No. 1 not an end in itself: Anand
Friday , December 24 , 2010

New Delhi: World Champion Viswanathan Anand is likely to lose his No.1 status by next month but the Indian is hardly bothered as he feels ranking is a motivational target rather than an end in itself.

Anand finished joint second in the London Chess Classic last week and is likely to be toppled by winner Magnus Carlsen, in the latest ranking to be released next month. However, the major reason for Anand’s slip would be Pearl Spring Chess Tournament, in Nanjing, where he finished second behind Carlsen.

“It is not because of London that I will lose the world No. 1 spot, it is because of Nanjing… Nanjing gets carried over, it is a bit confusing. I overtook him in Bilbao and he (Carlsen) overtook me in Nanjing and the status quo is maintained,” Anand said, at a promotional, here on Thursday.

“Obviously, I would want to be the world No. 1, but I think the main thing is to see the No. 1 ranking as a motivational target rather than an end.

“As long as I am aiming to be the No. 1 and I am nearby, I am happy. I’m gaining rating points and that is positive. In fact, I’m currently at my career-high Elo rating. I have never been a 2808 or 2809. My earlier best was 2803, so I feel that the direction is up,” he added.

Meanwhile, Anand joined the growing list of top athletes supporting the demand that iconic batsman Sachin Tendulkar be conferred the Bharat Ratna.

Source: http://www.telegraphindia.com

Special thanks to Jagadish Dube for sending us the article.

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