Anand retains world chess title

Anand said he had given one of his best-ever performances

India's Viswanathan Anand has retained his FIDE World Chess Championship title by beating Russia's Vladimir Kramnik in the German city of Bonn.

Anand won three games, drew seven times and lost once en route to winning the competition by 6.5 points to 4.5.

He and Kramnik will share the total prize fund of 1.5m euros ($1.94m).

Anand became FIDE world champion last year by winning a tournament in Mexico, where Kramnik was again runner-up. Anand first won the title in 2000.

Kramnik, the Classical World Chess Champion, had competed in the 2007 World Chess Federation (FIDE) world championship with the understanding that if he lost, he would get a chance to reclaim the title by playing a match against the winner in 2008.

Vladimir pushed me into giving my all Viswanathan Anand

"Vladimir pushed me into giving my all. I've given one of my best-ever performances here in Bonn," Anand, 38, told the AFP news agency after his victory on Wednesday.

"I tried everything, but it just wasn't enough. Life is like that and defeat is part of it," Kramnik conceded.

Anand, who was born in the southern Indian city of Madras (Chennai), divides his time between India and Spain.

Known as the "Tiger from Madras", his achievements have triggered huge interest in the game in India with chess clubs mushrooming in many parts of the country.