All posts tagged: Paddy Upton

From psychic mediums to supercomputers, the evolution of chess preparation at elite level

From psychic mediums to supercomputers, the evolution of chess preparation at elite level

Published by Parlour News

Anatoly Karpov remembers the night one of his aides, Grisha Rozhkovsky, started to eat a broken piece of glass during dinner. It sounds like an urban legend concocted by some nameless KGB agent to try and spook an adversary. But Karpov, the 12th world champion in chess history, swears it happened (in an interview given to Russia’s Sport Express back in 2015). The story goes that Karpov and his team were having a meal together, still trying to digest a tough loss to the upstart Garry Kasparov in the 1985 World Chess Championship, when Rozhkovsky, who was a hypnotist from Odessa, decided the team could do with a bit of cheering up. So he pulled out a piece of glass, and started crunching on it. Grisha Rozhkovsky, an aide of Anatoly Karpov, ate a piece of glass after Karpov lost a game against Garry Kasparov. (Illustrations generated by Gemini/Nano Banana with theme specific prompts) Rozhkovsky was not the only hypnotist helping the world’s best chess players back in those days. At that same battle, after …

Gukesh’s father Rajinikanth reveals how the team of youngest world chess champion was built | Chess News

Gukesh’s father Rajinikanth reveals how the team of youngest world chess champion was built | Chess News

Published by Webster

Gukesh’s father Rajinikanth explained how the team of his son, which helped him become the youngest world chess champion, was built before the final showdown against Ding Liren in the World Chess Championship in Singapore. I don’t even know when they decided to include mainly Keymer,” Rajnikanth told ChessBase India. “I know Hari was already there in the candidates, even Hari (Pentala Harikrishna) was Gukesh’s choice for candidates. So he decided that he will take Hari and so they were working for candidates also. So I think for the candidates Hari, Radosław Wojtaszek were already there. “They were already part of the team. Jan Klimkowski was helping, but we never met him personally. So he was helping online, maybe he was working with Grzegorz Gajewski, all those things for the candidates. But after the candidates, he didn’t. “Jan-Krzysztof Duda was helping him as a training partner before the candidates themselves. For the Candidates mainly the team was Hari, Radosław and Gajewski, with Duda helping for online games whenever Gukesh wanted to play some online training …

Gukesh was remarkably fresh, while Ding looked tired: Paddy Upton | Chess News

Gukesh was remarkably fresh, while Ding looked tired: Paddy Upton | Chess News

Published by Webster

Paddy Upton, who was part of Gukesh’s team has revealed 18-year-old strategy against Ding Liren during the World Chess Championship final in Singapore. “Gukesh was remarkably fresh and poised, while Ding seemed to be showing signs of tiring,” Paddu Upton wrote in his blog. “Instead of conceding the draw, and like he’d done in previous games where he’d kept his opponent at the chess board for sometimes 90 minutes longer then expected, Gukesh was again pushing despite an inevitable draw,” he said. Upton, the renowned mind whisperer to elite athletes who has helped the Indian cricket team on its way to the 2011 Cricket World Cup title and the Indian hockey team to a bronze at the Paris Olympics cannot help but beam with pride as he talks about the latest athlete he has worked with: 18-year-old Gukesh, who became the world’s youngest ever world champion in history after dethroning the reigning world champion Ding Liren. India’s D Gukesh during the Closing Ceremony of the FIDE World Chess Championship 2024, in Singapore. (FIDE/Eng Chin An …

Paddy Upton decodes Gukesh’s chess world title winning psychology

Paddy Upton decodes Gukesh’s chess world title winning psychology

Published by Webster

Renowned mental conditioning coach, Paddy Upton was confused when Chinese Grandmaster Ding Liren played Rf2 in the final game of the World Chess Championships on Thursday. Usually a calm individual, Paddy panicked over the change of expression from Gukesh. However, when the chess connoisseur nearby told him that Ding had made a mistake, Paddy felt better knowing that the youngster was on the cusp of history. “If I were to be honest, I was sitting in the VIP section, two seats away from Gukesh on my side of the glass. But to be honest, my reaction was panic because I saw the energy change,” Paddy told The Bridge in an exclusive interview. “I saw something in Gukesh’s face. Although there needed to be silence in the viewing area, I heard a collective gasp and I knew something had happened. So I was panicking until someone said Ding had made the mistake and Gukesh had got him, then I went from panic to exuberance,” he explained the last few moments of the World Chess Championships. The …

‘Paddy Upton has helped me a lot mentally, physically’: D Gukesh

‘Paddy Upton has helped me a lot mentally, physically’: D Gukesh

Published by Webster

18-year-old D Gukesh remains firmly in contention for the World Chess Championship crown, holding reigning champion Ding Liren to yet another draw in the sixth game on Saturday This was the third consecutive draw, leaving both players level on 3 points apiece, still short of the requisite 4.5 points to win the championship. The sixth game ended in a draw after 46 moves. It was the fourth draw in the match. 32-year-old Ding Liren won the opening game, while Gukesh won the third game. The second, fourth, and fifth games ended in draws. Gukesh’s performance at such a high-stakes tournament, especially at just 18 and playing in his first World Championship against an experienced player like Liren, underlines his mental toughness and ability to handle pressure. In October end, Gukesh, who delivered a stellar performance in India’s historic Chess Olympiad winning performance in Hungary in September, roped in renowned mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton to prepare for the Championship. ‘Very enjoyable’ As the match halts for a day break, Gukesh reflected on how Upton has …

Paddy Upton interview on helping Gukesh for World Chess Championship

Paddy Upton interview on helping Gukesh for World Chess Championship

Published by Webster

About six months back, when Paddy Upton was approached to coach an Indian athlete for his first appearance at a World Championship, the South African mind guru was not sure what to make of the offer. In the past, Upton helped the Indian cricket team claim the 2011 World Cup and the Indian men’s hockey team seal a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics. But this offer was different: it was a chance to help D Gukesh become the youngest-ever world chess champion at the age of 18. Paddy Upton has worked with athletes from 19 different sports, but rarely with someone this young, that too a chess player, on a one-on-one basis – which explains his initial hesitation. “I wasn’t sure about working with him initially because I tend to not work with people who are too young. They haven’t really matured or evolved. But Gukesh has just been an absolute blessing and a gift to work with. He is super-intelligent. We’re able to have amazingly detailed and deeply complex conversations,” Paddy Upton tells …

Gukesh ropes in mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton for World Chess C’ship

Gukesh ropes in mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton for World Chess C’ship

Published by Webster

In chess, nothing matters more than mastering the mind – and Indian chess’s blue-eyed boy, D Gukesh, has taken that to heart. As Gukesh prepares for the high-stake FIDE World Chess Championship against Ding Liren of China, he has roped in renowned South African mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton, reported Indian Express. The World Championship match will be held at Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore from November 25 to December 14. Gukesh qualified for the World Championship after winning the FIDE Candidates at The Great Hall in Toronto, Canada in April this year. In September, in a seminal moment for Indian chess, Gukesh, continuing his dazzling form, played a pivotal role in India’s Chess Olympiad victory in Budapest, Hungary. 18-year-old Gukesh’s 3000+ rating performance at the Olympiad was the highest. Gukesh was among the four Indians who won individual gold at the event. Upton is a familiar name in Indian sports. He worked with the 2011 World Cup winning Indian cricket team, and several other Indian Premier League teams subsequently. Upton’s most recent work in …

Gukesh brings mind guru Paddy Upton on board in battle against Ding Liren | Chess News

Gukesh brings mind guru Paddy Upton on board in battle against Ding Liren | Chess News

Published by Webster

Gukesh D has enlisted the services of mind guru Paddy Upton as he looks to defeat China’s Ding Liren and become the youngest ever world chess champion later this year. Before this, Upton had worked with the 2011 Cricket World Cup-winning Indian team and the Indian hockey team which won a bronze medal at the recent Paris Olympics. It is learnt that Upton has been in Gukesh’s corner since the past four months as the 18-year-old from Chennai has looked to surround himself with a team of specialists to take down the reigning world champion Liren in a match comprising of 14 games between November 25 and December 13. Gukesh was reportedly introduced to Upton by Sandeep Singhal, who is a co-founder of the WestBridge Anand Chess Academy with five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand. The South African Upton has been brought on board to help Gukesh “sharpen the arrow for key moments of performance”. “Everything can be right in the lead-up to the big moments of performance, but if the arrow is not sharp, it …

Paddy Upton to help Indian men’s hockey team during Paris Olympics

Published by Webster

Hockey India will continue with the service of South African mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton as he will help the national men’s hockey team during the Paris Olympics. Upton was first hired for the Indian team ahead of the Asian Champions Trophy in August 2023 when India reclaimed the title for the first time since 2018. Hockey India retained Upton for the Asian Games in Hangzhou where India won the gold medal for the first time since 2014. Upton is famous in India for his stint with India’s 2011 Cricket World Cup-winning team. As the Indian men’s hockey team eyes ending its gold medal drought, Upton’s partnership with his fellow South African Craig Fulton, the head coach of India, will be crucial. “We have Paddy Upton; he will be with us in Australia (for the Test series). We will be using him wisely. For sure, he will be there for the Olympics with us,” Fulton said. India is scheduled to tour Australia from April 2–15 for a five-Test series in Perth. At the FIH Pro …

FIH Hockey Pro League: Hardik Singh, India’s midfield dynamo, driven by mental guru’s advice and Kobe Bryant’s ethics | Hockey News

Published by Webster

Hardik Singh’s first touch was uneventful and harmless: a simple trap and pass in the centre of the midfield. It didn’t take long for the boring to turn into breathless. Minutes later, he was on the left of the defence near the byline, presenting his cornered teammate a passing option. He then popped up inside the opponent’s striking circle to aid an attack and instantly sprinted back to fill the gap on the right of the back-line. When captain Harmanpreet Singh ventured slightly forward, Hardik swiftly dropped deep and became the sweeper back. Friday’s Pro League match between India and Ireland was only 20 minutes old but Hardik had played in five different positions. Sprinting, scheming and splitting defence. “He is our dynamo,” says India coach Craig Fulton. “He makes things tick.” Ireland wasn’t an exception. All through the week, Hardik was elegantly running the game against Australia, the Netherlands and Spain. Showing his wide range of skills, running into empty spaces and holding the ball, to see passes others can just dream and controlling …