Chess: ‘I’ll never be able to play in the Olympics’

World chess champion Viswanathan Anand said that playing at the Olympics would not happen during his career, according to Times of India. With chess not yet approved as an Olympic sport, Anand insists the process of getting it included would be a lengthy one which would mean his playing days would be over when that finally happens. “At the moment, it is pretty remote, and due to the lag, from acceptance till the day it finally becomes a medal sport, it will be too late for me,” said the Indian chess maestro. ”I mean, first you become a demonstration sport, then a medal sport, so there is a huge lag. It essentially does not apply to me anymore. I will not play in the Olympics. It will be well into the future when that happens.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 18^th, 2012.