Interview with Hikaru Nakamura

American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, one of the top players in the world, joined us for a short talk after his win against GM John Shaw from Scotland.

Hikaru, what do you think so far of the Baku Olympiad?

• So far it’s pretty good. I think, of all the Olympiads I’ve been to, I’d have to say that the opening ceremony here was by far the best. Certainly that was a good start! The conditions are quite good, the playing hall is pretty big and this is the only Olympiad that I recall that isn’t super-tight, like the one that I’ve played in Turin 2006. So I’m pretty happy with all the conditions.

The US has an extremely powerful team, with three players from the world’s top ten. What do you think of your chances to get the gold?

• It’s so difficult. The difference between getting the gold or anything else, like bronze, is probably going to come down to one or two games, to one or two critical moments, like in matches against Russia and China. Certainly we have a good chance, but it’s all going to depend on a couple of moments.