are going wild. It is probably dangerous for leading Indian chess players to go outside. They'll tear it up for souvenirs. It is known that cricket is the number one sport in India, but chess is gradually being selected. So it's better not to go outside once again.
— Will you go to Qatar to defend your blitz title?
— It's the beginning of March, it's hard to talk about what will happen at the end of the year. I'll probably play. Traditionally, I like to take part in these tournaments.
— Did winning the Blitz World Cup in New York add confidence and calmness?
— It's hard to say. I have an idea to win the world Championship in each of the categories: classic, Fischer chess, rapid and blitz. It turns out that I have closed only one of the four targets. I will continue to work on the rest.
— By the way, were you surprised that you were not included in the list of invited chess players for the Freestyle Chess Tour – 2025?
— It's hard to say. As far as I understand, the full composition of the Paris stage has not yet been announced. I had to go through a selection process for the first stage. The tournament has its own criteria by which they invite people, this is a question for the organizers. There are few places, but there are many chess players. It's always like that.
— In general, are you impressed by Fischer's chess?
- yes. Fischer's chess almost frees you from the preparation before the games. That's a plus. You can spend the day with a little more pleasure than preparing for the game in the morning and repeating the debuts in the evening on the eve of the next round.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
