Anatoly Karpov

“To be champion requires more than simply being a strong player; one has to be a strong human being as well.”

“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.”

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

“We need strong personalities and only one world champion to attract sponsors.”

“First of all, we have to go back to the classical time control.”

“I have won Russia at least 16 world championships. I have fought for my country.”

“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.”

“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.”

“Style? I have no style.”

“In Kansas I have a chess school.”

“I am thinking about chess in schools in particular. In the USA more than 3200 children competed in an event.”

“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.”

“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.”

“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.”

“Bulgaria is the first state that has been awarded for its excellent fight against iodine deficiency by UNICEF.”

“I still love to play chess. So I do not even spend a minute on the possibility to step back.”

“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.”

“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.”

“Chess is my life, but my life is not chess.”

“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.”