Tigran Petrosyan junior, a champion of the recent 38th International Chess Olympiad inDresden, is no relation to world chess champion Tigran Petrosyan. This, despite the fact that the victory and excellent gamesmanship of the latter was a deciding factor when it came time for Levon Petrosyan to name his future son. “Being a chess aficionado, my father always dreamt of having a son. Since our last name was Petrosyan he named me Tigran and taught me how to play chess. It worked out fine,” says theDresdenchamp.

Tigran’s father, Levon Petrosyan, became the boy’s first coach at the age of five and helped him execute the first moves in the chess game of wits. Later on it was coach Gagik Sargsyan that revealed the secrets of the game to Tigran for six straight years. “He laid the foundations of my future chess playing that no other coach in the future could do.” Tigran has been without a coach since the age of seventeen, but his father is always there by his side. “After every victory he is almost always the first to call and it was no different after the win in Dresden.”

Tigran has a multitude of wins under his belt.  In 1998 he was champion in the 14 year-old age group and held the title till 2002 when he became the champion in the 18 year-old group. In 2004 he left for India to participate in the 20 year-olds tournament and returned with a silver medal. In 2005, Tigran clinched first-place in international competitions in Iran and Batumi. The list of wins goes on but, as the champion likes to say, the emotions derived from past victories are nothing when compared to what he felt this last time around in Dresden, after winning the 38th International Chess Olympiad. “I have matured and see things quite differently now. I experienced pride and enthusiasm with this victory especially when I returned back home to Armenia and felt the joy of the people. It was a really big deal for me.” It is very important for Tigran to maintain the honor of his people and nation on a high footing. Thus, taking into account the urgency of a positive result, he flung himself headlong into the struggle and forgets any notions about being creative. “The artistic side of chess manifests itself in individual play and competing as an individual is much easier since it all depends on you and no one else. In team play, how you do affects the entire squad and thus you feel additionally pressurized to play well. This is why in the Dresden Olympiad the sport aspect of the game took over in me.” Despite the fact that Tigran like to be creative when he plays, when results are important, he exhibits what he terms “less interesting chess”. “When you start to play creatively you must be prepared to lose, but on the other hand, creative play is so much more enjoyable.” 

Tigran Petrosyan confesses to a bout of anxiety during the initial matches at the Dresden Olympiad even though the opponents weren’t all that strong. “But with the help of the guys and the coach I came to grips with the situation and understood how I should be playing. The matches with Azerbaijan, Russia and China were especially tense but I was able to meet the challenge.” According to Tigran, in order to overcome any given challenge in chess one must possess a good memory, be willing to work hard and be endowed with a natural talent to play chess. “When it comes to possessing a good memory I can’t compare with Vladimir Hakopyan. He has a phenomenal memory but I don’t complain with what I have.”

Due diligence in the game of chess manifests itself in the form of training. The more one trains, the higher the level of one’s willingness to work at the game. Tigran says that he really doesn’t train all that much. “I can skip two days a week and not train, but when I come home I open the chess set and spend a half hour or so just solving certain problems.” The results of such efforts are plain to see. In his China match Tigran clichéd a victory point for the team, even though he sounds a modest note on the matter. “I wouldn’t say that it was the score that put us over the top because the whole team as a unit was competing. It was the combined score of the guys on the team that brought us victory.” Tigran’s teammate Olympiad champion Vladimir Hakopyan highly rates the contribution made by Tigran. “This time Tigran really amazed us all. It seemed to all that in Turin the team was stronger but Tigran really displayed a strong and mature game. In practically all his matches his board positions were complex and difficult. What should be noted is that he clinched the winning point for the team.”

One also must not overlook the attitude one has for the game. There’s a half hour ritual that Tigran adheres to that puts him in a positive frame of mind before every match. “I have my favorite songs that I must listen to before every match. They really invigorate me. The whole deal last for a half an hour and consists of ten specific songs. Most of them are songs by Christina Aguilera. I really like her work.” This isn’t a reflection of dependency on Tigran’s behalf since he really isn’t dependent on anything. “I only depend on my parents in the sense I want them to always be by my side, till the end of my life.” Is it possible that in the realm of human relations Tigran has need of another kind of dependency, his other half so to say? But given that it still hasn’t appeared on the scene Tigran reflects and states, “My personal life continues on quite peacefully, without any new changes.” He smiles and adds, “It seems to me that everything is still ahead of me.”  If anyone harbors intentions of winning over Tigran’s heart they must value simple human relations, friendship and sincerity in all things, for these are the values that Tigran lives by. And for all the girls out there, Tigran likes ‘khash’, fried chicken and fish. That is if you believe that you can get to a man’s heart via his stomach; as the saying goes.

Tigran was a mischievous young lad who liked to play around in the yard like any other normal kid. Once he even tried to ride his bike down a flight of stairs and went tumbling down. Luckily his injuries weren’t too serious for a young boy to recover from. He still enjoys playing today. “I’m always not in Yerevan but when I am I go to the ‘Sicilia Club’ where I’m a member and play ‘Mafia’, my favorite game.

The fourth chessboard, on which Tigran Petrosyan was playing, brought him luck. In the game of chess this allows for a new set of objectives and desires to come to the fore. “I can’t really say how I would have made out if I had played on the second or third board. I’ve never played those boards since the opponents playing at those boards have higher scores. It seems to me that my score of +4 is pretty good. So it’s possible to try and move to chessboard #3.”