'In a World Championship, it's not only about chess. There is a lot of mental and emotional pressure to deal with.'
His history-scripting world title was not just a result of good strategy on the chess board, said Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh on Monday, crediting mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton for helping him tame the 'emotional pressure' of competing at the biggest stage.
The 18-year-old Gukesh, who defeated China's Ding Liren to become the youngest-ever winner of the World title, arrived in Chennai on Monday to a rousing welcome from enthusiastic fans and officials.
"In a World Championship, it's not only about chess. There is a lot of mental and emotional pressure to deal with. Paddy's teachings helped me in that regard," Gukesh said in a press meet organised by Velammal Vidyalaya, his childhood school.
Upton, a renowned mental conditioning coach, worked with Gukesh in the run-up to and during the the 14-game marathon event in Singapore.
"The suggestions and the conversations I have had with him, have been very important for me and my development as a player," he said.
Gukesh also detailed how his association started with the South African, who has the experience of working with the 2011 cricket World Cup-winning Indian cricket team and the men's hockey team that bagged a bronze at the Paris Olympics.
"Paddy has been a very important part of my team. After I won the Candidates (in April), I asked Sandeep sir (Sandeep Singhal of Westbridge Capital) for a mental trainer," Gukesh recalled.
"He immediately put me in touch with Paddy Upton, who has a lot of experience working with high-performance athletes," said the youngster.
A day after Gukesh's title triumph, Upton had lauded the teenager's "self-awareness".
"I think that's the thing that's really stood out, his ability to recognise his thoughts and manage his mind and his understanding of how to do so," Upton said.
"...he is a World champion because he was able to manage himself and remain focused and stay in the game even though he's 0-1 down right from the beginning. So that really is a mark of a champion."
