Anatoly Karpov — Russian Celebrity born on May 23, 1951,

Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov, PhD is a Russian chess grandmaster and former World Champion. He was the official world champion from 1975 to 1985 when he was defeated by Garry Kasparov. He played three matches against Kasparov for the title from 1986 to 1990, before becoming FIDE World Champion once again after Kasparov broke away from FIDE in 1993. He held the title until 1999, when he resigned his title in protest against FIDE's new world championship rules. For his decades-long standing among the world's elite, Karpov is considered by many to be one of the greatest players of all time... (wikipedia)

To be champion requires more than simply being a strong player; one has to be a strong human being as well.
We need strong personalities and only one world champion to attract sponsors.
After that, Kasparov stepped back from chess which is, and I want this to be clear, not good for chess in general at all. As a whole, the current situation in the chess world leaves a lot to be desired.
If the opponent offers keen play I don't object; but in such cases I get less satisfaction, even if I win, than from a game conducted according to all the rules of strategy with its ruthless logic.
Chess is my life, but my life is not chess.