During the Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland tournament, the C-Squared team asked the participants about their pregame rituals or routines. Here are some answers:
Magnus Carlsen: These tournaments are a bit unusual in the sense that there are so many games and there are a lot of breaks between games so I usually go for a walk and then I listen to either some music or podcast. And just try to get some peace and get in the right mindset for the next game.
Anish Giri: Every tournament is different, it depends a lot. When you have large breakfast in a hotel then the lunch becomes small. If you have bad breakfast you have big lunch. So I think for every tournament you got a different routine, but usually whatever you choose to do on the first day it’s something you carry along with you until the end.
Gukesh D: Nothing special, during the tournaments I try to maintain a routine of doing simple things repeatedly and when I get to the board I guess it’s quite obvious that I place my knights facing the king.
Jan-Krzysztof Duda: In general, if I play classical game, I prepare, eat one and a half hour before the game, and take a shower to clear my head, to feel refreshed psychologically.
On the other hand, If I play blitz, then the periods between the rounds are very short so usually I eat some sugar or some other unhealthy food.
Wei Yi: When you play against the strongest players of the world you have to prepare a lot for the games, but also you need to have a good rest, that’s very important.
Vincent Keymer: In general I think it’s just incredibly important to manage to be focused on the task ahead, to have your mind really fully focused on chess and not thinking about anything else.
