Picture credit to: Arkadi Nemirovski

(1) What were you doing when informed of winning the WLA Prize? Can you share your emotions upon receiving the notification from the Chair please? What thoughts or opinions do you have regarding the award please?
When the Chair, Prof. Michael Jordan, called me to announce the news, I was executing one of the most boring professional duties – proofreading my textbook being published by World Scientific. The news hit me like a thunderbolt – I have heard about the WLA prize before but never dared to relate it somehow to myself. All I was able to do was to mumble ``Thank you so much’’ to Mike. Then I called Yurii Nesterov to double-check whether I indeed had heard what I thought I had heard. Then I shared the news with my wife Emma. I took quite some time to return to normalcy and to proofreading…  

I find this award a truly outstanding honor; the only question for me is whether I indeed have deserved it…

     
(2) We are delighted to know that you will attend the award ceremony and the 6th WLA Forum in Shanghai. What are your expectations for both the Ceremony and Forum? Additionally, do you have any particular anticipations regarding your travels to Shanghai?
I have no doubts the organizers will make the Ceremony and the Forum a great success. On a personal level, I intend to do my best not to let the organizers down too much…