My very first book was a games collection of Anatoly Karpov. On the whole I was attracted by positonal play with some tactics, and already then I was aiming for universality.

Chess is like body-building. If you train every day, you stay in top shape. It is the same with your brain - chess is a matter of daily training.

When I was a child I liked the games of Capablanca, and later I was captivated by Alekhine's play.

It is rightly said that the most difficult thing in chess is winning a won position

Objectivity consists in understanding that the only one who never makes a mistake is the one who never does anything.

I go to bed at 4 a. m. Almost all chessplayers do.

For me art and chess are closely related, both are forms in which the self finds beauty and expression.

I am convinced, the way one plays chess always reflects the player's personality. If something defines his character, then it will also define his way of playing.

Playing rapid chess, one can lose the habit of concentrating for several hours in serious chess. That is why, if a player has big aims, he should limit his rapidplay in favour of serious chess.

In chess one cannot control everything. Sometimes a game takes an unexpected turn, in which beauty begins to emerge. Both players are always instrumental in this.

Chess is so deep, I simply feel lost.

You have to trust or you're only living half a life.

You can create a life you love. You can manifest your dreams!

There's a place between passivity and violence. I'll meet you there.

Anyone can be a fool, but the one recognizes it and admits it is on the path to wisdom.

I'm an agnosto-theist. I cross myself on airplanes. I pray when I'm sick. When you're sick I'll keep you in my thoughts; when I'm sick, I'm entreating a higher power.

I know many of the critics and I don't think of them as God-like figures. What can they do to hurt me? Sure, I might be slightly embarrassed for a day, but then you just go your own way.

Fish is the only kind of respirating thing that I consume. Everything else I don't want any part of.

Something becomes personal when it deviates from the norm.

America is less safe today than it was the day that Barack Obama became President of the United States. It's absolutely inarguable.

The present, like a note in music, is nothing but as it appertains to what is past and what is to come.