Once you're a chess player, you spend a lot of time thinking about the game and you can't get it completely out of your head.

When you have fun then you're more interested in learning.

It's easy for me to get along with chess players. Even though we are all very different, we have chess in common.

I started by just sitting by the chessboard exploring things. I didn't even have books at first, and I just played by myself. I learnt a lot from that, and I feel that it is a big reason why I now have a good intuitive understanding of chess.

It's just not my nature to go around idolizing people.

For me right now I think being the world number one is a bigger deal than being the world champion because I think it shows better who plays the best chess. That sounds self-serving but I think it's also right.

Chess only appeals to quite a small minority. It does not have the cachet of a mainstream popular sport.