The Motherland’s Order Has Been Fulfilled!

For almost two months we saw one another practically every day, sometimes for hours at a time, but we always remained those who, by tacit agreement within our delegation, did not enter the grandmaster’s room, so as not to disturb his concentration on the main task and, in any case, to spare his nerves, which were tense enough as it was. But now it is possible to ask Anatoly Karpov, the world chess champion who has triumphantly completed the struggle, questions that were still “forbidden” yesterday.

— Did you expect such a large score in the match?

— I knew that I played more strongly than my opponent, but I never forgot his persistence. After all, in the previous two matches with Korchnoi I managed to win, but then the advantage in the score was minimal, although, judging by the course of the struggle, it was quite possible to achieve a much more convincing result. I admit that when I mentioned this at the preliminary press conference here in Merano, I was speaking more to myself than to those present: look, so to speak, do not “miss your chance” again.

— In a certain sense, the scores in Baguio and Merano developed similarly: 1–0, 3–1, 4–1, 4–2, 5–2...

— Yes, yes. Only at 3–1 this time I thought differently. And, most importantly, after 5–2 I did not relax.

— Was that the only “lesson” from Baguio that was taken into account in the present match?

— Of course not. The result of extensive preparatory work was the elimination of the challenger’s former advantage in playing simple positions. Notice that positional manoeuvring no longer brought him hope. And in complex situations his open play suffered greatly, especially after the fifth hour of play. But this time I no longer allowed myself to be tempted into trying to exploit the opponent’s inaccuracies as quickly as possible.

I am especially pleased with my achievements in the openings. In the eighteen games of the match approximately six opening systems were used. With White, the challenger never once managed to achieve anything substantial, while with Black he practically did not play — he struggled.

— You employed quite a few theoretical novelties, in particular in the Open Variation of the Spanish Game.

— Let us add: in an old variation, one I have studied inside and out. The argument began three years ago. During the year of preparation for the new match, judging by everything, the challenger and I came to different conclusions, and so we decided to test them again. It is amusing that in one and the same position studied at home, without any risk for Korchnoi, on the 13th move I was able to deliver two different blows of approximately equal strength — in the 14th and 18th games. The opponent spent, in total, two hours and ten minutes searching for an acceptable solution for himself — a fairly serious amount of time, which, incidentally, testifies to the thoroughness of my preparation.

— Which games do you consider the best in the match?

— I think that more than the others I succeeded in the 9th, 14th and 18th games. The challenger played the 6th game strongly, although even in it, before the time control, I had the opportunity not only to hold the position, but also to obtain winning chances. Having failed to use that chance, I was very upset.

— Did you have difficult days during the match?

— There were some, but my difficulties were temporary or local in character, if one may put it that way. For example, after the lost 6th game.

— We have touched on chess psychology. Did the challenger behave correctly?

— You have asked a question to which the negative answer is already known to you. Chess psychology is the study of the opponent’s chess tastes, as well as the strong and weak sides of his character; it should have nothing in common with improper behaviour during a competition. Shortly after Korchnoi’s departure, at a certain stage of the match such a biting feeling began to affect me negatively, accompanying the struggle from the side of an inquisitive observer: what else is this person capable of! And I simply had to master myself, “because a bad person remains a strong chess player and may make use of the fruits of his ‘non-chess’ activity.” After the protest, which was unanimously recognized as an appeal, the committee decided that, for the time being, no attention should be paid to Korchnoi’s antics. It seems he sensed this. He began to yield markedly at the board, but on the other hand — from the podium. I even thought it would be better not to look at him, but to watch the clock.

— Was it not for this reason that you became the “undisciplined antipode” who produced such effectiveness, such a high percentage of decisive games in the match?

— Indeed, there were fewer draws in the match than usual. And only the challenger lost by this, because of his stubbornness. Here is an example. In the third game I offered a draw. The opponent muttered “ten” — that is, speak to me through the arbiter; it was already the tenth occurrence of the same position on the board, when one should address the opponent directly. Something then went wrong for him in that meeting, but when in the fourth game an equal position again arose and it was my turn to offer peace, I remembered the challenger’s reply: why expose myself again to tactlessness! In short, I did not offer a draw, and the fourth game became decisive — though it was not I who won it.

— Our entire delegation tried carefully to conceal from you all the improper behaviour of the challenger and his entourage off the chess stage of the “Salvare”. But from what you now say, one may suppose that we did not always succeed. Will you reveal your secret?

— You succeeded when I myself avoided harmful information that interfered with calm chess. But seriously, I want to use this opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone who helped me not only during the match, but long before it began.

We worked well, but it must not be forgotten that without the support of millions of fans in our country and abroad we would have been much weaker in Merano. Thank you to them for letters and telegrams, for musical greetings on tape cassettes, for the warmth of voices in telephone receivers.

When, at a tense moment of the match, I was advised to go to Venice in order to distract myself from the cage, the board and thoughts about chess openings, it really had a positive effect. But remember that song of Soviet tourists which we suddenly heard in St Mark’s Square. That unobtrusive, native song lifted our spirits greatly and gave more strength than any other physical activation.

— Your physical condition was now noticeably better than in Baguio; you lost relatively little weight. Did gymnastics during the match help with this?

— Yes, I paid more attention to the recovery process. But in my opinion, physical activity is useful for chess only when the exercise is pleasant. I played tennis a great deal and with pleasure; then I grew somewhat tired of it, and the court was successfully replaced by the picturesque surroundings of Merano, walks in the mountain locality, and the road itself: along the quiet embankment of the turbulent river. I liked South Tyrol very much.

— But it is remembered that when choosing the venue for the match you gave preference to Spain...

— And my pleasant memories played no small role in that. In Spain, together with first prize at an international tournament in 1973, I received my first Oscar, and since then, having won at least several competitions in that country, I have made many friends there. On the other hand, I thought: Korchnoi played the final Candidates match with R. Hübner in Merano. Everything there was familiar to him, even the organizers were the same; all this, surely, would support him.

Now, from my own experience, I am convinced that the final choice, which fell on Merano, was not bad at all: both the organizers and the authorities maintained neutrality, for which, incidentally, one might reproach them, if one considers the challenger’s entourage. Well, I did have occasion to feel the sympathy of ordinary people. For example, a group of Soviet girls and young women came to the “Salvare” with a placard reading “Karpov, come on, win!” And do you remember those Tyroleans whom we met in Val Senales when we went for a walk on the eve of the last, eighteenth game? The fellows knelt down before Irina and me, asked specifically to be photographed with me, and said something like our “fie-fie, touch wood, so as not to jinx it.” They said that they were cheering for me, that my victory would be a gift for them.

— Speaking of gifts. The birthdays of your friends fall on the days of your most successful games...

— Even if it is merely a coincidence, one should not underestimate the emotional background created by a pleasant event. Therefore, in the new year we even had a joke: for such sports delegations, one should form the delegation according to the time of the competition and the birthday months of its members. And since we are already talking about this, I shall say that on 21 November, the day of the ceremonial closing of the match, my son Anatoly turned two.

— You have brought great joy to all Soviet people with your victory.

— Faith in that, the awareness of a fulfilled duty, allowed me already from Merano to send Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev a telegram in which I reported the fulfilment of the order: the chess crown remains in the Soviet Union.

A. Roshal,
special correspondent of TASS