When Anand won a chef’s competition during Norway Chess

When Anand won a chef’s competition during Norway Chess

He has participated in eight of the 12 editions of the prestigious Norway Chess Tournament so far. While Viswanathan Anand is set to return to Norway next month as a commentator, his favourite memory of an event billed as the Champions League of the chess world is not from playing with black or white pieces on the board. In fact, it came on a rest day.

“It would have to be the time I won the cooking… the chef’s competition. I was the most surprised of all, but my wife might top me. These rest day activities are often lots and lots of fun, so that’s a good memory,” Anand said via videoconferencing during an event where the Norway Chess organisers interacted with members of the Sports Journalists’ Association of Mumbai.

What did Anand cook, though? The legendary chess player remembered every detail, just as he does in his famous face-offs against his arch-rivals.

“We were given some ingredients. It was Halibut sauce plus Hollandaise sauce, which we had to make, and we were supposed to cut some greens as well to go along with it,” Anand recalled.

“My team member was Ding (Liren), who had injured himself in a cycling accident, so he was only able to cut vegetables. And he just cut them so finely because there’s nothing else he could contribute for one hour or a bit more, so he was just very methodical. When I put the dish into the oven and I forgot to turn it on and I thought I must have messed up any chances I had. But luckily it was only a few minutes and then it turned out a bit okay. But my Hollandaise sauce was the winning ingredient.”

In the tournament’s early years, Anand was India’s lone flagbearer, but Norway Chess has since witnessed increasing Indian participation. While three of the 12 participants last year were Indians, this year’s edition will feature D. Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Koneru Humpy, and R. Vaishali competing against the world’s best players for a substantial prize fund.

Anand is confident that world champion Gukesh will be ready to take on world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen on the latter’s home turf.

“I expect a very exciting battle. Gukesh will not lack motivation or the determination to go after Magnus. But Magnus is also highly motivated by the challenge of playing against our young players,” Anand said.

“I have seen him in multiple tournaments, whether it’s Kolkata or the World Rapid Blitz, he eagerly looks forward to these match-ups and so we have the perfect storm. I think we have the right to expect some great battles.”

Norway Chess will host its 13th edition from May 26 to June 6. Having become one of the most sought-after events on the chess calendar for Grandmasters and enthusiasts alike, Norway Chess has introduced multiple engaging innovations that offer a sneak peek into a player’s match-day proceedings.

Kjell Madland, the Managing Director and mastermind behind Norway Chess, hopes the event will not only foster partnerships within the Indian chess ecosystem but could also expand to host a leg of the tournament in India in the near future.