Aryan Tari with GM-norm

During Easter, I was coaching a few Norwegian juniors at the Open Norwegian Championship. Some were successful, others not so successful. But one really managed to do something extraordinary. 13 year old Aryan Tari (2293) scored a GM-norm with 6/9 (+4=4-1). Aryan, congratulations on the GM-norm!
Thanks!

What did you expect before the tournament?
It's always a well-arranged tournament with good playing conditions. I thought I was in great form, since I had several good positions against strong players in my last tournament in Reykjavik, and I had trained a lot the week before. But of course I didn't expect a GM-norm.

What's the difference compared to your play in Reykjavik?
In Reykjavik, I had a winning position against Bartosz Socko, but I chickened out and took a move repetition. After that, I lost the respect for the GM:s; I knew they were beatable. Maybe that's the biggest difference.

So it's all thanks to Bartosz Socko that you made a GM-norm?
Haha, yes, you could say that.

What were the key moments in the tournament?
Maybe the win againt Jon Ludvig Hammer. I had a fine opening as black, but it was equal, and then he overlooked a combination. I took one game at a time, and it wasn’t until I won against Frode Urkedal in round seven and secured the IM-norm, that I realized that a GM-norm was possible.

Magnus Carlsen congratulated you from London. Have you played against him?
I played against him in a blindfold simul and lost, but a few months ago I had a winning position against him in a rapid tournament. He had sacrificed his queen. But I lost anyway.

I have seen that many people compare you with him.
That's just stupid. He was much better at my age.

So what do you tell the journalists?
What can I say? I just smile.

Good solution. So what do you do outside chess?
I exercise almost every day on a treadmill. I also make a little bit of schoolwork. But mostly I meet friends.

How do you practice chess?
Well, with you... But I often train together with Benjamin Arvola. And I am watching videos and solving exercises on chess.com. But mostly, I am looking carefully at my games after every tournament.

What is your best advice to other kids that want to have success?
Play a lot. I'm playing everything I can and have been for many years.

What are your goals for the future?
For the rest of the month, I will try to push my rating.

Pump up your rating, you mean.
Hehe, yes, that's true. It may be possible to reach 2400 before the 1st of May. In the autumn I'm going to play in the World Junior, and European and World Youth Championships. For the last two, I will try to fight for a medal. Maybe I will start at NTG (Norwegian College of Elite Sport, my remark) in the autumn. Then I will play a lot of chess!

But you have to attend the classes at school?
Not so much. It will be mostly chess. But I have to talk to my father first.