#70. Vishy Anand Takes A Walk Down Memory Lane!

This week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast features in interview with Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.

Commonly known as Vishy, Anand is one of the greatest and most popular world champions in the history of chess, as well as one of its most admired and respected ambassadors. Although no one could blame him if he decided to rest on his laurels, Vishy remains active as a player – and he is still ranked number 13 in the world (2743), which is frankly incredible - but in the past years he has also taken on new roles.

He is Deputy Vice-President of FIDE and he is a partner in the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy in Chennai, where the cream of the highly successful young Indian generation is training and, no doubt, many youngsters whose names we do not yet know.

With a unique career like Anand’s, it’s impossible to do a career-spanning interview. Therefore Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam decided to focus on two particular events: the New Year’s tournament in Reggio Emilia (1991/92), which resulted in a sensational victory, and Anand’s personal favourite: the luxurious Amber rapid and blindfold events, held in Monaco.

0:00 – Intro

1:56 – Where does Vishy keep his countless trophies?

5:29 – Vishy recalls bursting onto the chess scene in the early 90’s, scoring victories over the world’s best

8:44 – Linares, Tilburg and Reggio Emilia 1991

17:49 – Being initially underestimated by the rest of the chess elite

22:35 – Linares 1992

26:16 – AD BREAK

26:48 – The Reggio Emilia tournaments

30:45 – Vishy’s experience of the first Amber chess tournament

40:00 – Joop van Oosterom, the billionaire sponsor of the Amber tournaments

42:30 – Why Kasparov didn’t play in the Amber tournaments

47:30 – Vishy describes finding a sort of refuge at the Amber tournaments

49:20 – AD BREAK

50:19 – “We have to talk about Lubo and John Nunn”

56:43 – Jeroen Piket

58:40 – Ivanchuk’s short-lived retirement

1:00:15 – Does Vishy see a future for blindfold chess?

1:03:15 – Vishy’s affinity for rapid chess

1:05:30 – Vishy’s memories of Reggio Emilia