Viswanathan Anand Age, Wiki and Bio

Viswanathan Anand

Quick Info

ProfessionChess Player
NationalityIndian
Date of Birth11/12/1969
Age54 years
BirthplaceMayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Birth SignSagittarius
NicknameVishy
HometownChennai

Bio/Wiki

Names Earned
  • Tiger of Madras
  • The Lightning Kid

Physical Stats & More

Height175 cm (5’ 9”)
Eye ColorBlack
Hair ColorBlack

Educational Qualification(s)

SchoolDon Bosco Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Chennai
College/UniversityLoyola College, Chennai
Educational QualificationBachelor of Commerce

Personal Life

ReligionHinduism
Food HabitNon-Vegetarian
AddressNo.4, 2nd Cross Street, Customs Colony, Besant Nagar, Chennai, Tamil Nadu (Pin - 600090)
Hobbies
  • Reading books
  • Swimming
  • Listening to music

Relationships & More

Marital StatusMarried
Marriage Date1996

Family

FatherKrishnamurthy Viswanathan (retired general manager from Southern Railways; died on 15 April 2021)
MotherSushila (homemaker and chess enthusiast; died on 26 May 2015)
Siblings
BrotherShivakumar (elder; manager at Crompton Greaves)
SisterAnuradha (elder; professor at the University of Michigan)
SpouseAruna
Children
SonAnand Akhil (born on 9 April 2011)

Career

Notable Wins
  • 1986: Arab-Asian International Chess Championship
  • 1987: Sakthi Finance Grandmasters Chess Tournament
  • 1988: 5 Hoogovens Chess Tournament
  • 1989: 2nd Asian Active Chess Championship, Hong Kong
  • 1990: Gold Medal in Asian Zonal Championship
  • 1990: Manchester Chess Festival, Manchester
  • 1990: Triveni Super Grandmasters Tournament, Delhi Joint
  • 1991: World Chess Championship, Brussels Quarter Finalist
  • 1992: Reggio Emilia Chess Tournament, Reggio Emilia
  • 1992: Goodrich Open International Tournament, Calcutta
  • 1992: Alekhine Memorial, Moscow
  • 1993: PCA Interzonal, Groningen
  • 1994: Melody Amber Tournament, Monaco
  • 1994: World Championship Candidates Cycle, Linares
  • 1994: PCA Grand Prix, Moscow
  • 1995: PCA Candidates Final, Las Palmas
  • 1996: Dortmunder Schachtage, Dortmund
  • 1996: Credit Swiss Rapid Chess Grand Prix, Geneva
  • 1996: Torneo Magistral de Ajedrez, Leon
  • 1997: Torneo de Ajedrex, Dos Hermanes
  • 1997: Melody Amber Tournament, Monaco
  • 1997: Aegon Man vs Computers Chess Event
  • 1997: Chess Classic Rapid Tournament, Frankfurt
  • 1997: Invesbanka Chess tournament, Belgrade
  • 1997: Credit Suisse Classic Tournament, Biel
  • 1997: Knock-Out Championship, Groningen
  • 1998: FIDE World Chess Championship (Finalist)
  • 1998: 60th Hoogoven’s Schaak Tornoi, Wijk Aan Zee
  • 1998: Torneo International De Ajedrez, Linares
  • 1998: Torneo Magitral Communidad De Madrid, Madrid
  • 1998: Siemens Nixdorf Duell (Rapid), Frankfurt
  • 1998: Fontys-Tilburg International Chess Tournament
  • 1999: Wydra Memorial Chess (Rapid), Haifa
  • 1999: Torneo Magistral de Ajedrez, Leon
  • 2000: Wydra International Tournament (Rapid), Haifa
  • 2000: Torneo Magistral de Ajedrez, Leon
  • 2000: Fujitsu Siemens Giants Chess (Rapid), Frankfurt
  • 2000: Corsica Masters (Rapid), Corsica
  • 2000: Sparkassen Chess Meeting, Dortmund (Joint with Kramnik)
  • 2000: FIDE World Cup, Shenyang
  • 2000: FIDE World Chess Championships, Teheran and New Delhi
  • 2001: 2nd Torneo Magistral, Mexico
  • 2001: Torneo Magistral de Ajedrez, Leon
  • 2001: Duel of the Champions (Rapid)
  • 2001: FIDE World Chess Championship, Moscow (Semi-Finalist)
  • 2001: Corsica Masters (Rapid), Corsica
  • 2002: Eurotel World Chess Trophy, Prague
  • 2002: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz
  • 2002: FIDE World Cup, Hyderabad
  • 2002: Corsica Masters (Rapid), Corsica
  • 2003: Corus Chess Tournament, Wijk Aan Zee
  • 2003: Melody Amber Tournament, Monaco
  • 2003: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz beat Judith Polgar 5.0:3.0
  • 2003: Corsica Masters, Bastia
  • 2004: Corus Chess Tournament, Wijk Aan Zee
  • 2004: Dortmunder Schachtage, Dortmund
  • 2004: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz beat Alexei Shirov 4.5:2.5
  • 2004: Corsica Masters, Bastia
  • 2005: 18th Magistral Ciudad de Leon Chess, Leon
  • 2005: Chess Classic, Mainz
  • 2005: FIDE World Chess Championship Tournament, San Luis (Runner-up to Topalov)
  • 2006: Corus Chess Tournament, Wijk Aan Zee (Joint with Veselin Topalov)
  • 2006: Melody Amber Tournament, Monaco (Joint with Alexander Morozevich)
  • 2006: 19th Magistral Ciudad de Leon Chess, Leon
  • 2006: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz
  • 2006: Mikhail Tal Memorial Blitz Tournament, Moscow
  • 2007: Morelia-Linares Super Grandmaster Tournament, Linares
  • 2007: 20th Magistral Ciudad de Leon Chess, Leon beat Topalov
  • 2007: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz
  • 2008: Morelia-Linares Super Grandmaster Tournament, Linares
  • 2008: Chess Classic (Rapid), Mainz
  • 2012: World Chess Championship in Moscow
Records
  • Youngest Indian (at the age of 15) to win the Asian Junior Chess Championship with the title 'International Master' in Coimbatore.
  • He won the national chess championship two times at the age of 16.
  • First Indian to win the World Junior Chess Championship in 1987.
  • He received Padma Shri at the age of 18.
  • India’s first Grandmaster, at the age of 18, won the Shakti Finance International chess tournament held in Coimbatore, India in 1988.
  • He won the reunified 'World Chess Championship' in 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2012.
  • First Indian to win the 'FIDE World Chess Championship' in Tehran in 2000 and 2007.
  • Acquired the No.1 ranking in the 'FIDE Elo Rating' in April 2007.
  • Won the 'Chess Oscar' international award in 1997, 1998, 2003, and 2004, 2007, and 2008
  • Became victorious in the 'Advanced Chess' tournament in 1999, 2000, and 2001.
  • He won the 8th game of the 2012 World Chess Championship in just 17 moves and made it the shortest game in championship history.
Awards, Honours, and Achievements
  • 1985: Arjuna Award for Outstanding Indian Sportsman in Chess
  • 1987: Padma Shri, National Citizens Award, and Soviet Land Nehru Award
  • 1991, 1992: Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award
  • 1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2007 and 2008: Chess Oscar
  • 1998: Sportstar Millennium Award
  • 1998: British Chess Federation 'Book of the Year' Award for his book 'My Best Games of Chess'
  • 2000: Padma Bhushan
  • 2001: 'Jameo de Oro' the highest honour given by the Government of Lanzarote in Spain
  • 2007: Padma Vibhushan
  • 2011: 'Global Strategist Award' for mastering many formats of World Chess Championships by NASSCOM
  • 2012: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa honoured Anand with a cheque of ₹2 crores for his achievement in winning the World Chess Championship for the fifth time.
  • 2012: 'Indian Sportsperson of the Year' and 'Indian of the Year' Awards
  • 2014: Russian Order of Friendship for the development of economic, scientific and cultural ties with Russia
  • 2015: Top Country Award at the Spanish embassy, Delhi

Favourites

Chess PlayerBobby Fischer
Book'Cosmos' by Carl Sagan
FoodMullangi (radish) sambhar

Style Quotient

Car Collection
  • BMW
  • Range Rover

Some Lesser Known Facts

Viswanathan Anand became India's first grandmaster in 1988.
He is a former five-time World Chess Champion.
Anand achieved the eighth-highest FIDE rating peak in history.
In 2022, he became FIDE's deputy president.
He spent his childhood in Chennai.
Anand learned chess at six by watching his siblings.
He lived in Manila during the late 1970s and 1980s.
Anand would finish chess games quickly in his childhood.
At 14, he won the National Sub-Junior Chess Championship.
In 1985, Anand became the youngest Indian International Master.
He won the Asian Junior Championship in 1985.
By 1987, Anand became India's first World Junior Chess Champion.
In 1988, he became India's first Grandmaster.
In 2000, Anand won the FIDE World Chess Championship.
Anand exceeded a 2800 FIDE rating in 2006.
He won the Linares chess tournament in 2007.
Anand defended his championship in 2008, 2010, and 2012.
Anand won the 2010 World Chess Championship.
He joined the Olympic Gold Quest's board in 2010.
Anand excelled in Linares and Dortmund tournaments multiple times.
In 2010, he dined with President Obama and PM Singh.
Anand was 57th on the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list in 2012.
He has endorsed various brands and institutions.
Anand won the 2012 World Championship.
Putin invited Anand for tea after his 2012 win.
He was honored by Tamil Nadu and awarded ₹2 crore.
In 2013, Carlsen defeated Anand in the World Chess Championship.
Carlsen defended his title against Anand in 2014.
Anand speaks multiple languages.
He resided in Spain for 16 years.
Anand likes Moscow, a chess hub.
He is NIIT's Brand Ambassador.
A minor planet was named after Anand in 2015.
Anand has diverse interests beyond chess.
He values his intuition.
Anand donated his gold medal to a charitable cause.
His book won the 'Book of the Year' award in 1998.
Kavalek praised Anand's versatility in chess.
Anand took part in a charity event to support COVID-19 relief.
In 2023, he shared experiences of playing badminton and family time.

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