Magnus Carlsen, a name that hardly needs an introduction. His epic rise to the chess throne and successfully defending the title against elite players like Vishy Anand, Sergey Karjakin and Fabiano Caruana has ensured that his name will be taken among the greatest players of all time. Having said that, Magnus is still at his peak and currently there seems no one who can dethrone him. World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen has broken many chess records and he has no plans of stopping.

Currently Magnus Carlsen is the number 1 ranked player in the world. Very few people become a Grandmaster, to reach 2700+ is in itself a great achievement. But to be 2800+ you need to have little more than talent, memory or genius. Magnus Carlsen is definitely special in that respect.

Magnus has dominating the FIDE rating list for many many years now, he also broke the ‘highest rating ever’ record of 2856 (held by Kasparov) with a stunning new 2878 rating.

Here is the list of his most famous quotes. Enjoy!

Some people think that if their opponent plays a beautiful game, it’s OK to lose. I don’t. You have to be merciless. Magnus Carlsen

I spend hours playing chess because I find it so much fun. The day it stops being fun is the day I give up. Magnus Carlsen

What I admired most about him (Fischer) was his ability to make what was in fact so difficult look easy to us. I try to emulate him. Magnus Carlsen

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. Magnus Carlsen

Not winning a tournament is not an option for me, unless it’s no longer theoretically possible – then of course winning becomes impossible. But up to that point, not winning is just not an option. Magnus Carlsen

All I expect are wins and to get pleasure from the game. And if someone thinks something about me, if someone’s dissatisfied with something… that’s not my headache. I hope someday I’ll become World Champion – and I’ll make all these people happy. But even if for some reason that doesn’t happen it won’t stop me getting pleasure from chess. I’m sure of that. Magnus Carlsen

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. Magnus Carlsen

There wasn’t any particular player I modeled my game after. I tried to learn from everyone and create my own style. I studied past players. Truth be told I never had a favorite player. It’s just not my nature to go around idolizing people. I just go try to learn. Magnus Carlsen

It’s easy to get obsessed with chess. That’s what happened with Fischer and Paul Morphy. I don’t have that same obsession. Magnus Carlsen

Contrary to many young colleagues I do believe that it makes sense to study the classics. Magnus Carlsen

People ask what my goal is. I don’t have a goal. Magnus Carlsen

I am not some sort of freak. I might be very good at chess but I’m just a normal person. Magnus Carlsen

I get more upset at losing at other things than chess. I always get upset when I lose at Monopoly. Magnus Carlsen

I am trying to beat the guy sitting across from me and trying to choose the moves that are most unpleasant for him and his style. Magnus Carlsen

Self-confidence is very important. If you don’t think you can win, you will take cowardly decisions in the crucial moments, out of sheer respect for your opponent. You see the opportunity but also greater limitations than you should. I have always believed in what I do on the chessboard, even when I had no objective reason to. It is better to overestimate your prospects than underestimate them. Magnus Carlsen

He (Kasparov) has an extreme capacity for work, extreme determination to win and extreme perfectionism. Magnus Carlsen

I can’t count the times I have lagged seemingly hopelessly far behind, and nobody except myself thinks I can win. But I have pulled myself in from desperate [situations]. When you are behind there are two strategies – counter-attack or all men to the defenses. I’m good at finding the right balance between those. Magnus Carlsen

Without the element of enjoyment, it is not worth trying to excel at anything. Magnus Carlsen

Young Magnus playing against Legend Garry Kasparov!

I honestly don’t read that much. Obviously I read chess books – in terms of favorites, Kasparov’s ‘My Great Predecessors’ is pretty good. Magnus Carlsen

Maybe if I didn’t have the talent in chess I’d find the talent in something else. The only thing I know is that I have talent in chess, and I’m satisfied with that. Magnus Carlsen

I don’t look at computers as opponents. For me it is much more interesting to beat humans. Magnus Carlsen

I’ve never been much of a computer guy at least in terms of playing with computers. Actually until I was about 11 I didn’t use a computer for preparing for games at all. I was playing a bit online, was using the chess club mainly. Now, obviously, the computer is an important tool for me preparing for my games. Magnus Carlsen

I respect Anand. But I don’t fear him. Am pleased with all the arrangements here. Magnus Carlsen

One of the things that first attracted me to chess is that it brings you into contact with intelligent, civilized people – men of the stature of Garry Kasparov, the former world champion, who was my part-time coach. Magnus Carlsen

It’s nice to be financially secure. Apart from that, I really don’t care too much about money. Magnus Carlsen

Of course, analysis can sometimes give more accurate results than intuition but usually it’s just a lot of work. I normally do what my intuition tells me to do. Most of the time spent thinking is just to double-check. Magnus Carlsen

Perhaps the most important reason for my success is that I enjoy reading about chess theory and chess history – and I remember what I read. Magnus Carlsen

Which is your favourite Magnus Carlsen quote? Do comment and share.