Top 310 Quotes & Sayings by Garry Kasparov

Explore popular quotes and sayings by a Russian celebrity Garry Kasparov.
Last updated on September 16, 2024.
Garry Kasparov

Garry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist and commentator. His peak rating of 2851, achieved in 1999, was the highest recorded until being surpassed by Magnus Carlsen in 2013. From 1984 until his retirement in 2005, Kasparov was ranked world No. 1 for a record 255 months overall for his career, which outstrips all other previous and current chess ranking records. Kasparov also holds records for the most consecutive professional tournament victories (15) and Chess Oscars (11).

I think our chances are not looking great today but the only way to fail for me is just not to try.
It's quite difficult for me to imagine my life without chess.
Putin recognized that if he could get enough money, everything would be under control. — © Garry Kasparov
Putin recognized that if he could get enough money, everything would be under control.
I think that it's a vital moment now for Russian democracy to convince people that it's only our actions, our joined actions and protests that could force Kremlin to reconsider its plans to abolish presidential elections.
Putin can't afford to leave the office because he will be in real danger of being prosecuted for things he and his people did during their stay in power.
I started playing chess when I was five years old. I learned the moves from my mother, then worked with my father - and later trainers. My style became very technical. I sacrificed a lot of things. I was always hunting for the king, for the mate. I'd forget about my other pieces.
I organize a chess festival in Hungary. I support chess in schools, and I have my own chess foundation. And I started writing books.
We've been saying Putin is a dictator for years who doesn't care about the law.
It didn't take long to recognise the shortcomings of the Soviet regime and to see the values of the free world.
We have to stop the propaganda, the shameful propaganda used by Kremlin to rehabilitate these old types.
Russian Parliament today is a bunch of puppets that just fall in with the instructions from Kremlin.
Chess was natural for me; I was extremely successful.
I think Russians today have a distorted picture of capitalism, liberal democracy and market economy.
At the end of the day, it's all about money. — © Garry Kasparov
At the end of the day, it's all about money.
I have great energy and I have great tasks ahead of me.
I think Russian people are learning that democracy is not an alien thing; it's not a western invention.
I wouldn't overestimate the importance of my popularity in the country and abroad but at the end of the day it's not as important because I believe that my presence here could make some difference and it could encourage people.
There are many facts showing that Putin's people enriched themselves by using power mechanisms so that's why for them losing power means losing their fortunes.
Chess helps you to concentrate, improve your logic. It teaches you to play by the rules and take responsibility for your actions, how to problem solve in an uncertain environment.
Chess is mental torture.
There are many ways of showing your protest and discontent without the actions of Kremlin.
The only successor to President Putin is President Putin himself and we could of course dream about President Putin stepping down voluntarily and picking out successor which would be probably as bad as him.
I think we have very steady records of President Putin, who inherited the country with democratic values.
In chess, we have styles - like in any other field. There are also fashions in the kinds of systems that people play. So I'm trying to know my opponent as much as possible.
I've met enough KGB colonels in my life.
Putin is like Al Capone.
You cannot say, 'Go! Go! Rah! Rah! Good move!' People want some emotion. Chess is an art and not a spectator sport.
More and more people in my country recognise the dangers of having their governors appointed by Putin and having no influence in parliament because Parliament today is also following instructions from Kremlin and no longer represents its people.
If you make a decision to fight for future of your own country you have to consider all the consequences.
I want to serve chess through games, books that are works of art. I would like to bring the game closer to many people all over the world.
I'm still number one and I just recently won a major tournament ahead of my toughest rivals so I think I had a few years ahead of me if I decided to stay.
It was not about losing my mental power; it's about not feeling good about my contribution to the game.
I may play some exhibition games so I don't want to quit the game of chess completely. I just decided and it's a firm decision not to play competitive chess anymore.
I learned that fighting on the chess board could also have an impact on the political climate in the country.
Ukraine had quite serious impact on the many Russians. They could see that ordinary people in Ukraine which is a bordering state, very close to Russia, the people of this state are, they didn't want to tolerate anymore the power abuse by Ukrainian officials.
Women, by their nature, are not exceptional chess players: they are not great fighters.
The real political life in Russia unfortunately is not in the parliament but on the streets and in the media.
I have some strategical vision, I could calculate some few moves ahead and I have an intellect that is badly missed in the country which is run by generals and colonels.
I have some security that could protect me against provocations but of course there are more terrible actions that could not be stopped by any security. — © Garry Kasparov
I have some security that could protect me against provocations but of course there are more terrible actions that could not be stopped by any security.
Rosneft, for instance, was mainly built upon capital stolen from [jailed oligarch Mikhail] Khodorkovsky's company, but the IPO was successful with many Western corporations investing in it. This means that it is extremely difficult to detect these assets in their pure form.
Enormous self-belief, intuition, the ability to take a risk at a critical moment and go in for a very dangerous play with counter-chances for the opponent - it is precisely these qualities that distinguish great players.
All women are inferior to men.
Ultimately, what separates a Winner from a Loser at the Grandmaster level is the Willingness to do the Unthinkable.
One does not succeed by sticking to convention.
We think about time as something not to waste, not as something to invest.
It's not enough to be talented. It's not enough to work hard and to study late into the night. You must also become intimately aware of the methods you use to reach your decisions.
If you don't take risks, you don't drink champagne.
The only way to fail for me is just not to try.
The highest Art of the Chess player lies in not allowing your Opponent to show you what he can do. — © Garry Kasparov
The highest Art of the Chess player lies in not allowing your Opponent to show you what he can do.
A brilliant strategy is, certainly, a matter of intelligence, but intelligence without audaciousness is not enough.
A grandmaster needs to retain thousands of games in his head, for games are to him what the words of their mother tongue are to ordinary people, or notes or scores to musicians.
But we must not forget the effort undertaken by the ruling elite in Russia to manipulate Western politicians, businessmen as well as journalists. That's why [Vladimir] Putin's "fifth column" is that powerful in the West.
Solving new problems is what keeps us moving forward as individuals and as a society, so don't back down.
Learning from our mistakes is critical for improving, but even I don't have patience for ranking my regrets. Regret is a negative emotion that inhibits the optimism required to take on new challenges. You risk living in an alternative universe, where if only you had done this or that differently, things would be better. That's a poor substitute for making your actual life better, or improving the lives of others. Regret briefly, analyze and understand, and then move on, improving the only life you have.
Losing can persuade you to change what doesn't need to be changed, and winning can convince you everything is fine even if you are on the brink of disaster.
It is better to have a bad plan than no plan.
Attackers may sometimes regret bad moves, but it is much worse to forever regret an opportunity you allowed to pass you by.
If you wish to succeed, you must brave the risk of failure.
The biggest problem I see among people who want to excel in chess – and in business and in life in general – is not trusting their instincts enough.
Setbacks and losses are both inevitable and essential if you're going to improve and become a good, even great, competitor. The art is in avoiding catastrophic losses in the key battles.
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