NIC Podcast #90: GM Boris Gelfand

Today’s podcast reaches you from Paphos, in Cyprus, on a rest day of the Candidates tournament, after ten of the fourteen rounds have been played. My guest is Boris Gelfand. 

For many years, Boris was one of the best players in the world and even if he plays less today, he remains a formidable opponent. Boris is here in Cyprus as an honorary guest and I am glad that he accepted my invitation to talk not only about this Candidates tournament, but also about his own rich experience in the world championship cycle. 
Boris has successfully played in the Candidates, won Interzonals and a World Cup and was the Challenger of Vishy Anand in the World Championship match in Moscow in 2012.

We sat down for our talk at the venue of the Candidates, the luxurious five-star Cap St. Georges Hotel in Paphos on the west coast of Cyprus. The big question here is whether the tournament is still exciting or whether we already know the winner. With four rounds to go it looks like Uzbek star Javokhir Sindarov is heading for first place and a World Championship match against World Champion Gukesh from India at the end of this year. 

Twenty-year-old Sindarov has had a phenomenal tournament so far. He’s not lost a single game and scored an amazing six victories already. The only player who is theoretically still within striking distance is Anish Giri, but the Dutchman is a full two full points behind and needs a small miracle to turn the tables.
We talked about this and other matters and I hope and trust that you will enjoy this conversation with Boris Gelfand that I had with him on the balcony of his hotel room. 

0:00 – Boris reflects on his own participation in past Candidates tournaments. 

5:45 – The role of opening preparation and how it differs from Boris’s day

14:48 – AD BREAK

15:19 – Qualifying for the World Championship in 2012

23:50 – The difficulty of dedicating one’s self completely to one chess tournament

27:51 – Jakovhir Sindarov’s performance

34:56 – How did Boris psychologically deal with losing his lead over Anand in 2012?

35:43 – AD BREAK

36:42 – Boris thinks Fabiano has taken too many risks in this tournament

38:34 – Boris’s current chess life

40:38 – Outro