Weekly Euro:- Is this kind of fight, psychological intimidation, still fair play?
Vladimir Kramnik :- I personally don’t like this behaviour, but I would not go as far as to call it unethical. For example many people put on an over-confident mask simply because in fact they lack confidence. If I see my opponent acting too confidently I can assume that inside he is not sure of himself, he is probably scared of something. If some chess players wish to use such methods, let them do it.

People put on over-confident mask when they lack confidence

Weekly Euro:- Is there a grandmaster among the current top players in the world who is using such methods?
Vladimir Kramnik :- I don’t know, I haven’t noticed anyone. But then I am not a very good respondent for such a question, as I do not pay attention to such things at all.

Weekly Euro:- You reach arguable better results during matches then in tournaments. Traditionally, the World Champion title was to be won in matches. A challenger had to beat the reigning World Champion in the direct fight in order to become the new World Champion. The only historical exception was the situation just after the end of the Second World War, when Alexander Aljechin had died during his reign and so a tournament was played.
Vladimir Kramnik :- You can call me an old- fashion guy, but I still believe that the real chess championship is actually a match between the best players, not a tournament. So that is going to be the match which will take place between me and Vishy Anand this autumn in Bonn. The tournament in Mexico which you are asking me about was from my point of view a huge compromise.

The problem was that the situation around the World Champion title was still difficult even after my unification match against Topalov. There was a need to find an acceptable compromise. After the unification my aim was to come back to a final match contest for the world champion crown under the umbrella of FIDE. In all the years after defeating Kasparov I felt this responsibility. Anything else would not have been in accordance with chess history, and also not with the desire of the overwhelming majority of chess fans all over the world.

real chess championship is actually a match between the best players

It was always my goal to end the unhappy period when the World Chess Federation organised their ridiculous knock-out or round robin tournaments for the title. The problem was that the tournament in Mexico had already been agreed and I was informed that if I had refused to play there, the event would not have taken place at all. This would have ended in another impasse. So in order not to cause another split, in the end, I agreed to compromise and played the tournament, which FIDE called World Championship. The truth is I did not win in Mexico, the winner was Anand, and I will compete against him this year in the real contest for the chess crown. I attach ten times more attention to the coming match in Germany - consequently this event is ten times more important to me than the tournament in Mexico.

I attach ten times more attention for Kramnik - Anand match than world chess championship.

Weekly Euro:- So do you consider Vishy Anand to be the World Champion or not?
Vladimir Kramnik :- It is not a question of simply yes or no. Anand won the tournament, which was called the World Championship Tournament, and I competed in that tournament as well. The International Chess Federation FIDE agreed to do it this way, so I have no right not to consider him the World Champion. A question is, however: what is the value of such a title? SimilaryI considered Kasimdzhanov to be a FIDE Champion, after winning the knock-out tournament in Libya. However I did not consider him to be the real champion. He had won a tournament and by FIDE’s definition he was a FIDE World Champion . But the value of this title was lower compared to the classical title won in a one-to-one match by Champions like Lasker, Spasski , Kasparov or me. The winner of the match Kramnik -Anand won’t be World Champion only from a legal point of view , he will be considered to be the World Champion and best chess player by the entire public.

what is the value of FIDE Worlc championship title?

Weekly Euro:- What are we to expect from Bonn match? Do you think that something similar to the "toilet affair" during your match against Veselin Topalov in Elista might repeat itself?
Vladimir Kramnik :- Not at all. I am convinced that in the world of chess currently there is only one person from whom we can expect such behaviour. Vishy Anand has never taken pleasure in scandals, and neither have I. From a chess point of view you can expect a very balanced and tough match. What kind of openings there will be, or whether there will be many winning games or a large number of draws, cannot be predicted. Moreover it is not my job to make such predictions. My task is to play the very best chess in Bonn and to win the match.

you can expect a very balanced and tough match

Weekly Euro:- How long will you be preparing for that match?
Vladimir Kramnik :- I’ve already started my preparations. It is for sure the most important match of my carrier, since my match against Kasparov, and I have been approaching it that way.

Weekly Euro:- Do you play blitz games with your friends?
Vladimir Kramnik :- Yes, sometimes. Although not as often as I used too. Perhaps because I am getting older. When I was younger I used to play blitz games even fifteen hours in the row. On many occasions I had played all night long . But nowadays I prefer to get a good night sleep.

Weekly Euro:- It cannot be very interesting for you to play against your friends. Does your pulse also rise while playing chess for instance at a family gathering? To play a game against complete amateurs, who often do not even play in a club, or have not read a single chess book, that must be pretty boring for you, don’t you agree?
Vladimir Kramnik :- Of course I was not talking about amateurs. I was talking about blitz with some of my friends, most of them are grandmasters . The only amateur I sometimes play against is my wife, if she asks me to. This is a kind of duty, you know.

I sometimes play against is my wife, this is a kind of duty, you know.

Weekly Euro:- How about playing blindfold simuls at a family gathering?
Vladimir Kramnik :- It would be possible, yes, but you need to be very careful with blindfold chess. To play two or three games at the same time is surely nothing special, but to play more games might be dangerous, as it is very strenuous to your nervous system. At the beginning of the 20th century blindfold simul exhibitions were very popular and given by the best chess players. I read that, for instance, Aljechin often played them, and then he was not able to sleep for a couple of days. Garry Kasparov, for example, had always refused all blindfold games., He would not even play them one on one.

Aljechin was not able to sleep for two days after blindfold chess

Weekly Euro:- Let’s look again at this year’s chess climax. Are you happy that the match for the World Champion title is taking place at the same place where you played against computer programme Deep Fritz?
Vladimir Kramnik :- Yes, very pleased. First of all I am happy that the event is taking place in Germany, as according to statistics I achieve my best results there. This is a fact. Moreover I feel great support from the German audience, people there have been expressing their affection towards me. The match in Bonn against the computer program was organised perfectly, and the condition were ideal, everything was well prepared. I am sure that it will be also the case during my match against Anand.

I achieved my best results in Germany

Weekly Euro:- Don’t you associate that place with the biggest chess blunder of your carrier?  You over looked a mate in one ...
Vladimir Kramnik :- I have learnt not to look back at those things and carry on with my life. I try not to have bad memories. I have made mistakes in my life, not only on the chessboard, but also in my personal life, probably as most other people have. You mustn’t dwell on them and become depressed . Such things happen, and then is time to look forward. By the way, during that game with Deep Fritz I had played very good chess. I simply cannot explain why I made that blunder. Usually such a blackout comes when you are feeling tired, or you have some sort of a problem, but at that time I felt great.

I simply cannot explain why I made that blunder