Calcutta: Surya Sekhar Ganguly on Friday kept his cool after winning the National A Chess five times in a row and equalling Manuel Aaron’s mark, saying that records never motivated him.

“I don’t believe in records…I never seek inspiration from them. What’s more important to me is to maintain consistency,” the city-based Grandmaster told The Telegraph from Chennai.

“I will belittle my ambition if I say I want to break Aaron’s record by making it six in a row. My ambitions are not limited to the national championship,” he said.

Surya admitted that competition has become stiffer nowadays. “The fact that Parimargan Negi (a GM) came to play a national meet here with a foreign trainer was unimaginable in Aaron’s days,” he said.

Of the five titles, Surya cherished most the first one, won in Visakhapatnam in 2004. “Thwarting challenges from the likes of Dibyendu Barua and P. Harikrishna made that occasion extra special,” he said.

After playing his office tournament, Surya will leave for Australia to feature in two international meets from March 20 to 31.