This article is by Kim Ho-joung and read by an artificial voice.

A faint sense of excitement lingered in the crisp autumn air at 11 a.m. on Oct. 21, just eight hours after the announcement of the winner of the prestigious International Chopin Piano Competition. Cheers from the hundreds who had waited until 3 a.m. for the winner to be named still echoed faintly through the city.

"I only got two hours of sleep," said pianist Eric Lu, the winner of the competition, arriving at the interview venue.

Dressed in black and moving with quiet elegance, the pianist showed no signs of elation. Lu, born in the United States in 1997, had just become the 18th winner of the Chopin Competition - a title granted only 17 times over the last century.

There was no hint of giddiness, though he admitted he hadn't had a single day of rest during the three-week competition. Lu said he became mentally fragile and physically unwell.

The JoongAng Ilbo was the only Korean media outlet invited to the competition and granted an interview with Lu.

The central message of his account was clear - success came only after unimaginable hardship. That was especially true for Lu at this year's event.

The first question was one everyone wanted to ask: "Was the competition stressful?"

Without hesitation, Lu answered, "It was overwhelming. But I expected it. I had been preparing myself mentally for months, telling myself, 'This is going to be extremely stressful.' But it turned out that preparing your mind doesn't make it any easier."

Lu had drawn attention from the moment he applied to the competition. Many questioned whether he even needed to participate. He was no newcomer - he placed fourth at the Chopin Competition in 2015 and won the prestigious Leeds International Piano Competition in 2018. With a strong agency behind him, he had performed regularly at respected venues and released multiple recordings with a major label.

So when Lu returned to the Chopin Competition, the reaction was largely unanimous: It's win or bust.

"Toward the end of the competition, I couldn't even eat at restaurants," Lu said. "The stress was too much. My parents brought food to our lodging. I don't think I smiled for the last few weeks."

The kind of pressure Lu faced was unimaginable.

"It was self-doubt and fear," said Lu. "I had no idea what would happen next. Even though I tried to prepare mentally, it was still overwhelming. I didn't know I was capable of feeling that much stress."

Lu didn't smile much even after the announcement. When names were called in reverse order from sixth place upward, he stood motionless. Even when his name was finally read out, he bowed his head, raising his hands to cover his face. A competition spokesperson had to escort him to the center stage.

When asked to say a few words by the organizers, Lu hesitated for a long time.

"I have nothing to say," he muttered, before managing to whisper, "It feels like a dream come true."

His subdued reaction reflected the emotional toll of the event.

"There were moments when I could barely breathe," Lu said. "Each time they announced who advanced to the next round, I got so tense I felt like I couldn't breathe."

As soon as each round ended, he had to start preparing for the next. Performances grew longer - 30 minutes for Round 1, 45 minutes for Round 2, and an hour for Round 3.

"We got one rest day before the finals, but of course I didn't rest. I practiced. It was a huge challenge."

While all competitors faced pressure, Lu, already a professional pianist, attracted greater scrutiny - and with that, more anxiety.

"It was a huge gamble," he admitted. "I already had a career and a manager. If I played poorly or lost, it would've been a major risk."

When Lu asked to move his third-round performance to the end of the lineup on Oct. 15 due to illness, many in the audience suspected something was wrong.

"I tend to get sick at major competitions," he said with a smile, but added, "It definitely had an impact. It was toug...