The gold-sharing performance of India in the inaugural FIDE online Olympiad gold has ensured a new addition to Viswanathan Anand’s trophy cabinet.
“I think Olympiad is a very special title. And on top of it, I really liked the sensation and the ambiance of winning as part of this team. Somehow, getting together with lots of chess players, and feeling that we are fighting for a common cause, that’s very inspiring. And specially, in these times of the pandemic, this was the best social event I had in some time. Winning the Olympiad medal will add to my collection and my trophy cabinet,” said the five-time World champion.
India’s protest over two “lost” games followed internet outrage across several nations. After that, India was declared joint winner with Russia.
Many Indian players, including Anand, congratulated Russia. In contrast, leading Russians, such as Ian Nepomniachtchi, took to twitter to express their disappointment.
Skipper Vidit Gujrathi said, “It was a great experience to lead a team, featuring Anand and Humpy. I still have the autographs I took of these two legends. In case of juniors, we had to consider their styles before finalising our line-up.
“Like Nihal and Vantika Agarwal are more solid in their approach while Praggnanandhaa and Divya are sharper. So the choice depended on the situation we were in.”