We categories the activities into three categories — Painting as art, Physics as science, Football as sport— but if we talk about chess, then it can be plausibly be seen as all three, each with its own conventions. Chess action can be striking, systematic, or strategic. The former world champion Anatoly Karpov claimed in an oft-quoted remark that “chess is everything— art, science, and sport.”
Let’s see to what extent is this quote valid!
Chess as ART: Chess has got its own style, beautiful moves, and combinations. As the art of beautiful poetry creates magic all around, a Chessmaster also possesses the equal creativity. The way the chess masters moves his chess pieces and turns the game in his favor is absolutely artistic. Best chess games are not only limited to the stage, where it is performed but it is saved as lifetime memory in the minds of the player as well as the audience. Great chess games are breathtaking work of art and where much beauty is found in the elegance of a perfect and inescapable solution to a complex problem. Solving such problems making beautiful combinations is deeply gratifying and reveals aesthetic satisfaction. Combinations are the poetry of the game; they are to Chess what melody is to music. And these combinations can be purely regarded as art.
Chess as SCIENCE: About half of the greatest chess players in the world had mathematical or scientific backgrounds. Some people assert that there is always the best chess move in every position. Finding that perfect move involves a powerful logic behind it and that shows about its scientific approach. In the chess world, as in science, knowledge is acquired socially. As games are won and lost, newly “correct” and “objective” approaches to the game are discovered, and advice is reframed. This model suggests that chess theory is metaphorically likened to a science with experimental tests. Advancement depends on challenges over the board. Players participate in local and extended networks of
knowledge but always based on the recognition of community. Innovation is necessary for grandmasters to dethrone their predecessors; the tactical and strategic approach considers chess as Science.
Related: Chess vs Checkers vs Backgammon – Clash of the Titans
Chess as SPORTS: Anatoly Karpov remarked, “Chess is a cruel type of sport. In it, the weight of victory and defeat lies on the shoulders of one man. . . . When you play well and lose, it’s terrible.” Sports means competition. Like the world of Sports, chess games are also competitive. Why is chess so competitive? It is because of the various competitions organized by chess clubs and various chess tournaments held in different parts of the world. Players in tournaments can gain or lose rating points that measure their skill in comparison to other players. 
Ratings range from zero (novices start with an assumed rating of 600 but can lose rating points) to over 2800 for a top grandmaster. A rating locates one in a competitive hierarchy and determines in which tournaments one can participate and in which division one can play. Chess is famously an activity of the mind, with only the slightest movement of light wood pieces. But when we have lengthy games then bodily stress is also involved and the person needs to be physically sound as in other Sports activities.
With all these points mentioned above, we can say that the quote “chess is everything— art, science, and sport” by former world champion Anatoly Karpov proves to be valid.
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