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D Gukesh credits Viswanathan Anand vs Magnus Carlsen 2013 showdown as key reason behind success: ‘I can still…’
D Gukesh present in Chennai 12 years ago, when Magnus Carlsen defeated Viswanathan Anand for his first World C’ship title in 2013.
Since his World Championship victory in December last year, D Gukesh’s popularity has seen a huge surge. He defeated Ding Liren in Singapore to clinch the title and also became the youngest-ever World Champion in history.
He was also present in Chennai 12 years ago, when Magnus Carlsen defeated Viswanathan Anand for his first World C’ship title in 2013.
Also Read: Chess legend defends D Gukesh after Garry Kasparov's criticism: ‘Not his fault that Magnus Carlsen walked away’
D Gukesh on Viswanathan Anand vs Magnus Carlsen showdown
Speaking on the iQOO India, The Quest Talk podcast recently, Gukesh gave some insight into his chess journey and also revealed the influence of the Anand vs Carlsen showdown.
“My parents didn’t know chess could be taken as a career like that. I started it like a hobby. My first teacher in school suggested to my parents that maybe I should start taking it a bit more seriously, and I can start playing tournaments,” he said.
“It happened between Vishy sir (Viswanathan Anand) and Magnus Carlsen, that was exactly when I started to learn chess.
“I can still clearly picture the moment… I went in, saw Vishy sir and Magnus playing inside the glass box, and thought to myself, I actually want to be in there, and it happened like after 11 years,” he added.
Gukesh has been highly erratic since his World C’ship triumph. He finished runners-up at the Tata Masters, and also got victories against Carlsen at Norway Chess and Super United Rpaid and Blitz Croatia.
During his childhood, Gukesh won the U-12 title at the World Youth C’ship in 2018, and also bagged multiple gold medals at the 2018 Asian Youth Chess C’ship. He became an IM in March 2017, and then in 2019, at the age of 12 years, seven months, and 17 days, he became the second-youngest GM in history after Sergey Karjakin. He also got team bronze and individual gold at the 44th Chess Olympiad in 2022. He was part of the Indian team that got silver at the 2022 Asian Games in the men’s team competition.
