WHEN he was four, Peter Acs had two options for spending time during the family reunions. He could either help his mother and other womenfolk in the family to cook, or he could watch his father pushing the chess pieces against his grandfather.
"At those family reunions, women were always cooking and men playing chess all the time. My father taught me the rules when I was four. I fell in love with the game quickly," Acs told The Sportstar through e-mail from Hungary. "I preferred playing chess to watching television, or cooking."
It turned out to be a very wise move.On August 29 in Athens, he became the first Hungarian to win the World junior chess championship. "But I am sure there will be more," he said.
Like India's Koneru Humpy, who won the girls' championship in Athens, Acs, seeded seventh with 2514 Elo points, wasn't really expecting to strike gold. "Winning the title was a pleasant surprise," he said. "My aim was to finish in the top three, and, in fact, I would have been satisfied had I got a place within top six. After the 12th and penultimate round, though, the gold did not look entirely out of question."
Acs reserved his best for the last. "My best win was in the final round against Bu Xiangzhi of China. Looking back I feel proud that I was able to concentrate fully in such a crunch situation. Remember, that was the game which decided the championship. I think I played really well in that game, and am happy I was able to find Qf7 in an attacking position like that," he said.
That Acs is feeling he is on top of the world after winning the title is quite evident. It is not surprising at all, for the World junior championship is a very prestigious event. All the world's leading players have wanted to win it, and some of those who did it are household names in the game: like Garry Kasparov, Viswanathan Anand, Anatoly Karpov and Boris Spassky. Interestingly, all the four went on to become the World champions.
How did he feel then when Bu Xaiangzhi, the world's youngest Grandmaster (GM), resigned on that memorable August afternoon in Greece?
"It was fantastic and I can't find words to express my feeling," he said. "After the game I felt as if all problems of the world have been solved, and I had managed to achieve everything I wanted."
As always, the World juniors was a pretty strong event this time too. K. Ratnakaran, the Asian junior bronze medallist who watched Acs in action in Athens, said: "The competition was really tough and even some of the unrated players produced high quality chess. To win this tournament, one really had to be very good."
Acs showed that he was quite good from an early age. He won his first major title when he claimed the European under-12 championship at Rimavaska, Slovakia, in 1992. He won the bronze in the World under-16 championship in Menorca in 1996.
He became a GM when he was 17, having made his maiden GM norm at 15. He was a member of the Hungarian team which won the Mitropa Cup in Baden, Switzerland.
He had also won a few GM tournaments in Hungary. In 1997 and 1998 he came first in the First Saturday series tournaments. Twice he was the champion at the Budapest Summer GM tournament, a Category 10 event, in 1998 and 1999. His most famous victim is former World No. 2 Victor Korchnoi, whom he beat at the European championship in Orhid, Macedonia, recently.
What does he think of Humpy's performance at Athens?
"She was easily one of the best players at the World junior championship, and deserved the gold. After following her games, I thought she could have played even better, so I am sure she will have fantastic results in the future. She has already proved herself in the men's competition too, hasn't she? That she scored a GM norm, from Hungary this summer, is remarkable. She is very good."
Viswanathan Anand, the World champion, is one of his two favourite players. His fellow-countryman Peter Leko is the other.
"I know Leko personally and I have met Anand, though I am not sure if Anand remembers me. My coach introduced me to him in 1994 in Amsterdam. He was very friendly and shook hands with me," he said.
He also regards Judit Polgar, fellow-Hungarian and arguably the greatest sportswoman of all time, very highly. "She is a fantastic player and a wonderful individual. I have met her only once, but she has left a lasting impression. She was so nice and it was great talking to her."
Hungary of course is one of the major powers in world chess. Besides Leko and Polgar, Almasi, Chernin and Gyimesi have crossed the 2600 mark in FIDE rating. "There is also Robert Ruck, whose rating has improved after he became a GM," said Acs, who lives in Paks, 110 kilometres south of Budapest. "You will also hear more about two young Hungarians: Ferenc Berkes and Gergely Antal. Both of them are just 16 years of age. Berkes's rating is 2525 now, but I think his real playing strength is around 2500, and he is really good for his age. Antal's rating may not sound so good at 2398, but nowadays he performs 2500 in each tournament."
Acs said that the Hungarian chess federation has some financial problems at present. "So I am afraid the best team will not always represent Hungary in world events."
In Athens though, Hungary did send its best bet. And Acs proved that it was good enough to be the best in the world.
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