Anatoly Karpov Quotes & Sayings

I didn't picture myself as even a grandmaster, to say nothing of aspiring to the chess crown. This was not because I was timid - I wasn't - but because I simply lived in one world, and the grandmasters existed in a completely different one. People like that were not really even people, but like gods or mythical heroes. — Anatoly Karpov

Playing black, I put great stake in the Ruy Lopez: I liked it, feel it, and understand it; in matches with Hjartarson and Timman it served me well. - on preparing for World Championship versus Garry Kasparov — Anatoly Karpov

Combinations with a queen sacrifice are among the most striking and memorable. — Anatoly Karpov

This whole fuss did not only damage Fischer's image, but that of the USA as well. The way the Americans treated one of their most popular citizens did not make a positive impression worldwide. — Anatoly Karpov

The ideal in chess can only be a collective image, but in my opinion it is Capablanca who most closely approaches this ... — Anatoly Karpov

An amusing fact: as far as I can recall, when playing the Ruy Lopez I have not yet once in my life had to face the Marshall Attack! — Anatoly Karpov

Russia is a state within a state. To understand the population of Russia, you need to know the areas of the country; you need an understanding of the people and their interests. — Anatoly Karpov

If, in our first match for the world champion's title, I had managed to make the score 6-0, there would have been no Kasparov as a good chess player at all. — Anatoly Karpov

No, I do not want to sacrifice four days for two games. My time is too valuable to do that. — Anatoly Karpov

Las Vegas is a beautiful place. I like it more and more and plan to be here often. It's a great place for chess. — Anatoly Karpov

I was world champion. For me, chess is my life. It is everything. — Anatoly Karpov

Style? I have no style. — Anatoly Karpov

We need strong personalities and only one world champion to attract sponsors. — Anatoly Karpov

The priority must be the unification of the world titles to straighten things out. But we should not wait that long anymore to change the situation, because we are running out of time. — Anatoly Karpov

Pawns not only create the sketch for the whole painting, they are also the soil, the foundation, of any position — Anatoly Karpov

My studies with Botvinnik brought me immense benefit, particularly the homework assignments which forced me to refer to chess books and to work independently. — Anatoly Karpov

I like to do projects in which you can see statistical results. I am very happy for all these small children, who have been the biggest group of victims of iodine deficiency. — Anatoly Karpov

But how difficult it can be to gain the desired full point against an opponent of inferior strength, when this is demanded by the tournament position! — Anatoly Karpov

I have found after 1.d4 there are more opportunities for richer play. — Anatoly Karpov

First of all, we have to go back to the classical time control. — Anatoly Karpov

The fact that a knight is temporarily on the edge of the board is of no great significance. — Anatoly Karpov

Children can take lessons in that school via the Internet and can score extra points like e.g. in Geography or History. That sounds very promising and is a fantastic basis for future steps. — Anatoly Karpov

It doesn't require much for misfortune to strike in the King's Gambit - one incautious move, and Black can be on the edge of the abyss. — Anatoly Karpov

I have won Russia at least 16 world championships. I have fought for my country. — Anatoly Karpov

I like 1.e4 very much, but my results are better with 1.d4. — Anatoly Karpov

I still love to play chess. So I do not even spend a minute on the possibility to step back. — Anatoly Karpov

I am thinking about chess in schools in particular. In the USA more than 3200 children competed in an event. — Anatoly Karpov

Like dogs who sniff each other when meeting, chess players have a ritual at first acquaintance: they sit down to play speed chess. — Anatoly Karpov

Putin needs strong moves to keep the country as one. There is some criticism that he is centralizing power, but in Russia, if you don't centralize power, you have the risk of losing the country. — Anatoly Karpov

I still remember Botvinnik's reaction to each of my games, right from the opening moves. At first he would express amazement, then annoyance, and, finally irritation. — Anatoly Karpov

Furman astounded me with his chess depth, a depth which he revealed easily and naturally, as if all he were doing was establishing well-known truths. — Anatoly Karpov

Chess is everything: art, science, and sport. — Anatoly Karpov

The truth is that my chess development was nothing out of the ordinary, and it proceeded probably at a pace no faster than others. — Anatoly Karpov

Bulgaria is the first state that has been awarded for its excellent fight against iodine deficiency by UNICEF. — Anatoly Karpov

Happiness should always remain a bit incomplete. After all, dreams are boundless. — Anatoly Karpov

I don't pretend to anything more than harmony. — Anatoly Karpov

If the opponent offers keen play I don't object; but in such cases I get less satisfaction, even if I win, than from a game conducted according to all the rules of strategy with its ruthless logic. — Anatoly Karpov

The days when it was possible to win a serious game only by merit of sporting character or depth of chess understanding have vanished forever. Chess knowledge has become dominant, bypassing all the other factors that contribute to success. — Anatoly Karpov

I didn't know so well chess theory, the theory of chess openings. And so, of course I knew the theory, but not on the level of the best players, so this was my ... this was always my weakness. — Anatoly Karpov

Chess is a very tough game, and psychologically a tough game. And of course, chess needs a lot of qualities, human qualities. And so you must have a very strong nervous system, and then you must be well prepared; you must be able to work a lot. — Anatoly Karpov

By all means examine the games of the great chess players, but don't swallow them whole. Their games are valuable not for their separate moves, but for their vision of chess, their way of thinking. — Anatoly Karpov

Just make the right estimation of your own strengths and weaknesses, and also that of your opponent. — Anatoly Karpov

If you want to become a World Champion you should avoid playing in Open tournaments. — Anatoly Karpov

As a personality, I'm fighter, you know. And I don't give up, and if I believe I'm correct, I'm right, then I work, and I fight. Okay, this could be over a chess board, this could be in life, and so I defend my principles. — Anatoly Karpov

No, no, it is obvious that the ECU should act as a close alliance for the benefit of chess. — Anatoly Karpov

It is dangerous to maintain equality at the cost of placing the pieces passively. — Anatoly Karpov

Chess is my life, but my life is not chess. — Anatoly Karpov

Seville never had a rich chess tradition. Valencia is entirely different, it is enough to say that one of the city squares is named after me. — Anatoly Karpov

In Kansas I have a chess school. — Anatoly Karpov

I lost the match. I blame only myself for this. There were many opportunities to win. But I missed them, no one else. — Anatoly Karpov

To be champion requires more than simply being a strong player; one has to be a strong human being as well. — Anatoly Karpov

The first great chess players, including the world champion, got by perfectly well without constant coaches. — Anatoly Karpov

My idea is to make moves to bring chess back to the world's map, to make it part of the world's geography again. — Anatoly Karpov

You can't play chess if you're groggy from pills. — Anatoly Karpov

After that, Kasparov stepped back from chess which is, and I want this to be clear, not good for chess in general at all. As a whole, the current situation in the chess world leaves a lot to be desired. — Anatoly Karpov