MOSCOW, December 23./TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Russian Grandmaster Sergey Karjakin is a true fighter whose main victories are yet to come.

"Karjakin indeed played brilliantly, well done," Putin said at his annual news conference. "Our chess player very worthily represented Russia, our chess school. He is a fighter, I am sure his main victories are ahead," the president said.

As for Karjakin’s contender, Magnus Carlsen, Putin said he is "Grandmaster of our time".

In reply to the question whether chess should be included in the school program this way or the other, including as facultative studies, Putin said he was not in the right to interfere in the issues that are within the competence of the local authorities or even schools themselves.

Putin said Russia could be proud of its chess school, which must be developed in the country. "We must see chess developing across the country," he said at the annual news conference.

On November 28, Carlsen and Karjakin finished their 12th and final game of the World Chess Championship Match in New York with a draw. Their overall score after 12 games played was tied at 6-6 and both Grandmasters went for the series of tie-break games to finally decide on the title.

November 30 tie-breaker in New York was the third in the history of chess championships. The first one was in 2006, when Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik beat Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov and the second one was in 2012, when Israel’s Boris Gelfand was defeated by India’s Viswanathan Anand. Carlsen retained his world chess title.