6 July 2016
Grigoriy Oparin: I Switched from Chemistry to Linguistics
The Higher League winner answered the questions of Eteri Kublashvili.
- Grigoriy, please accept my congratulations on your victory! How has the tournament been unfolding for you?
- Thank you. The tournament was going well for me save for round one in which I got a difficult position against Alexey Sarana. Then I geared up, scoring four wins in a row and securing myself a rather comfortable position. Thanks to this I could play solid chess in the closing rounds without having to take extreme risks any longer.
- Which round turned into a critical point?
- It most likely happened in round four, when I defeated Maxim Vavulin in a completely hopeless position. After that I took the lead, realizing that the game plays into my hands and that luck is on my side.
- In the ultimate round you played with the black pieces against a very strong opponent - Alexander Riazantsev. What was your mindset prior to the game?
- As I supposed him to assume a latitude-of-the-draw attitude, I decided to go for a solid opening. While I cannot say that my guess of the opening was successful, the game happened to be about level - just exactly what I needed.
- Did you watch the games of your competitors during the ultimate round?
- I did not give them my close attention. I was rather focused on my own game. Basically, I realized that everything depended on me.
- Was your main goal taking the first place in the Higher League, especially towards the end of the tournament, or was it just qualifying into the Superfinal?
- The main goal was qualifying into the Superfinal, of course, while the question of winning is up for luck to have it. For example, in the ultimate round Vladimir Fedoseev had advantage against Vadim Zvjaginsev, and should he have won, I would have ended up being second.
- What is a Superfinal for you?
- This is an opportunity to meet a lot of strong players.
- Is it for you a challenge, training, or test of your strength?
- It is more of a training for me (laughs).
- Have you ever met any of our top players over the board?
- I have played with Ian Nepomniachtchi both classical and blitz games. However, talking about such players as Svidler and Grischuk, I have not yet had a chance to meet any of them.
- Who assisted you during the Higher League?
- During the entire course of the tournament I was helped by Sergey Yurievich Shipov. We had a lot of communication between us while preparing for upcoming games.
- How long have you been working together?
- Over five years. Our collaboration is very fruitful.
- Do you maintain your cooperation with Sergei Dolmatov in the Dvorkovich Chess Saloon?
- Not as often as it used to be, because I have entered the university, and have less time for it now.
- Two years ago you told me in an interview about your plans to enter the Chemistry faculty. Has it happened as you planned or otherwise?
- Everything has changed completely. I have entered the Russian State Humanitarian University (RSHU), majoring in the “Fundamental and Applied Linguistics”, which is just the opposite of the chemistry.
- What is the reason of it?
- Firstly, the exam subjects -- Russian, Mathematics and English -- were easier for me. Secondly, one year before that my friend Misha Antipov entered the RSHU and he is happy with the level of education he has been receiving there.
- Besides, there is a chess club headed by Artem Pugachev, head of the national chess teams...
- Indeed, I have already played for the RSHU chess club at the student’s league. Unfortunately, the last year’s attempts to qualify higher fell short; therefore, we will resume our efforts this year. Besides, the chess club runs its own tournaments not infrequently.
- I see. Going back to the Higher League, how did you spend your leisure time in Kolomna? Did you take walks around the place despite the weather being so hot?
- We were, of course, not so lucky with the weather as it used to be extremely hot. I used to take walks only at evenings after dinner. I decided against joining the weekend excursion because of the heat. In fact, this is not my first visit to Kolomna since I was here two years ago participating at the U18 Russian team championship.
- Did you watch football matches?
- I kept track of the results mostly. I could afford myself to watch the first half, after which I would go to bed. By that time it would be already too late.
- In which events do you intend to participate in the near future?
- In July I will go to Vladivostok to take part in the Russian Cup series of the rapid and classical chess. In August I intend to play in the Swiss tournament in Abu Dhabi. Still ahead are the Spanish and Croatian team championships, upon which the Superfinal will be already close by.
- Which clubs do you play for in Spain and Croatia?
- In Spain I play for the club bearing a funny name Magic, while in Croatia I play for Solin, which is, by the way, the reigning country’s champion.
