EP 288- GM Peter Heine Nielsen Takes us Behind the Scenes of the 2012 Anand-Gelfand World Championship match

Photo by Rodrigo Fernandez via Wikimedia Commons

This week’s Perpetual Chess is the 2nd in a series, a special edition, oral history of the 2012 World Championship, brought to you courtesy of GM Peter Heine Nielsen. Peter, of course, is an accomplished Grandmaster and a renowned opening theoretician who has worked as a trainer for 8 World Championship match winners, first with GM Viswanathan Anand, and in recent years with GM Magnus Carlsen. For this podcast, Peter takes us behind team Anand’s mindset and preparation, as they helped Vishy prepare to defend his title against GM Boris Gelfand in May of 2012. This continues a series, as Peter discussed Anand’s 2010 match with GM Veselin Topalov in Episode 177. For a chess history enthusiast like myself it is such a treat to get a blow by blow account of a World Championship match from someone who had a prominent role in the match and a ringside seat. Please read on for timestamps, and links to topics referenced.

Click here to Download the Episode

You can review any of the games from the match discussed here: 

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chesscollection?cid=1025310

03:30- Since we are discussing events of 10 years ago, I thought we should ask: Does Peter think that he has a good memory? 

11:00- We begin by discussing the 2012 pre match training camp, in Bad Soden, Germany in January of 2012. Peter convened with Anand and fellow team members, GMs Radoslaw Wotjasek, Surya Ganguly, and GM Rustam Kasimzdhanov. 

21:00- How did the team feel about Gelfand as an opponent for Vishy? 

32:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find IM Andras Toth’s new course, IM Irina Bulmaga’s, as well as so many others, here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/

33:30- Does Peter get more nervous as a competitor or a trainer?

36:30- Peter describes the background and mindset once the team arrived in Moscow for the match, in May of 2012. 

41:00- What was the team’s method for testing Vishy’s memory on opening lines? What about for Magnus in more recent years? 

46:30- The match begins, and Gelfand springs a surprise by playing the Grunfeld defense! (The game ends in a draw) How did the team feel? 

50:00- The match takes shape, with 5 more draws before a victory. What was the mood after 6 games?

56:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

57:00- Gelfand strikes first! What was the mood after Game 7? 

1:02:00- Patreon mailbag question: Did the team change match approaches after Game 7? 

1:06:00- Anand strikes back! How did the team mood alter when Vishy won Game 8?

1:10:00- Anand tried the Nimzo-Indian for the first time in Game 9. How did it go? 

1:15:00- Has Peter discussed the World Championship match with Gelfand in recent years?

1:20:00- Peter discusses Game 10 

1:22:00- Despite two more draws, Peter shares why he felt the mood started to shift during games 11 and 12. 

1:28:00- How did the team feel heading into the rapid playoffs? 

1:34:00- Do opening surprises have added value in a faster time control? 

1:35:00- What went right for Vishy to prevail in the Rapid playoffs?

1:39:00- After winnig the match did they feel euphoria more or relief? 

1:41:00- Since Gelfand was sort of on home turf, were they worried about any Russian subterfuge? 

1:44:00- Are non-team members who provide opening advice generally compensated for their assistance? 

1:46:00- Did it bother the team that Kasparov was rumored to have offered to help Gelfand.? 

1:48:00- How does Peter look back on the match 10 years later?

Thanks to Peter for joining the podcast. Links you need below:

The Chicken Chess Club on Apple Podcasts

https://twitter.com/PHChess

EP 287- GM David Howell joins for a FIDE Candidates Wrap Up plus World Championship Match Scuttlebutt, and his 2022 OTB and Commentating Plans

As the dust settles on the FIDE Candidates tournament and its attendant news, three- time British Champion and popular Chess24 commentator GM David Howell joins me to assess the news. As you might expect, we discuss the World Championship plans of David’s friend GM Magnus Carlsen, and we discuss both of the potential World Championship matchups, based on Magnus’ decision about whether to retain his title. David also assesses the performances of other notable players including GM Hikaru Nakamura and GM Ding Liren, and GM Alireza Firouzja. In the second half of the interview we focus on David’s own career. David will be heading to India soon to represent Great Britain in the Olympiad, and he discusses his recent and upcoming tournaments. Lastly, David discusses his plans for commentating in the coming months and how he balances it with his playing career. I always appreciate David’s insights and modesty, and there is lots to learn from this conversation. Please read on for more details, timestamps and lots of links to topics mentioned. 

Click here to download the Episode

Prior appearance: Episode 176 with GM David Howell 

02:00- What are David’s thoughts about Magnus Carlsen and the World Championship cycle and any potential format changes ? 

Mentioned: Prior Candidates Discussion with IM Christof Sielecki,  Link for an unconfirmed Report about Potential format changes to the World Championship, Peter Doggers for Chess.com: ”Carlsen Never Demanded a Concrete Format,” Magnus streaming Lichess Bullet Arena 

12:30- Patreon mailbag question: Is Magnus’ memory for chess positions on a par or better than the other top players?

Mentioned: Video: Magnus Carlsen’s Mind Blowing Memory

17:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

18:00- David shares his thoughts on Nepo’s dominant performance in the FIDE Candidates, as well as his other observations. 

Mentioned: Nakamura’s Video Recap of his last round game with Ding 

25:00- What did David think of the quality of the games in the Candidates? Could Nepo give 

Carlsen a better match in a rematch? 

Mentioned: Caruana-Nepomniatchtchi 2022, Nakamura-Nepomnatchtchi 2022

31:00- What chess improvement lessons can we learn from the Candidates? 

35:00- We briefly discuss Firouzja’s disappointing showing in the Candidates. 

38:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find IM Andras Toth’s new course, IM Irina Bulmaga’s, as well as so many others, here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/

40:00- How is David’s OTB game as he prepares to represent Great Britain in the upcoming Chess Olympiad? 

Mentioned: GM Boris Avrukh, GM Mikhail Marin, GM Gawain Jones, GM Nigel Short, GM Michael Adams 

45:00- David discusses his upcoming course with Magnus Carlsen, “Grind like a Grandmaster” 

Mentioned: Chessable Tweet regarding the Course

46:00- British Olympiad Team 

49:00- David discusses playing the 2021 FIDE Grand Swiss, where he was close to qualifying for the 2022 Candidates, but lost a crucial game to GM Alireza Firouzja.

Mentioned: GM Firouzja-Howell 2021  

55:00- How is David enjoying work as a Chess24 commentator with WGM Jovanka Houska and Kaja Snare? 

Mentioned: John Motson, John McEnroe, Boris Becker, GM Jon Ludwig Hammer, IM Torstein Bae  

1:06:00- What does David think about the current trajectory of chess?  

1:08:00- How is David enjoying doing the podcast The Late Knight Show? 

Mentioned: IM Lawrence Trent, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, GM Eric Hansen 

1:13:00- David reviews his performance in the most recent World Rapid and Blitz tournament

1:16:00- How would David assess a Ding-Nepomniatchtchi match?

1:20:00- Thanks so much to David for sharing his insights! Here is how you can keep up with him:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DavidHowellGM

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidhowellchess/?hl=en

Book Recap #27 - GM Yasser Seirawan's Play Winning Chess

Photo via Chessable

Guest co-host Sam Robinson

Chess Books Recaptured returns to discuss the beginner-oriented chess book, Play Winning Chess, by legendary GM, Yasser Seirawan. I am joined by Sam Robinson, who is a 28 year old, Chicago-based chess enthusiast. Sam got into chess in recent years, and this was one of the first chess books that he read. For him, it was the book that really started to demystify the subtler parts of the game. It was also my first time reading Play Winning Chess, and I found it to be a solid choice for newer chess players or for chess trainers looking to sprinkle some good anecdotes and instructive games into their lessons with newer players. Tune in to hear our conversation about the pros and cons of GM Seirawan’s landmark book. Timestamps and links can be found below. 

Click here to download the episode

0:00- Sam delves into his background and what got him into chess. 

05:00- What resonated with Sam about Play Winning Chess to the extent that he wanted to discuss it? 

Mentioned: 

Book Recap #11- Yasser Seirawan’s Winning Chess Strategies with Neal Bruce 

08:00- Which Formats are Available - 

Book- Play Winning Chess (Everyman Chess)

Ebook- ttps://everymanchess.com/products/winning-chess-strategies-revised-edtion?variant=17966519943230

Chessable- https://www.chessable.com/play-winning-chess/course/89222/

09:00- Yasser’s bio and chess origins 

11:00- What rating range would find this book most useful? 

13:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out what’s new from them here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/

15:00- How useful is Yasser’s construct of the four principles of chess: Force, Time, Space and Pawn Structure 

19:00- Likes, dislikes and memorable quotes from Play Winning Chess 

26:00- Does the difficulty of the material escalate too quickly? 

32:00- How useful is Yasser’s concept of a “space count”? 

36:00- We briefly discuss some YouTube videos that are great for beginners.

Mentioned: IM John Bartholomew’s Chess Fundamentals, Naroditsky’s Speed Run, Hanging Pawns

39:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com 

Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

40:00- Improvement takeaways from this book

49:00- What grade would we give this book? What similar books might I recommend? 

Mentioned: Learn to Play Chess Like a Boss, Winning Chess Strategy for Kids, First Book of Morphy, Chess Steps, Chess by Laszlo Polgar, My First Chess Opening Repertoire 

51:00- Thanks so Sam for helping out! 

Follow him on Twitter here:

https://twitter.com/sam_robs

Or on Chess.com here:

https://www.chess.com/member/samrobs

EP 286- Adult Improver Dr. Nicholas Vasquez on How and Why he Finally Got Serious about Chess Improvement

On this month’s Adult Improver Edition of Perpetual Chess I am joined by Dr. Nicholas Vasquez. Dr. Vasquez is a dad and emergency physician who finds chess a welcome escape from a very stressful job. Despite the fact that chess is escapism for him, Dr. Vasquez has recently decided to get serious about chess improvement. He started working with a coach (NM Han Schut), playing tournaments, and working on puzzles from Chess Steps and Chessbase. Nicholas has learned a lot of lessons, and seen significant progress, raising his Chess.Com rapid rating from about 1350 to 1650 over the last couple of years. Dr. Vazquez shared lots of great insights in our interview, and I am confident that you will find this interview helpful and entertaining. You can find more information on all of the topics referenced, as well as timestamps below. 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- Be sure to subscribe to How To Chess on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-chess/id1572917817

0:02- After some time away, what event re-interested Nick in chess? 

Mentioned: The Chess Steps Method, Episode 142 with Han Schut, Episode 274 with Adult Improver Paul Hedrick, Episode 167 with IM Jop Delemarre, Step 2 Thinking Ahead

09:00- With a hectic life, does Nick ever struggle with finding motivation for chess study?

15:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find IM Andras Toth’s new course, IM Irina Bulmaga’s, as well as so many others, here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/

16:00- When Nick plays training games, does he use a chess set or a screen? 

20:00- Nick shares the training regimen that his coach, Han Schut has devised for him. 

25:00- Nick shares what he is learning from competing in the LiChess4545 league. 

Mentioned: GM Jesse Kraai’s video “An Easy System Against the French” 

28:00- What does Han’s trainer consider to be the key pillars of his success?  What does it mean to “orient” oneself to a chess position? 

32:00- What is Nick’s approach to openings? 

34:00- What do Han and Nick prefer Chessbase tactics? 

38:00- Which book helped Nick the most?

Mentioned: The Improving Chess Thinker by NM Dan Heisman, Think Like a Super GM by GM Michael Adams and Philip Hurtado 

41:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

42:00- A few features to be aware of on Chesskid.com: 

1. Summer Clubhouse :

https://www.chesskid.com/learn/articles/summer-chess-clubhouse

1. You can check out FunMaster Mike’s videos either on Chesskid itself or on YouTube for kids.

2. If you decide to sign your kid or your student(s) up for Chesskid, be sure to use this link to save 30% on a Chesskid Membership

https://www.chesskid.com/membership/promo/perpetual

46:00- Was Nick surprised by the intensity of OTB chess? 

54:00- Nick discusses the importance of feeling part of a community. 

Mentioned: ChessDoJo discord

57:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Is there stuff Nick needs to work on outside of doing the Steps Method?” 

1:05:00- Thanks so much to Dr. Vasquez for joining the show. 

You can play/reach him on Lichess here:

https://lichess.org/@/nvasquez

Or Chess.com here: 

https://www.chess.com/member/nfv1972

FIDE Candidates Round 12 Update- IM Christof Sielecki on Nepomniatchtchi's Dominance and the Tight Battle For 2nd Place

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Award Winning Author, Chessable Author, and Noted Opening Theoretician, IM Christof Sielecki joins me to discuss the FIDE Candidates Tournament through 12 rounds. Topics include: Nepo's dominance, the important battle for 2nd place, Alireza's struggles, Nakamura's Quick Draw in Round 12, the Quality of Play, and whether Magnus might be enticed to defend his crown if the World Championship format were tweaked.

Click here to Download the Episode

Thanks to our sponsors, Chessable.com and Aimchess.com.

Here are a few of the articles, and videos we referenced:

Chess by the Numbers Updated Probabilities

Hikaru's Round 12 Recap

MVL's Interview with Chessbase

Tarjei Svenson for Chess24 on GM Kramnik's Comments

The Games from the Candidates

Nepo discussed a letter from FIDE in the postgame interview on Chess.com’s Broadcast

GothamChess' Round 3 Recap

Check out all of IM Christof Sielecki's Chessable Courses here:

https://www.chessable.com/author/Chessexplained/

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

https://www.patreon.com/perpetualchess

EP 285- IM Irina Bulmaga on her New Chess Training Regimen, the best Open Tournaments in Europe, and her Current Chess Goals

IM Irina Bulmaga is a Chessable Author, a writer, a  5 time chess Olimpian, and the highest rated woman player in Romania, where she now lives. Before emigrating from Moldova, Irina was the 2 time National Woman’s champion in her native country. But as Irina will tell you, she probably spends more time traveling for competitive chess than she spends in any one country.  In fact, she thinks she might be the most active chess professional on the European circuit. Irina joined me on a brief break between tournaments to recap some 2022 tournament successes. We also discussed her upcoming plans for the Olympiad and her lifelong goal of chasing the  Grandmaster title. This was a fun conversation filled with personal reflection, tournament recommendations and chess study tips and plans. Please read on for more details, links, and timestamps. 

Click here to Download the Episode

01:00- 

Irina reflects on her recent tournament performances. 

Mentioned: Irina’s Chessbase Tournament Report 

07:00- Why does Irina think she prefers playing in open tournaments rather than women’s tournaments? 

Mentioned: Irina’s Blog

12:00- How has getting a coach for the first time ever helped Irina’s game? What books has she read? 

Mentioned: Think Like a Super GM, Seven Deadly Chess Sins, Improve Your Chess Calculation  

GM Lubomir Ftacnik 

19:00- As a 5 time Olimpiad member, How is the tournament different from others? 

27:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

29:00- Does Irina enjoy the life of an itinerant chess professional? 

33:00-In Irina’s opinion, how could professional chess be improved? 

35:00- What big open tournaments would Irina recommend for chess amateurs?

Mentioned: Isle of Man (Chess.com International), Gibraltar International Chess Festival, Sunway Sitges Chess Festival 

38:00- What is Irina’s favorite tournament of any type? 

European Men’s Championship 

41:00- Does Irina think sexism is worse in chess than in other walks of life? 

45:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find IM Andras Toth’s new course, IM Irina Bulmaga’s, as well as so many others here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/

53:00- What tournaments does Irina have planned in addition to the Olimpiad? How was the experience of playing competitive chess in Cuba? 

Mentioned: European Women’s Championship 

58:00- How many languages does Irina speak? 

1:00- Does Irina still hope to chase the GM title? 

1:03:00- Thanks so much to Irina for joining me! Here is how to keep up with her:

Chessable course:

https://www.chessable.com/the-smyslov-ruy-lopez-3g6/course/114883/

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/irinabulmaga?lang=en

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/iribulmaga/?hl=en

FIde Candidates Update- GM Jonathan Tisdall on the tournament so far

We’ve got 6 rounds in the books and GM Ian Nepomniathchtchi and GM Fabiano Caruana are comfortably in first and 2nd place, respectively.  GM Jonathan Tisdall is an American born, Norway based author, journalist and is the 3 time champion of Norway. Jonathan has been covering high level chess for decades, so it was great to get his thoughts on the first 6 rounds of the Candidates which have surprised a lot of people. 

Click here to Download the Episode

03:00- GM Jonathan Tisdall joins the show. 

15:15- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out GM Anish Giri’s Candidates videos on his YouTube ,and go Pro to get the course here:

Learn chess online: openings, tactics & more - Chessable.com

16:00- Will Magnus defend against these guys? 

28:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

30:00- Do we like the fact the clocks don’t have increments for this tournament? 

39:00- Why does Nepo excel against everyone but Magnus? 

45:00- Double blindness! We were referencing this moment in Anand’s game”

https://twitter.com/norwaychess/status/1534982377293893633?lang=bg

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=2288820

53:00- When will Jonathan’s next book finally come out? 

Mentioned: Nick Doody 

57:00- We almost forgot to talk about GM Ding Liren!

1:00:00- Thanks to GM Tisdall for joining the show! You can follow him on Twitter here:

https://twitter.com/GMjtis?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

Ben Johnson is creating Perpetual Chess Podcast | Patreon

EP 284- GM Eugene Perelshteyn and FM Nate Solon on How to Improve Your Chess Evaluation Skills plus the lessons we can learn from Magnus' blitz games

Get more info about Eugene and Nate’s book here

This week I am joined by two accomplished players, trainers, and co-authors, Grandmaster Eugene Perelshteyn, and FM Nate Solon. Together, Nathan and Eugene have written the forthcoming book, Evaluate like a Grandmaster. As highly-accomplished players and trainers, Nate and Eugene noticed that there wasn’t a lot of chess literature helping players improve their ability to evaluate positions. They have written a great book to help address this problem. In our conversation, they highlight some of the lessons from the book, including an important discussion of the perils of relying too heavily on numerical engine evaluations. We also discuss some of the standout points and anecdotes from Nate and Eugene’s other work. Nate is a data scientist who writes a great, free chess newsletter called Zwischenzug, and Eugene is a respected opening theoretician who has recently released his first Chessable course, The Grand Prix Attack Reloaded. As always, you can find more details, relevant links, and timestamps below.

Click here to download the Episode

Prior Appearances by Eugene and Nate : 

Episode 31 with GM Eugene Perelshteyn 

Book Recap #17- Zurich 1953 with FM Nate Solon and GM Andy Soltis

02:00- Why write  a book on evaluating positions? 

Mentioned: Episode 138 with NM Dan Heisman, Dan Heisman’s The Improving Chess Thinker Episode 258 with GM Matthew Sadler, Think Like a Super GM by GM Michael Adams and Phillip Hurtado

09:00- Where do they find the puzzles?  For what rating level is the book best suited? 

12:00- Why does Nate think that the “centipawn” evaluation system is flawed?

20:30- Patreon mailbag question: “When calculating, how can we know when to shift from crunching potential moves to evaluating a position?”

25:00 What did GM Romani Dzindzichashvilli teach Eugene about evaluating positions?

27:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find the free “Endgame Strategy” Lesson from GM Sam Shankland here: 

https://www.chessable.com/course/115673

28:00- Nate’s takes! What does Nate consider the “bare essential” chess improvement checklist to hold oneself accountable? 

Mentioned: How to Chess 13 with FM Nate Solon, How to Chess 1 with GM Eugene Pereyshteyn, Nate’s Post “The Chess Improvement Checklist”, ChessvonDoom on Twitter 

38:00 How well do club level players really know their openings? 

Mentioned: Nate’s Post: What Really Happens in the Ruy Lopez?, Skip the Line by James Altucher, Episode 232 with James Altucher 

52:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

53:00- Eugene tells the story of playing Magnus OTB at Isle of Man Masters in 2017. 

Mentioned: Perelshteyn-Carlsen 2017, Perelshteyn-Howell 2017, Perelshteyn-Vallejo 2017

1:00:00- What can we learn from Magnus’ approach to a recent Titled Tuesday? 

1:07:00- How did Eugene find an unexplored move on move 5 in his Chessable Course, The Grand Prix Attack Reloaded?

1:12:00- Eugene shares a few stories about legendary, deceased Grandmaster, Alex Wojtkiewicz

1:17:00- Nate is an accomplished adult improver, he discusses how his background in poker helped his mental game in chess. 

1:20:00- Parting book recommendations! 

Mentioned: Zurich 1953, Perfect Your Chess, The Questions of Modern Chess Theory, Positional Decision Making in Chess, Dan Heismans books, GM Jacob Aagaard’s books, IM Kostya Kavutskity’s Chessable Course: Endgame Studies 101 

Thanks to Nate and Eugene for joining us! Here are the key links to keep up with them:

Evaluate like a GM website

Nate’s Newsletter: Zwishenzug

Eugene’s Chessable Course: The Grand Prix Attack Reloaded

Nate’s Twitter

Eugene’s Twitter 

EP 283- Top Trainer GM R.B. Ramesh on How to Improve Your Chess Calculation, and the keys to GM Praggnanandhaa’'s success

This week on Perpetual Chess we talk about chess improvement with one of the premier chess trainers in the world! GM R.B. Ramesh has worked with many of India’s top players including GMs Vidit Gujirathi, Harikrishna and Adhiban. I caught up with Ramesh on the night before he would commence a training camp with one of India’s Olimpiad teams. This team included Ramesh’s star student, GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, who is one of the top junior players in the world and recently made headlines by defeating Magnus Carlsen. GM Ramesh is an author, including of the excellent new book, Improve Your Chess Calculation. In our conversation, we discussed Chess in India as it prepares to host the Olimpiad, the keys to  Praggnanandhaa’s success, plus Ramesh answers many listener questions related to chess improvement. There is always so much to learn from GM Ramesh, and this conversation is no exception! 

Click here to download the Episode

Prior Interviews: 

Episode 144 with R.B. Ramesh

Episode 166 with GM R.B. Ramesh and GM Jacob Aagaard 

0:00- GM Ramesh joined me shortly before starting a training camp for one of India’s Olimpiad teams. How does he prepare materials for these phenoms? 

Mentioned: GM Praggnanandhaa, GM Vidit Gujirathi, GM Harikrishna, GM Gukesh, GM Anand, GM Nihail Sarin 

08:00- What was it like to work with  GM Praggnanandhaa as a younger chess student?

Mentioned: Smyslov-Rubinetti 1980,  Think Like a Grandmaster by GM Alexander Kotov 

14:00- GM Ramesh has written that training should be more challenging than competing OTB. Is this approach feasible for adult improvers? 

16:30- Ramesh shares visualization advice for adult improvers. 

23:00- Patreon mailbag question- “At what rating is it appropriate to begin training with blindfold puzzles?” 

Mentioned: Visualize series on Chessable 

30:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

Or use this link for the same discount:

https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12

31:30- GM Ramesh considers Anand a personal hero and now knows him personally, Is he surprised by GM Anand’s success at 2022 Norway Chess?

39:00- How did Ramesh react the first time GM Praggnanandhaa beat GM Magnus Carlsen? 

43:00- Patreon mailbag question- “Will Ramesh do a Chessable course? How many books will be in his series?” 

45:30- Patreon mailbag question- “What is Ramesh’s advice for handling tough losses?” 

52:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What are some common calculation mistakes that even GMs make?” 

55:00-  Patreon mailbag question: “What can we learn from the success of another of Ramesh’s students, WGM Divya Deshmukh? 

57:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can find the free “Endgame Strategy” Lesson from GM Sam Shankland here: 

https://www.chessable.com/course/115673

59:30- Are chess players as a whole getting better at calculation? 

Mentioned: Free excerpt of Ramesh’s book here. 

Mentioned: GM John Nunn’s Secrets of Practical Chess

1:07:00- How does Ramesh define “the drawback principle”? 

1:10:00- What advice can Ramesh share for knowing when to stop calculating within a variation? 

1:14:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What does Ramesh observe from Firouzja’s phenomenal success? Does he have any Candidates predictions?”

1:17:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Does Ramesh have an opinion on the fact that Indian players can no longer compete in the British Championship” (which Ramesh won in 2002)?

1:19:00- With the Chess Olimpiad set to take place in Chennai in July, Ramesh shares his thoughts on the explosion of chess in India. 

1:24:00- In our last interview, Ramesh gave a ton of book recommendations. Is he keeping up with new chess books? 

Mentioned: Judit Polgar’s Quality Chess Series, New in Chess Books, Quality Chess Books, Thinker’s Publishing 

1:28:00- Thanks so much to Ramesh for sharing some of his chess expertise. Here are links for ways to keep up with him:

Improve Your Chess Calculation 

ProChessTraining.com 

Twitter 

EP 282- 2022 FIDE Candidates Preview Double Episode with GM Robert Hess and Tai Pruce Zimmerman of the Chess by the Numbers Blog

The wait is almost over! With the 2022 FIDE Candidates Tournament beginning June 17, we present one last deep dive on this chess-history defining tournament. The winner of this tournament is slated to play GM Magnus Carlsen in the 2023 World Championship match if it takes place. I am joined by two separate guests to discuss the players and what we can expect. First up is GM Robert Hess. Robert, of course, is an insightful and popular commentator who will be traveling to Madrid to cover the event live with his Chess.com team. Robert and I discuss each player individually, as Robert shares his reflections on what he has observed from many years of observing these players up close. Robert’s other appearance on the podcast was nearly 5 years ago, so after an hour of FIDE Candidates talk, we spend some time catching up on other chess-related matters. Following Robert, I am joined by Tai Pruce Zimmerman of the “Chess by the Numbers” blog. I always enjoy getting Tai’s insights, which are primarily derived from an Elo-rating based model. Who is statistically most likely to win? How do Tai’s numerical assessments differ from those of other models and the betting markets? Tune in to hear some fascinating Candidates discussion! As always, timestamps and relevant links are below.

Click here to Download the Episode

You can find brief timestamps below, and more details ones on the podcast website here.

FIDE Candidates info here

01:00- Intro with details on the Candidates format and Schedule. 

Prior GM Robert Hess appearance 

05:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com you can find the free “Endgame Strategy” Lesson from GM Sam Shankland here:

https://www.chessable.com/course/115673

7:45- How does Candidates prep compare for Robert and his announcing team compare to prep for an event like the World Championship?

Mentioned: WGM Almira Skripchenko, GM Daniel Naroditsky, IM Daniel Rensch 

13:00- What can Robert share about GM Jan-Krystof Duda? 

16:45- GM Teimour Radjabov 

20:00- GM Hikaru Nakamura 

Mentioned: Oparin-Nakamura 2022 

29:30- GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi 

Mentioned: Ian’s interview with Maria Emelianova 

35:00- GM Richard Rapport

Mentioned: Rapport to Switch Federations to Romania  

Aronian-Rapport 2016, Richard Rapport: A New Talent in Chess 

41:00- GM Fabiano Caruana 

47:15- GM Alireza Firouzja 

55:45- GM Ding Liren 

Mentioned: Ding Liren Officially in Candidates as FIDE Announces Participants 

Here are a few of Robert’s favorite Ding games, with his own notes on why he chose each game: 

• Ding-Caruana -- I found this game really cool. It never looked *that bad* for Black, yet the lead-in activity ruled the day. There are so many underlying tactics in that game.

• In a similar vein as the above, when Ding was probably way underrated at 2650ish at the 2011 World Team Championship (where I also participated), he turned this positional dominance into a wonderful tactical win in Ding-Areschenko. 

• Still on Ding, because somehow I feel he's lesser known despite his many successes, check how he starts with a space advantage in a "boring" closed game, rips it open, transitions into a pawn-up ending, and makes the whole process look EASY as in Ding-Rapport

1:07:00- How does Robert approach commentating on an event like the ongoing “I am not a GM” tourney on Chess.com?

1:15:15- Robert’s OTB exploits! How did it feel to draw GM Viswanathan Anand in 2018 and defeating GM Sam Shankland in 2019. 

Mentioned: Anand-Hess 2018

1:24:45- Global Chess Championship more info here 

1:26:30- How does Robert work on his commentary?

1:35:30- Robert’s Book Recs

Mentioned: Klara and the Sun 

1:36:30- Does Robert get recognized in public much? 

1:42:45- What is Robert looking forward to most about the Candidates?

1:46:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice of how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

1:48:00- Tai Pruce Zimmerman of the Chess by the Numbers blog joins to give an analytical perspective on the FIDE Candidates. We begin by discussing what differentiates the Candidates from other tournaments. 

1:56:15- What do the betting markets and Tai’s model say the probabilities are for each player?

Mentioned: BWIN odds here, Smarter Chess Probabilities here 

2:06:00- Which player does Tai think the betting market undervalues? 

Thanks so much to Tai for joining us again. Be sure to subscribe to his blog and support his work via his website. Follow him on Twitter here.  

EP 281- Dr. Stuart Margulies tells the story behind the classic, best-selling book, Bobby Fischer Teacher Chess

Photo courtesy of Dr. Stuart Margulies

This week on Perpetual Chess we are joined by Dr. Stuart Margulies, the co-author of the legendary, best-selling chess book, Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess. First published in 1966, and written along with Donn Mosenfelder and Fischer himself, this book has sold more than 1.25 million copies, and many believe it to be the best selling chess book of all time! Dr. Margulies tells the story of the modest beginnings of the book, and of his first and subsequent encounters with his fellow New Yorker, Bobby Fischer. Stuart is 89 years of age, but has vivid memories of Fischer and many other key New York City chess figures. Stuart worked as an educational psychologist, and also shares his take on the whether playing chess can positively impact reading scores, a subject about which he wrote a paper in the 1990s. It was so much fun to hear Stuart’s reflections on his life in chess! More details and timestamps can be found below. 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- Stuart shares his earliest first-hand memories of Bobby Fischer

Mentioned: Alan Kaufman, Jack Collins, FM Asa Hoffman 

0:08- We discuss the origins of Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess

Mentioned: Donn Mosenfelder, Leslie Ault, IM Raymond Weinstein, IM Michael Valvo, Shelby Lyman, Episode 250 with FM Asa Hoffman 

16:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

17:00- We discuss more about the history of Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess, including the origins of its title. 

Mentioned: Dr. Frank Brady, Fischer-Larsen 1958

28:00- Stuart discusses the one time he beat Fischer in a casual game, and shares more about his personal interactions with Fischer. 

*Stuart notes that Earl Hall was friends with GM William Lombardy rather than Fischer, as he said in the interview.

Mentioned: The Kevitz defense, Shernaz Kennady

44:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice of how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.

45:00- Patreon mailbag question: How did Margulies and his collaborators decide to use a format that had no chess notation? 

Mentioned: Secrets of Spectacular Chess 

50:00- Stuart discusses his own, and others people’s research into the effect of chess instruction on kids’ reading scores. 

Mentioned: Margulies’ Whitepaper: The Effect of Chess on Reading Scores, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, GM Levon Aronian 

58:00- Stuart describes his encounters with GM Nicolas Rossolimo and a young GM Judit Polgar 

Mentioned: FM Jude Acers, Abraham Kupchik, Irving Chernev, Al Horowitz, Fred Reinfeld 

1:07:00- What was the motivation for writing Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess?

1:13:00- As such a sharp 89 year old, does Stuart have any mental and physical health tips? 

Mentioned: New in Chess Magazine, GM Genna Sosonko’s books , A Change of Air by Ivan Gold can be found the compilation Nickel Miseries, Endgame by Dr. Frank Brady

  1:21:00- Thanks so much to Stuart for joining the show! 

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here.

Book Recap #26- Discussing Alexei Shirov's Fire on Board with Mitchell Fabian

After a one month hiatus, Chess Books Recaptured returns to discuss another classic chess book- GM Alexei Shirov’s Fire on Board. This 1997 game collection book shows the games of one of the world’s best attacking players at the peak of his powers. Joining me to discuss the book is Mitchell Fabian. Mitch is a 26 year old dad, actuary and avid chess student who suggested this book because he felt that it helped his chess tremendously. In addition to many wild slugfest games and creative ideas, the book covers an interesting time in chess history, when the World Championship Title was disputed by different organizations. We cover all of this in a fun conversation about a challenging, but informative book. More details and timestamps below: 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- We welcome Mitch Fabian to the show and he discusses why he chose Shirov’s Fire on Board. 

Mentioned: IM Kostya Kavutskiiy 

6:00- For what rating is Fire on Board best suited?

Mentioned: Seirawan’s Play Winning Chess 

12:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you by Chessable.com, the premier chess education website. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

13:00- Patreon mailbag question: Any hot takes on the Shirov-Kasparov World Championship match that was supposed to take place in the late 1990's but never did? 

Mentioned: Fire on Board 2, Luis Rentero Suarez 

24:00- Back to the book! We discuss the book’s structure and share some quotes from a great foreword by GM Jon Speelman 

Mentioned: Topalov-Shirov 2004 with 47… Bh3!!!

36:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice of how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

37:00- We share a few of things that struck us about Fire on Board 

Mentioned: Attack with Mikhail Tal, Episode 273 with GM Johan Hellsten, GM Vasilios Kotronios, Lifetime Repertoires: Jan Gustaffson 1. E4 e5 , Everyman Chess “E Book” of Fire on Board 

48:00- Should we be concerned about some errors in the book that  modern engines identify? 

Mentioned: GM Samuel Sevian, Shirov-Kramnik 1994 

51:00- Mitch and I share a few other things we like about Fire on the Board. 

Mentioned: Book Recap #1- The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal, Chess Structures by GM Mauricio Flores Rios

1:04:00- We wrap the book discussion before segueing to some adult improvement discussion with Mitch. In Mitch’s honor I will be making a modest donation to The US Chess School. 

1:05:00- Mitch is quite an accomplished adult improver so before we wrap up he shares some improvement recs. 

Mentioned: Chess Dojo Discord, GM Eugene Perelshteyn 

1:16:00- Thanks so much to Mitch for joining us! Here is where you can find him:

Chess Dojo Discord

Twitter

Chess.com

Lichess

EP 280- GM Ben Finegold on The FIDE Candidates, Recent Declines in Chess Twitch Viewership, and Why he thinks he Doesn't Play as Well as he Used to.

This week we are re-joined by the popular and amusing Twitch streamer, YouTube presenter and commentator, GM Ben Finegold. Lots has changed since our last interview! For one thing, there has been lots of discussion recently about a decline in the popularity of chess?. Does Ben think chess is losing popularity? Is he seeing a decline in his viewership on Twitch? What about on his YouTube channel? Other recent developments which we discussed include: Why Ben and his wife Karen sold their chess center in Atlanta, the state of Ben’s OTB chess game in the wake of some recent tourneys, plus some discussion of the Candidates, recent elite tournaments, and a few stories about Ben’s earlier days in the chess world, including Ben Finegold, “the college years.” Its always fun to catch up with Ben, lots more details and links in the show notes below.  

Click here to Download the Episode

Prior Finegold appearances on Perpetual Chess- 

2017- Episode 9 https://open.spotify.com/episode/2o91dlqfOFf2Lwl9hfbrGF?si=b01f64b4f4fe4f8a

2018- Episode 52 https://open.spotify.com/episode/4f3W9CS9Q9nC5JUOYib5cn?si=e97663b0a8eb4879

2021- Episode 228 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2ONlsNPYykFsH3sqM28LWL?si=5c1710b4b2514f79

0:00- Are Ben’s Twitch viewers down? Is the popularity of chess declining?

Mentioned: Martin Justesen’s post “Is the Chess (Twitch) Boom Over?, IM Levy Rozman’s Tweet, GM David Smerdon’s post 

13:00- With the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta having been sold, will Ben still be doing his popular chess history lectures? 

Mentioned: Kid Chess Atlanta, IM Carlos Perdomo 

23:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice of how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

24:00- Ben has been competing regularly OTB recently, he wonders “was I always this bad at chess?” 

Mentioned: Charlotte Chess Center ALTO tournament, Foxwoods Open, GM Alex Shabalov 

40:00- Patreon mailbag question: How does Ben define a blunder at different rating levels? 

Mentioned: GM Gregory Kaidanov, 2022 Continental Chess Championships in El Salvador

48:00- Which young players impress Ben? What does it take to reach and stay at the top? 

Mentioned: GM Sarin, GM Praggnanandhaa, GM Christopher Yoo, GM Hans Niemann, Episode 271 with GM Hans Niemann 

56:00- Are there any chess talents that Ben has been surprised to see not to reach their potential? 

Mentioned: GM Baadur Jobava, GM Wei Yi, GM Etienne Bacrot, GM David Navara, GM Jeffrey Xiong, GM Sam Shankland 

1:02:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

 1:03:00- Who does Ben expect to win the 2022 FIDE Candidates tournament? 

1:06:00- Did Ben ever meet the recently passed legendary GM Yuri Averbakh? 

1:08:00- How does Ben prepare for his chess history lectures? 

1:11:00- What was it like for Ben to attend university in his 20s? 

Mentioned: Chess Life Magazine Article by Ben Finegold The 40 Year Old GM: 

https://t.co/3CozXi7lbC

1:16:00- Ben’s upcoming Twitch and tournament plans! 

Here are the links to keep up with Ben. 

Twitch:

https://www.twitch.tv/gmbenjaminfinegold

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6EnFbK-P5q0zeaqI5yobKg

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/ben_finegold?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

EP 279- Derek Wilder (Adult Improver Series)- The key lessons that helped an 1800 break through to a USCF 2000 rating.

Photo by Nathan Kelly of the National Blitz League

This week's Adult Improver interview is with Derek Wilder. Derek is a 33 year old Detroit- based Scholastic Chess Coach and Chess Podcaster (host of the Detroit Chess Killers pod). Derek is always working on his game, and he recently leveled up and surpassed the USCF rating of 2000 for the first time. This puts Derek in the 95th percentile of all USCF players. It took Derek years of hard work to break through this plateau, and it was illuminating to hear what he believed to be the keys to his success. Derek was quick to credit lots of friends and trainers with advice and tips that helped his game, and he offered lots of advice for those looking to achieve a similar breakthrough. Please read on for timestamps, resources, and people that were referenced in our interview. 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- Derek recently had a breakthrough in his OTB game. How’d he get to that moment? 

Mentioned: IM John Brooks, Paul Grams, Chrysler Elementary School

08:00 Growing up in Detroit, Derek was one of the top scholastic players in his state, but he was bullied a bit for playing chess. How did he get through it? 

09:30- What influence did FM James Canty and others have on his chess game? 

12:00- What adjustments did Derek make when he came to chess in 2016 after a long hiatus? 

Mentioned: Nunn’s Chess Openings 

14:30- What kind of chess learner is Derek? 

Mentioned: NM Mike Zaloznyy, IM Atulya Shetty, Derek’s interview with NM Kofi Tatum 

18:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice of how to improve your game. Check it out for free and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

19:00- In his recent gains, did Derek focus more on strengthening his strengths or on shoring up his weaknesses? 

Mentioned: FM Josh Posthuma, NM Gopal Menon, My System, IM Mark Dvoretsky’s books, IM Jeremy Silman, Charisse Woods

26:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How much did studying theoretical endgames help Derek’s game?” 

Mentioned: Kameron Tolliver 

30:00- -Patreon mailbag question: “Did Derek’s training method change leading up to his recent breakthrough?”

39:30-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

40:30- How big was the goal of reaching the USCF expert level for Derek? Do his students follow his chess progress? 

43:00- How does Derek approach his openings? 

Mentioned: IM Orlando Husbands, IM Richard Leyva Proenza

48:00- How does Derek think about budgeting for chess tournaments? 

49:30- Welcome the the Chess dot bomb! On this month’s sponsored segment we discuss the Global Chess Championship and Chess.com’s new verification feature. If you get verified on Chess.com you are eligible to compete in the $1,000,000 Global Chess Championship for free. If you decide to get verified ($15 for initial verification / $10 per year thereafter), please use this link to help support Perpetual Chess. 

Chess.com verification: 

Verified - Chess.com

Global Chess Championship 

https://www.chess.com/article/view/chesscom-global-championship-2022?ref_id=17919348

Premium Membership: 

https://go.chess.com/Perpetual

52:30- What does Derek think he needs to do to become a USCF master? 

Mentioned: Max Euwe, Tigran Petrosian 

55:30- When did Derek start working with coaches? How much do they help him? 

58:00- Why is it important to play against tougher competition?

Mentioned: FM Ylon Schwartz 

1:00:00- Thanks to Derek for joining the pod! 

You can check out his podcast, Detroit Chess Killers, here:

Detroit Chess Killers

Follow Derek on Twitter here: 

https://twitter.com/derekewilder

Ep 278- GM Jan Gustafsson- The Popular Chess24 Commentator discusses the World Championships, Chess Openings, The State of his Chess Game, and his new Chess Podcast

GM Jan Gustafsson is a popular and entertaining commentator for Chess24.com, a noted opening theoretician, a Chessable author, and 3 time member of GM Magnus Carlsen’s World Championship preparation team. Jan returned to Perpetual Chess for the fifth time to discuss chess news and the World Championship cycle, catch us up on the state of his chess game and to discuss what else he has been up to. Jan’s new projects include the launch of his own chess podcast, Chicken Chess Club,, where he and his friends, GM Laurent Fressinet and Peter Heine Nielsen give a light hearted rundown of the latest chess news. You can find timestamps and relevant links below:

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- We briefly discuss the origins of Jan’s new podcast, The Chicken Chess Club. 

Mentioned: Chicken Chess Club, GM Laurent Fressinet, GM Peter Hiene Nielsen 

5:30- Jan’s thoughts on the 2022 FIDE Candidates tournament, and whether Magnus will defend his title 

Mentioned:  Inside Team Magnus (behind Chess24 Paywall use promo code #Janistan), Episode 276 with GM Michael Adams, The Anand Files, From London to Elista 

12:30-  When did Jan find out he would be on Magnus Carlsen’s 2022 World Championship Preparation Team? 

17:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What does Jan think of IM Lawrence Trent’s new courses on 1… b6 and 1. Nc3. ?”

19:00- Patreon mailbag question:  “What is the stupidest opening idea that works?” 

20:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

21:00- Jan plays in the elite German chess league called The Bundesliga. He discusses how his recent games have gone and the state of his chess game. 

Mentioned: IM Greg Shahade 

32:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What is Jan’s advice for creating an opening repertoire?”

37:00- What is Jan trying to improve at?

Jan’s Twitch Channel, KugelBuch Twitch Channel 

42:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess collects and analyzes your games and gives you actionable tips based on the data it gathers. If you choose to subscribe to Aimchess, please use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

44:00- Any plans for more weekly features on The Chicken Chess Club podcast? 

Mentioned: Jeselnik and Rosenthal Vanity Project, GM Alireza Firouzja 

49:00- How is Jan’s daughter’s chess game? 

51:00- More Team Magnus and World Championship talk! What was the celebration like when Magnus defended his crown? 

Mentioned:  Inside Team Magnus, GM Danill Dubov, GM Jorden van Foreest 

59:00- Will Jan do another Chessable course? 

1:01:00- Jan reveals his plans for the 2022 Chess Olympiad? 

1:03:00- What TV/series/moves has Jan been watching?

Mentioned: Coda, Fleabag, Barry, White Lotus, Atlanta, Succession, See, Reacher, Louis C.K., Daniel Simonsen

1:08:00- Thanks to Jan for joining us! Be sure to subscribe to/rate/review the Chicken Chess Club.

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here.

EP 277-GM Kirill Shevchenko and WFM Maria Emelianova, a Ukrainian GM and a Russian Chess Streamer, on How the Russian-Ukrainian War Impacts their lives, their Careers and the Chess World

Photo of GM Kirill Shevchenko via Wikimedia Commons, Photo of Maria Emelianova via Maria

This week on Perpetual Chess we are joined by a Ukrainian and then a Russian guest to discuss the impact that the Russian-Ukrainian war has had on their lives and on the chess world. My first guest is GM Kirill Shevchenko. Kirill is a 19 year old rising star in the chess world, currently ranked #92 in the world, and #6 among juniors. He joined me from Germany, where he is in between tournaments, after leaving Ukraine to pursue his chess career. Kirill spoke very movingly about the devastation Russia’s attacks have wrought on his loved ones and his country, and about how he balances that with his chess career. Kirill continues to compete, and will soon play in his first Grand Chess Tour event. 

Following Kirill, I am joined by chess journalist and Twitch streamer, WFM Maria Emelianova. Maria is Russian, but like Kirill, felt compelled to leave her country when news of the attack broke. Maria has been an outspoken critic of the war, and has been working hard to raise funds to support Ukrainians. As Maria explains, this war has divided and scattered her family, an unfortunate situation which is not uncommon in Russia. I found both interviews to be quite enlightening, and I am inspired by the spirit of the chess community in trying circumstances. Please read on for timestamps and relevant links. 

Click Here to Download the Episode

I apologize for the background noise in these interviews, if you would like to read an edited transcript while you listen, you can do so here:

EP.276-KirillShevchenkoandM... | Public Trint | Trint

You can also view a ‘read only’ lightly edited transcript here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQG2m9fXCK23o0UBTkWzBhhS_dss2ogQneNnTU2Za0GpkSTInIRY-59QzWIl0vEVhm_nVODtvrcuJTr/pub

You can donate to Kirill’s charity, Care with Team Hikaru, here:

https://events.softgiving.com/donate/Team-Hikaru-CARE-For-Ukraine

Or donate directly to Ukrainians in need via  WIM Nastya Rakhmangulova here:

https://linktr.ee/nastiachess

0:04- GM Kirill Shevchenko joins the show, and retells the events of his life since Russia initiated its attack on Kiev. 

17:00- Kirill describes how he made his way to Germany with a few family members. 

21:00- Does Kirill find it difficult to focus on chess in events like the European Championship, and the upcoming European Chess Tour? 

25:00- In 2021, Kirill won the Lindores Abbey blitz tournament over Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian, and others. Does he play or practice a lot of blitz? 

26:00- What has Kirill heard about how other top Ukrainian players are reacting to the war? 

29:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: 

New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

33:00- Does Kirill think Russian players should be able to play in international tournaments? Should Dvorkovich stay the head of FIDE? 

Mentioned: Peter Doggers’ article- Ukrainian Players in Times of War 

36:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Would Kirill consider switching federations?” 

36:00- What does Kirill consider to be his career highlights? 

Mentioned: GM Alireza Firouzja, GM Alexander Moisenko, 2021 European Team Chess Championship 

39:00- Thanks so much to Kirill for joining us! You can follow Kirill here:

And Donate to Team Hikaru Care for Ukraine to support Ukraine here:

https://events.softgiving.com/donate/Team-Hikaru-CARE-For-Ukraine

40:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess collects and analyzes your games and gives you actionable tips based on the data it gathers. If you choose to subscribe to Aimchess, please use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

42:00- Maria Emelianova joins the show! She describes the impact on her life when Russia unexpectedly attacked Ukraine. 

43:00- How can Russian citizens follow the news, given the Russian government restrictions? What percentage of Russian citizens believe the state media propaganda? 

49:00- Maria shares more details about the political situation in Russia

1:11:00- Maria gives some details about the fundraising efforts she and some of her Chess.com co-workers are spearheading. 

Mentioned: Maria’s interview with Josep Fontelles, GM Hikaru Nakamura, GM Natalia Zhukova, GM Anton Korobov

1:19:00- Does Maria think that Russians should be allowed to compete internationally? 

1:31:00- Thanks so much to Maria for joining us again.

Follow her on Twitch here: https://www.twitch.tv/photochess 

Maria’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photochess/?hl=en

You can support Ukrainians directly through WIM Nastya Rakhmangulova:

https://www.instagram.com/nastiachess/?hl=en

EP 276- GM Michael Adams- Stories and Lessons from Mickey's decades Among the Chess Elite

GM Michael “Mickey” Adams is a legend of British chess who has been an elite chess player for the last 30 years. He is a former World Champion finalist, the 7 time champion of Great Britain and has been ranked as highly as #4 in the world. Michael is also an author, most recently of the very original and instructive new book, Think Like a Super GM, with co-author Philip Hurtado. Michael is normally one of the most active players on the tournament circuit, and as Covid subsides he is preparing to resume a busy schedule, beginning with the Tepe Siegman invitational in May. In our fascinating and entertaining conversation, Mickey shares some memorable stories, and discusses whether he has made adjustments to his game as he turns 50. We also discuss Michael’s new book in detail and shared some of its chess improvement takeaways. Please read on for lots more details, timestamps, and links to topics that were referenced.  

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- Mickey has a tournament coming soon, how does he prepare especially after the pandemic? 

Mentioned: Tepe Sigeman Tournament, Development of a Grandmaster, Chess in the Fast Lane by Bill Adams and GM Mickey Adams , GM Gawain Jones, GM David Howell, GM Luke McShane, GM Matthew Sadler 

10:00- How has Mickey maintained his chess strength up to age 50? 

18:00- What is Mickey’s approach to using engines? 

Mentioned: Episode 257 with GM Erwin L’Ami 

21:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess collects and analyzes your games and gives you actionable tips based on that data. If you choose to subscribe to Aimchess, please use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

22:00- Patreon mailbag question: Who is the most naturally talented player that Mickey has ever played against? 

Mentioned: GM Viswanathan Anand, GM Vasyl Ivanchuk, GM Magnus Carlsen 

27:00- What was it like to play chess with legends like Spassky and Tal? 

30:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is Mickey’s favorite victory over a fellow Super GM?

Mentioned: Ivanchuk-Adams 1991, Adams-Topalov 2006, Best of British Chessable Course with GM Simon Williams 

33:00- Mickey tells a few entertaining stories from his younger years involving Kasparov . Kramnik and GM Joel Lautier. 

Mentioned: GM Julian Hodgson, GM Vasyl Ivanchuk 

43:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: 

New Chess Courses

 Best of British Chessable Course with GM Simon Williams  

44:00- Chess improvement takeaways from Mickey’s new book

Mentioned: You can read my reviews of Think Like a Super GM on my Lichess blog or Chess.com blog. Thought and Choice in Chess by Adriaan de Groot, Forward Chess version of Think Like a Super GM

57:00- Patreon mailbag question: Will Mickey ever write a games collections book? 

1:02:00- Patreon mailbag question: What self-study methods did Mickey use, and which does he recommend? 

Mentioned: GM Mark Hebden, GM Keith Arkell

1:07:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is Mickey’s advice for how to approach big open Swiss tournaments? 

1:11:00- Patreon mailbag question: Who does Mickey think will win the Candidates tournament? 

Mentioned: BWin Candidates Betting Odds 

1:20:00- Patreon mailbag question: What does Mickey think of the possibility that Magnus won’t play the next World Championship match? He also shares some ideas of alternative World Championship formats. 

1:30:00- Is it true that Mickey has never had a “real job?”

Mentioned: New in Chess Magazine  

1:34:00- Does Mickey still have a condo in Florida? 

Mentioned: Mickey’s Blog

1:36:00- What is Mickey’s favorite chess venue?

Mentioned: GM David Norwood, Wijk an Zee, Episode 5 with GM Simon Williams 

1:39:00- Thanks so much to Mickey for joining the pod! Here are the best ways to keep up with him. 

Mickey’s Blog

Think Like a Super GM (free excerpt here) (Forward Chess version)

 Best of British Chessable Course with GM Simon Williams 

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

Ben Johnson is creating Perpetual Chess Podcast | Patreon

EP 275- IM Ali Mortazavi- A CEO and Successful Stock Investor on how the Challenges of Chess Help Everything Else Seem Easier

Photo by John Upham, courtesy of British Chess News

IM Ali Mortazavi is an Iranian born former top British junior player and chess author who has gone on to attain significant success outside of the chess world. Ali has been an active investor in many small biotech companies and is currently  the CEO of a publicly traded, UK-based biotech company called, E therapeutics. Despite his busy professional life, Ali frequently plays online blitz, solves endgame studies, and associates with his many chess friends. In our entertaining conversation Ali discusses British chess culture, his chess beginnings, and his encounters with notable chess figures like Garry Kasparov, Magnus Carlsen, Demis Hassabas (Creator of Alphazero), and his friend IM Lawrence Trent. Ali also discusses the ways that chess has helped his career and shares what he believes differentiates chess players from other people. You can find timestamps and relevant links for our conversation below. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Ali tells the story of his early beginnings in chess. 

Mentioned: GM Michael Adams , IM Michael Basman, World Youth Chess Championship, GM Matthew Sadler, GM Julian Hodgson, GM David Norwood 

10:00- Patreon mailbag question- “What were Ali’s early encounters against GM Michael Adams like?” 

13:00- What were Ali’s early encounters with GM Viswanathan Anand like? 

15:30- Ali tells stories from some of his early chess travels.

22:00- Does Ali want to become a GM? 

GM Noel Studer’s blog 

25:00- Ali was a pioneer in his work with chess computer software in the early 1990s. He tells some stories about working with Kasparov in those early days. 

28:00- Ali tells the story of how chess helped him get his start in finance. 

33:00- What makes chess players mentally tough? 

35:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: 

New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

38:00- Ali discusses his impressions of and interactions with GM Fabiano Caruana, AlphaZero/DeepMind founder Demis Hassabis, GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Garry Kasparov and IM Lawrence Trent 

Mentioned: Magnus Carlsen’s recent Poker Tournament 

50:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess collects and analyzes your games and gives you actionable tips based on the data it gathers. If you choose to subscribe to Aimchess, please use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

52:00- What advice would Ali give to talented young chess players? 

Mentioned: Episode 271 with GM Hans Niemann 

57:00- Does Ali think the chess boom will last? 

1:01:01- How many chess books has Ali read?

Mentioned: The Encyclopedia of Chess Combinations 

1:04:00- Thanks to IM Ali Mortazavi for sharing his chess story. You can keep up with him and reach him via Twitter. https://twitter.com/AAMortazavi?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess you can do so here.

EP 274- Paul Hedrick (Adult Improver Series) with guest co-host Han Schut

The Perpetual Chess Adult Improver Series is back, but this time with a twist. We feature a senior guest who is “more interested in sustainment than improvement”, and we have a guest co-host joining the conversation! Our guest, Paul Hedrick is a 56 year old literature and history teacher based in New Mexico. Paul enjoys listening to Perpetual Chess, but felt that older, less improvement focused chess lovers like himself were underrepresented on the podcast. To help guide the conversation, I enlisted the help of Han Schut. Han is a Chess Steps trainer, a Chessable Author and a frequent contributor to New in Chess magazine. The three of us try to sort out questions such as: Why does Paul study chess daily if his goal is not to improve? How can one know if they should shift their goals from “Adult Improver” to “Senior Sustainer?” How should one supplement the curriculum of the Chess Steps method? Both Paul and Han offered great perspectives on the different roles chess study can play in one's life, so I hope you all enjoy the conversation as I did. More details below.

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- Interested in appearing or suggesting an adult Improver guest for Perpetual Chess? Please use this form so that I can potentially refer back to it later : Potential Adult Improver Guest 

Han Schut’s Prior Appearance- (Episode 142, 2019)

Book Review #25- Review and Discussion of the Mammoth Book of the World’s Greatest Chess Games 

06:00- Why did Paul volunteer to come on the show? 

Mentioned: Episode 272- Positional Puzzle Book Championship with Neal Bruce 

11:00- What is Paul’s “why” for playing chess? 

19:00- Paul discusses his chess routine

Mentioned: Second Piatgorsky Cup 1966, Ken Smith, 

30:00- Patreon mailbag question- Was there a moment where Paul decided to switch from “improver” to “sustainer” mode? 

33:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess collects and analyzes your games and gives you actionable tips based on the data it gathers. If you choose to subscribe to Aimchess, please use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

35:00-  Patreon mailbag question How can one decide whether to focus on improvement or sustainment? 

40:00- Patreon mailbag question: Does Paul prioritize studying things he sounds fun? 

42:30- Patreon mailbag question: Does Paul think his study is helping him avoid blunders?

43:30- Han’s advice for mitigating blunders. 

46:30- Han describes the Chess Steps method, which you can order here.

47:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com, check out what is new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com

48:00- Patreon mailbag question: In the current chess climate, does one need to get better just to keep the same rating? 

51:30-  The Chess dot bomb sponsored segment is brought to you by Chess.com! Paul and I discuss the Chess.com Explorer feature, which allows you to learn openings, study master games, your own archive, and to add them to a personal library. 

If you decide to upgrade to a premium membership at Chess.com, you can help support the pod by signing up using this link (https://go.chess.com/Perpetual).

54:00- Patreon mailbag question: Does Han think there will be greater adoption of the Steps Method in the US?

Mentioned: Episode 167 with IM Jop Delemarre, IM Cor van Wijgerden

1:01:00- Patreon mailbag question: Question for Han: What makes a good compliment to the Chess Steps series? 

Mentioned: Lichess Database, Chess Structures by GM Mauricio Flores Rios, Lichess 4545 League

1:14:00- Thanks so much to Paul for joining us! And thanks to Han Schut for guest co-hosting and sharing his expertise!

Here is the link for Han’s scheduled live Chess Steps presentation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/D7gfDpEiDks Saturday April 16 at 2 pm EST

 Link to Dubov’s Explosive Italian: https://www.chessable.com/dubovs-explosive-italian/course/80152/

If you would like to join the Perpetual Chess Patreon community you can do so here: 

EP 273- GM Johan Hellsten on Chess Improvement, the Inspirations for his "Mastering Chess" Book Series, and his favorite OTB Memories

My guest  this week is renowned trainer, author, and 2006 Swedish National Champion, GM Johan Hellsten. Johan is best known for his excellent book/Chessable course, Mastering Chess Strategy, and its successors Mastering Opening Strategy, and Mastering Endgame Strategy. These courses are highly regarded by chess trainers and students alike, and are packed with educational puzzles. In our conversation, we get into the origins of these voluminous projects, plus Johan answers a ton of chess improvement related questions from listeners to the podcast. Lastly, Johan tells some fun stories from his time playing on the Swedish Olympiad Team, and shares the names of some authors that were formative in his own chess development. Please read on for timestamps and relevant links.  

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- How was Johan influenced by the work of legendary trainer, IM Mark Dvoretsky? 

Mentioned:Sergey Dolmatov, GM Artur Yusupov,  64 Chess Magazine

08:25- What is the vision behind Mastering Chess Strategy and Johan’s Mastering series? 

15:00- What are some books one could do that aren’t as challenging as Johan’s fantastic books? 

Mentioned: Simple Chess by Michael Stean, Winning Chess Strategies by Yasser Seirawan (also on Chessable) , Silman’s Reassess Your Chess Workbook

Episode 272- “Positional Puzzle Book Championship” with Neal Bruce 

Shane Taulbut, chess books,, GM Arthur Yusupov, IM Mark Dvoretsky, GM Yasser Seirawan, John Nunn’s Understanding Chess Move by Move 

18:45- How does Johan find so many instructive positions? 

Mentioned: Follow Chess App, Chessbomb, Chess24.com, Mark Crowther’s The Week in Chess

29:00- Patreon mailbag question from Neal Bruce!  “Should players at different rating levels approach Johan’s books differently?” 

39:00- Patreon mailbag question:  “In what order should one read Johan’s courses/books?”

Mentioned: Chess for Educators by Karel van Delft 

45:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. In addition to GM Johan Hellsten’s series, one can find tons of courses on all phases of the chess game, check out what is new here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com

46:00- If you don’t have a coach what is the best way to identify your weaknesses that are holding you back? 

Mentioned: GM Stellan Brynell 

1:00:00- Johan discusses how club players can choose openings based on their styles. 

1:06:00- What are Johan’s favorite game collection books? Do we need to study their books or just play through a great player’s games on a computer?

Mentioned: GM Mickey Adams, GM Viswanthan Anand, GM Mark Taimanov, GM Svetozar Gligoric, GM Bent Larsen, GM Mikhail Botvinnik, GM Bobby Fischer 

1:14:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What are the chess cultures like in Sweden and Ecaudor?” (Johan lives in Ecuador.) 

Mentioned:  GM Stellan Brynell, GM Johnny Hector, GM Jan Timman, GM Julio Granda Zuniga, IM Greg Shahade, GM Johan Hellsten’s YouTube Lectures, GM Wesley So

1:22:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How was Johan influenced by legendary Swedish player Ulf Andersson?” 

Mentioned: GM Viktor Korchnoi, GM David Anton, Hellsten-GM Viktor Kupreichik (1996), GM Andrey Kovalev, Hellsten-Kovalev 1996

1:35:00- Thanks so much to GM Hellsten for sharing his wisdom and stories!

You can reach him and check out his Chess.com Series here

https://www.chess.com/member/jhellsten

And be sure to get his Chessable courses here:

https://www.chessable.com/author/jhellsten2/

You can find the same material in book form, here.