How does someone become a Chess Grandmaster? Magnus Carlsen explains it to you

(CNN) – You don’t get to be the one chess player number 1 of the world without thinking multiple moves in advance.
“I have a simple rule in life: if you’re going to fight the champion at anything, do it virtually,” Magnus Carlsen joked. in a tweet after it was announced that a virtual version of him, at age 10, was going to face former world boxing champion Manny Pacquiao in a charity chess match on October 1.

Pacquiao, who is a great chess player, is also aware of the challenge he faces.

“I have fought some tough opponents in the ring, but I have never faced anyone like @magnuscarlsen in a game of chess,” said Pacquiao.

Since defeating former world champion Anatoli Karpov to take the title of Grandmaster At 13 years old, Norwegian Carlsen is known for the psychological advantage he has over his competitors.

“I think being flexible mentally is very important during the game,” says Carlsen to CNN Sport. The Norwegian, along with Anish Giri and Polish prodigy Jan-Krzysztof Duda, pondered the secret to becoming a chess Grandmaster.

“Conditions change during the game, something you thought was correct may not be, the situation changes from attacking [a] defend, “Carlsen added.

“So being able to endure those changes without losing focus and also without losing your composure is very, very important.”

Giri is the number 1 Dutch chess player in the ranking. Like Carlsen, he believes that having the ability to stay focused for long periods of time, and remain mentally agile, is the key to success in chess.

“Concentration is very, very important during the game […] because the thing about chess is that it is very relentless, “Giri tells CNN Sport.

“Just a few seconds of loss of concentration and a hasty decision can ruin the whole game.”

“So it’s important to stay focused throughout the game and for that you need, of course, mental stability.”

A dash of ambition

Carlsen has early memories of putting hours of practice into the sport.

At the age of five, his father had taught him to play chess, but it was not until later that his hobby became a full-fledged trade.

When he finished elementary school, he spent the following year traveling throughout Europe to play chess, earning multiple accolades and rising to the top of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) ranking list in 2010.

“In childhood, I always had to play against players stronger than me,” says Carlsen.

“But something happened when I was 16 or 17 years old. I was facing the best players in the world, my mentality changed a bit.”

“So now I need to be the strongest. I need to have the toughest mindset to be able to overcome them. And I think after changing that mindset, I went from being one of the best players to someone who could really be the best.”

Playing against opponents who were more experienced than Carlsen certainly paid off.

In 2012, he won the London Chess Championship for the third time, but rose to fame that same year, when his rating rose to 2861, breaking Russian legend Garry Kasparov’s record of 2851, who had been undefeated since 1999.

Carlsen’s stellar streak was a precursor to his most momentous achievement to date, when he defeated Indian chess grandmaster Viswanathan Anand to become world champion at age 22.

“I think there are many factors that can decide whether you become a very strong chess player, even a Grandmaster or one of the best players in the world,” he says.

“For me personally, it’s about spending time, obviously. And for me, I don’t think I could have gone far in chess without qualifying levels again, that’s what has driven me. […] all these years, and as soon as he lost that, he would quit. “

In search of a coveted prize

After conquering the world of chess, Carlsen is now looking for the first NFT trophy in the history of this sport.

The coveted prize will be awarded to the winner of the Champions Chess Tour 2021, in which the world’s most skilled players compete in ten rapid chess tournaments.

“NFTs are certainly something I have known for a long time. Many of my friends are into the world of cryptocurrencies, so they have been talking about them for a long time, and I find it very interesting that the tour now incorporates them into the event. And then We’ll see what the interest is. But it’s certainly going to be a fun experience for me, “says Carlsen.

“I know the NBA, with Top Shot, has already really embraced the NFT market, and I think more and more sports want to make NFTs an important part of sports memorabilia. “

In addition to adding a new accolade to his trophy case, Carlsen is excited about the possibility of sharing his victory with his fans.

“Fans will buy a version of the Champions Chess Tour trophyas well as highlights and other chess moments from the tour. As long as I win the trophy, I’ll be happy to share it with anyone! “

Hours of practice

Few have come as close to Carlsen’s brilliance in his chess endeavors as Giri, who became a Grandmaster when he was 14, making him a the youngest person in the world to achieve that title at that time.

A four-time chess champion in the Netherlands, he beat Carlsen in 22 moves at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in 2011. After winning numerous medals since then, he is now the number 7 player in the world ranking.

Like his partner, he believes that spending time training, often rather than other activities, is what separates the world’s best players from chess fans.

“To be a top-level chess player, you definitely have to dedicate a lot of your free time to it. It’s easier to say how many hours I haven’t spent chess than to say how many hours I have. I mean, honestly, at some point, all my time Free was busy with chess. Of course, he did all the things he had to do like go to school, a few other things he had to do, “says Giri.

“My mother sometimes asked me to clean my room or wash the dishes or whatever to get away from how abnormal I was all the time I spent as a child.”

“I think this is also necessary if you want to be the best at anything.”

Keep the balance

For others, knowing that they have the ability to become champions is something instinctive.

Duda says that after winning the U-10 World Championship in 2008, he knew that he would become a Grand Master.

“In general it’s kind of funny, you know when I was young […] it was very obvious to me that one day I would become world champion. “

As a child, he was on his way to success, taking six-hour training sessions with his then-coach. Although he has since reaped the rewards, being able to maintain such concentration from a young age was “very difficult.”

“It takes a long time, above all, you have to really focus on chess and just chess. You have to play in a lot of tournaments, think about chess all the time.”

He became a grandmaster at age 15 and won a number of awards as a junior competitor, including the U-14 European Championship.

Now is the world number 15 and is known for his creative play style and his ability to make quick decisions.

But even as a high-level competitor, Duda says being able to disconnect from his surroundings and give his full attention to the game can be challenging. From time to time, he says he interrupts his matches by standing up and walking, to keep his balance.

“I would say that my level of concentration is probably below that of my colleagues.”

“Considering my age […] I should be able to do one thing at a time, but sometimes, you know, I like to think about something else during the game.

“You have to find a balance, as in everything in life basically.”

“You have to really love the game”

Although the three great masters have followed alternative paths to success, what unites them is their loyalty to the craft.

Giri claims that her passion for chess is what sustains her ambition and fuels her desire to push herself.

“You have to really love the game, and that usually goes well with the key qualities. You have to be fine to be alone normally, to be without other people around and not feel like you are missing something, just to be good with yourself, with yourself and with your thoughts ”.

“Just to dive into something and forget about everything else.”

Carlsen agrees.

“Personally, I’m not 100% sure what are the main skills for a high-level chess player, because normally when people ask me how to do this and that, I don’t know, I have just been doing it for a long time and you I’ll say why something is right, something is wrong, “he says.

“Patience, and having the ability to be analytical […] to learn from your mistakes is important ”.

“It’s important to make quick decisions and be able to trust them because they are often based on fairly limited data.”

“It is very difficult for me to say if my skills are transferable. I think what a lot of people say is that if you play chess, it can help you in other aspects of life.”

“But if you only play chess, you’ll only be good at chess. So that’s what I know. I’ve only tried chess so far, so it’s the only thing I know I’m good at.”

CNN’s Alvin Whitney contributed to this report.