In an interview for the Polish biweekly „Przegląd Sportowy ONET”, Garri Kasparov has praised Poland’s support for Ukraine and defiance of Putin.
Garry KasparovPAP / Tomasz Waszczuk
Kasparov is in Poland on the occasion of the Superbet Rapid&Blitz chess tournament. He praised Poland’s Duda who is a favourite.
In the interview, Kasparov addressed matters related to chess as well as the war in Ukraine.
The former grandmaster and leading Russian oppositionist praised Poland’s role in the crisis:
„Following Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, Poland has become the logistics centre of the free world in the fight against Putin’s aggression.”
Kasparov elaborated on his view:
„Since the invasion of Crimea and the subsequent invasions I have been saying that Russia should be isolated… I believed that Russia would be completely thrown out of international structures and sent back to the „stone age”. Russians must be made aware that they are a part of a crminal regime.”
On the issues of chess, „Przegląd Sportowy ONET” asked Kasparov to compare himself and two other greats frequently mentioned as the „GOAT” of chess: Bobby Fischer and Magnus Carlsen. Kasparov responded that he is sceptical about simple statements about the „Greatest of All Time”:
„Fischer was at the top for three years… never defending his title. Magnus defended his title for 10 years and I was the best for 15 years… I can say that in the course of his decade at the top Carlsen achieved everything. But to call him the greatest is to make a subjective claim.”
Sources: Przegląd Sportowy ONET, Twitter
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