Chess is more than just a game to me; it’s my world, it’s the core of my life: Alexandra Kosteniuk

When Alexandra Kosteniuk became a Grandmaster successful 2004, astatine the property of 19, she joined an exclusive ladies’ club. Only 9 women earlier her had go Grandmasters. She has since won the World Championship, the World Cup and the World Rapid Championship. She was a portion of Russia’s Olympiad-winning squad connected 3 successive occasions. At 41, she continues to beryllium a unit connected the chessboard. Excerpts from an interrogation Kosteniuk gave The Hindu successful Mumbai:

How bash you look backmost astatine playing the World Championship last astatine 17, against Zhu Chen successful 2001?

I didn’t deliberation overmuch of it astatine the time. You conscionable unrecorded the moment. But present erstwhile you deliberation astir it, it seems unbelievable.

Then 7 years later, you won your archetypal World title, defeating Hou Yifan successful the final. You had started arsenic the ninth seed. Hou was seeded third.

She was 14 astatine that time, but of people not a regular 14-year-old. And present Gukesh is the World champion, helium won the rubric astatine 18. I deliberation that is mean nowadays arsenic kids. I was, of course, precise blessed erstwhile I won my archetypal World title. When I play a tournament, careless of its level, I conscionable absorption connected my moves.

How overmuch bash you deliberation chess has changed from the clip you started?

Quite a lot, with the accomplishment of the computers first. Because erstwhile I started, determination were nary computers. Or rather, determination were computers, but not this much, not this kind. You know, I started playing chess successful 1989. Then, computers came into our lives, and of people the crippled has changed a lot. The magnitude of accusation that you request to sorb regular is huge. I americium blessed that I started playing erstwhile determination were astir nary computers astatine all, due to the fact that present chess is simply a batch astir representation and astir spending hours and hours with your computer. So, determination is simply a spot little creativity. And successful chess, I similar the originative part, I don’t similar memorisation. But 1 needs to adapt, too. There is simply a caller question of players, and you request to accommodate if you privation to enactment competitive.

You utilized to support an absorbing blog connected chess…

Nowadays, I don’t person capable energy, truthful I effort to prioritise my actions. When I started my YouTube channel, it was backmost successful 2009, I deliberation I was 1 of the pioneers [among chess players]. And present determination are galore contented creators connected YouTube and different platforms.

Including the hugely fashionable Hikaru Nakamura…

Yeah, and they are doing it precise professionally, with each the support, everything. It is similar a full assemblage now. But I did it connected my own.

You were a portion of the Russian squad that won 3 Olympiads backmost to back, successful 2010, 12 and 14.

Every triumph was special. And the Olympiad is simply a squad thing. I person ever liked squad events. That is 1 of the reasons wherefore I play successful the Global Chess League (GCL) each year. The squad events springiness chess different meaning. When you person won truthful galore titles from idiosyncratic events, 1 much rubric for yourself doesn’t bring you thing special. But if you triumph arsenic a team, it gives you a batch more.

At the 2024 GCL successful London, it was your show that helped Triveni Continental Kings clasp the title.

Well, my archetypal GCL [with Chingari Gulf Titans successful Dubai 2023] was not that great, but the 2nd was excellent. I judge that the squad loses unneurotic and wins together, truthful we won it arsenic a team. I was blessed to lend to my team’s triumph successful the final. The ambiance successful the squad was adjacent amended successful the 3rd play of the GCL [Mumbai 2025].

How is the GCL antithetic from the different tournaments you person played successful implicit the years?

It is an absorbing event. We request to play arsenic a squad though we hardly cognize each different sometimes, dissimilar the Olympiad, for instance. At the Olympiad, you person known your teammates for years. At the GCL, lone aft the draft, you volition find retired who you are going to play with.

This year, since I was playing for the aforesaid team, it was a small spot easier, due to the fact that fractional of the squad stayed. So, we already cognize astatine slightest fractional of the team. But nevertheless, this squad ambiance sometimes conscionable works well, sometimes it doesn’t. You cannot truly explicate it. But, well, for me, I americium enjoying being portion of my squad a lot. We had blitz sessions each morning, playing against each other.

Do you deliberation a tourney similar the GCL volition assistance chess make more, possibly marque it much popular, much mainstream?

The organisers effort to marque this tourney a product, which is an absorbing attempt. It is rather challenging. It is not ever casual with chess. I person been playing chess for galore years, and I cognize that it is not easy. But I americium gladsome to spot their efforts. Every year, I could spot the improvement. Whether it is going to beryllium capable to marque a roar oregon not, well, it is different question. But I deliberation it is simply a tiny measurement successful the close direction. Well, sometimes it is the travel that counts, and not the last result.

You person been playing competitory chess astatine the apical level for truthful long, and won the World Rapid rubric arsenic good arsenic the World Cup successful 2021. What keeps you going? You are playing against rivals who are of your daughter’s age.

Tournaments similar the GCL are my motivation. Because those are accelerated [and not classical] tournaments, it is easier for maine to play. Because energy-wise, astatine 40 you are not astatine the aforesaid level arsenic a 20-year-old. But successful accelerated you tin inactive vie rather well. So I similar accelerated and blitz chess a lot. I similar that those formats are developing. And, well, chess is my world, actually.

Was that the lawsuit from the clip you were a small girl, aft learning the crippled astatine the property of five?

Little by little, chess became much than conscionable a crippled for me. And it is simply a spot wherever I bask myself. I person a batch of friends, and I person had a batch of absorbing games. I person erstwhile compared chess to a religion. It is the halfway of my life. It lets maine past successful galore hard situations.

In 2013, you became the archetypal pistillate to triumph the Swiss men’s championship. Your thoughts connected women competing against men implicit the chessboard? Women similar Judit Polgar, Hou and Koneru Humpy person done alternatively good against men.

That is normal. Chess is not a carnal sport. It is an intelligence sport. It is harder for women due to the fact that of immoderate sociological, physiological factors. And adjacent though determination is simply a spread successful rating, inactive immoderate women person proven that it is imaginable to vie good [against men]. Judit was successful the apical 10 [in men’s chess].