Enamul eager to return home
Grand Master Enamul Hossain Rajib can now breathe fresh air outside his sister's house in Mainz, Germany after spending two months inside the house due to coronavirus lockdown. The country's youngest GM is eagerly waiting for the resumption of international flights to return to Bangladesh.
Rajib went to Germany along with brother-in-law, FIDE master Tayebur Rahman, on March 6 to take part in the Chess Bundesliga, arguably the strongest league of its kind. However, the 38-year-old was immediately confined within his sister's house as Germany enforced nationwide lockdown.
"I planned to stay 20 days for two competitions and thought of returning in the last week of March ahead of the Bangladesh Games, but nothing went according to plan due to coronavirus and I was stuck in Germany as all international flights were cancelled," Rajib said. "I also planned to meet my sister as I came here with my mother, a sister and her husband. But it's really tough to stay for two months as I only wanted to stay 20 days.
"Lockdown here is a bit flexible now. We can go outside and walk freely and take long breaths of fresh air. To be frank, I am now waiting for the resumption of international flight to return home," said the former national champion.
While stuck in Germany, Rajib is trying to make use of his time by playing online chess, studying chess journals and spending time with family members.
"It is easy for the chess players to stay at home compared to other athletes because we are habituated with this situation. At home quarantine, I am spending time playing online chess and studying journals related to chess. Besides, I spend some quality time with the family members as most of our family members are now in Mainz," Rajib said, informing that former World Chess Champions GM Viswanathan Anand of India is also stuck in Germany due to the pandemic.
Rajib, however, laments not being able to take part in any competitive tournament as all sporting activities around the world, including chess, has been halted.
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