Meditation and yoga turned Gukesh from “impulsive kid” to world chess star
It's not his skills, but yoga and meditation that Gukesh attributes as the reason behind his success in the world of chess. The teenager from Chennai said that he used to be an “impulsive and short-tempered kid” but he grew up to be a calm, history-making world chess beater.
Chess champion Gukesh says yoga helped him manage his emotions and play chess better
“I was always like a very impulsive, very short-tempered kid. I used to throw tantrums and like not manage my emotions. Then I realized that it’s affecting my chess because whenever I would lose a game, the next few games too I would be very affected by it and I would not be able to play well," Gukesh said at an event in Poland’s Katowice, after playing in an exhibition blitz event against Jan-Krzysztof Duda.
"So I just realized that I should manage my emotions better. That’s when I started doing some good practices like meditation and yoga, which really helped me to manage my emotions. It not only helps in chess but like all walks of life,” he added.
Gukesh lost 5-1 to Duda, who was part of Gukesh’s team last year when he became the youngest world champion in chess history.
“I can’t say like I’m like that advanced in yoga or something like that. But like I just do very simple and basic movement while focusing on breathing. Most of it is related to meditation. I don’t really know much about yoga. I just know some basics and I do that at work,” Gukesh said.
However, he explained that he is not a "yoga master."
At one point, he was asked by the crowd if did deep breathing exercises during games to which, Gukesh replied: “You’re overestimating my yoga skills.”
After the tournament ended, Gukesh and his father took a helicopter ride in the city, which he called an “amazing experience”.