Perpetual Chess Podcast

This week we are rejoined by the always entertaining Twitch streamer,YouTube creator and accomplished Grandmaster,  Ben Finegold! Ben was an early guest of Perpetual Chess, back in 2017. In the subsequent years, Ben has seen his online following grow rapidly, and The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta (which he co-founded with his wife Karen Boyd)   continues to find its footing despite the pandemic. In this interview, Ben reflects on his recent success, and shares some great stories from his own journey to the GM title, his early encounters with the Polgar sisters, and some chess history wisdom regarding Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov, Mikhail Tal and many others. It is always illuminating and amusing to get to chat with Ben, please read on for all of the details, relevant links and timestamps.    0:00- We begin by hearing the story of how Ben earned the GM title at the relatively late age of 40.  Mentioned: Episode 9 with GM Ben Finegold, Episode 52 with GM Ben Finegold, Episode 271 “IM to GM special episode” with IMs Lawrence Trent, Sean Nagle and Attila Turzo, Bill Goichberg, Susan Polgar, Sevan Muradian, FM Peter Giannatos, GM Vishy Anand, GM Garry Kasparov, Albert Pujols, Robert Parish, GM Viktor Korchnoi, Shaquille O’Neal, Mike Tyson   18:00- Since Ben wasn’t a big book reader, to what does he attribute his chess accomplishments?  Mentioned: GM Bobby Fischer, WGM Jenn Shahade, Episode 223 with Adult Improver Dr. Luka Popov    24:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.   25:30- A Patreon supporter of the podcast asks:  As someone with a popular chess center, what advice would Ben give for opening a venue in a major city?  Mentioned: Episode 185 with IM Stuart Rachels, Episode 201 with FM Peter Giannatos  Mentioned: The Queen’s Gambit, Silver Knights Enrichment    41:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com 42:00- Ben answers a Patreon mailbag question relating to the differences in playing style between GMs Magnus Carlsen and GM Garry Kasparov Mentioned: HBO’s Real Sports featuring GM Fabiano Caruana: https://www.youtube.om/watch?v=nbvrDspsGNU&feature=emb_imp_woyt Also mentioned: Paul Morphy, GM Anatoly Karpov    50:00- Ben had a few memorable games against the Polgar sisters. What were those experiences like? Mentioned: FM Emory Tate , GM Roman Dzindichashvilli, J. Polgar-Finegold 1989, Finegold, Gelfand 1989, J. Polgar-Finegold 1990, Finegold-Susan Polgar 1990   56:00- Why does Ben think he has found an audience on Chess Twitch? How does he think about some recent controversies involving chess Twitch personalities?  Mentioned: GM Jon Speelman, GM Hikaru Nakamura, GM Eric Hansen, The Botez Sisters, GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Aman Hambleton, IM John Bartholomew, IM Eric Rosen, IM Anna Rudolf, WFM Anna Cramling, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia    1:10:00- Patreon mailbag question: Does Ben have plans to improve his Twitch clips?  Mentioned: The Family Guy    1:16:00- Patreon mailbag question: Which players of the past would have been good Twitch streamers?  Mentioned: GM Ljubomir Ljubojević FM Emory Tate, GM Mikhail Tal, GM Alonso Zapata    1:21:00- GM Ben Finegold was featured in Sasha Chapin’s entertaining book All the Wrong Moves. What were Ben’s experiences with Sasha like? Mentioned: Episode 152 with Sasha Chapin, Howard Stern, George Stephonopoulos,    1:26:00- Thanks, as always to Ben for joining the show. Here is how to keep up with him:   Twitch- https://www.twitch.tv/gmbenjaminfinegold Twitter- https://twitter.com/ben_finegold?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor Ben’s Personal Youtube Channel- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6EnFbK-P5q0zeaqI5yobKg Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta Youtube Channel-  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqLLqbclDQ6IQg39Wsgy-4w   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

WFM Maria Emelianova a/k/a “Photochess” is a popular Twitch streamer, photographer, translator, and chess journalist. Maria often spends more than half of her time travelling to cover and help organize chess tournaments.   She has accumulated many memorable images and great stories from her time on the chess beat. To give an idea of her schedule, Maria worked on staff at the 2020-2021 FIDE Candidates in her native Yekaterinaburg, Russia, and she joined the podcast en route home from working at the Russian Team Championship in Sochi.  In our conversation, Maria gave a first hand perspective on the Candidates Tournament, and we also  touched on Maria’s chess book recommendations.  We talked about  her career as a chess competitor, as well as stories from her life as a chess photographer and advice regarding chess photography, Twitch streaming, and much more. Please read on for timestamps, lots more details and links related to this fun conversation.  0:00- As an Yekaterinaburg native and resident, Maria was part of the FIDE Candidates staff. She describes what her work entailed and gives some behind-the-scenes info from the tournament.  Mentioned: https://www.sima-land.ru/, WGM Leya Garifullina, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, GM Peter Leko, Lennart Ootes  24:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com  24:45- What are Maria’s favorite chess resources?  Mentioned: My Great Predecessors , Decision Making in Major Piece Endings , Chess Life Magazine, IM Elizabeth Paehtz’s Twitch channel- https://www.twitch.tv/ellipaehtz   32:30- Maria discusses her decision to play internationally for the United Kingdom, rather than Russia    39:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.   39:45- Maria reflects on her experiences as a Twitch streamer and shares some advice for other aspiring streamers and chess professionals.  Mentioned: Twitch Streamer MrLlamaSC-  https://www.twitch.tv/mrllamasc Also Mentioned: Episode 180 with IM Levy Rozman, Episode 140 with GM Aman Hambleton   53:30- Maria tells the memorable story of her first gig as a chess photographer  Mentioned: GM Alexander Motylev, Former FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov     1:00:00- What makes for a good chess photo? Who are Maria’s favorite players to photograph? Mentioned: GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, GM Anton Korobov, GM Alexander Grischuk   1:07:30- Which of Maria’s 5 cats is most beloved by her Twitch viewers?    1:13:00- Thanks so much to Maria for joining the show. Here is how you can keep up with her: Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/photochess Webpage:  https://photochess.com/ Chess.com:  https://www.chess.com/member/photochess Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photochess/?hl=en Twitter:  https://twitter.com/photochess?lang=en Reddit Photo Challenge: https://www.reddit.com/r/photoshopbattles/comments/6kywwe/psbattle_world_chess_champion_receiving_golden/   If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do here: https://www.patreon.com/perpetualchess See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tim Krabbé is a popular Dutch novelist who is probably best known for the cult cycling classic The Rider, and the book The Vanishing, which was adapted into film in both The Netherlands and the U.S.  In chess circles, Tim is a strong player who was once among the top 20 in the Netherlands, and he was a competitor in two Dutch National Championships. He has written for New in Chess Magazine, and wrote a classic (out of print)  book called Chess Curiosities. Around the late 1990s and 2000s, Tim maintained an  amazing blog which tracked chess news, shared stories  and contained many noteworthy chess studies and records. Tim no longer updates the blog, but fortunately he maintains the archive, so that chess fans still can immerse themselves in it. Tim has accumulated some great stories from his interactions with legends like GMs Jan Timman, Garry Kasparov, and Vishy Anand. In our interview, he shares a few of the stories, assesses the chess boom, and shares his wisdom on the topics of writing, cycling, longevity, and of course, chess. Please read on for more details and relevant hyperlinks.  0:00- We dive right into chess talk, as Tim shares his thoughts on the FIDE Candidates tournament, and discusses his current relationship with chess.  Mentioned: GM Anish Giri, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, Babson tasks , Episode 210 with Tom Vanderbilt. See Tom Vanderbilt’s profile of Tim Krabbé here-  https://www.bicycling.com/news/a20026829/think-you-understand-the-rider-think-again/ 09:45- Tim made a comeback to cycling in his 60’s, and still works hard on his writing at the age of 78.   What advice does he have for staying mentally and physically robust? This segues into Tim’s thoughts on the relative differences between chess, cycling, and racing.    16:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com   16:45- Tim answers a few questions from The Patreon mailbag relating to whether there are any similarities between cycling and chess.  Mentioned: Marc Cavendish, GM Simen Agdestein, Tim’s article about Simen is here: https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/agd_eng.htm   23:30- Tim tells the memorable story of how Bobby Fischer’s achievement’s deterred him from pursuing professional chess. He then tells a few stories derived from his attending the Fischer-Spassky World Championship in 1972.  Game 1 here-  https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1044722 Also mentioned: GM Friðrik Ólafsson   30:30- Patreon mailbag question: “How important does Tim think exercise is for competing at chess?”  34:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%. 35:00- What is Tim’s most cherished chess memory? What sites does he read?  Mentioned: Leonid Yarosh’s Babson Task- more info here:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babson_task Also mentioned: Chessbase.com, Chessvibes.com    40:30- What are Tim’s favorite chess books? Mentioned: The Kingby GM Jan Hein Donner, Hein Donner, The Biography, The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal    44:00- What does Tim think about the future of chess? Mentioned: GM Jan Timman, Read Tim’s chess short story, Master Jacobson, here: https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/text/jacobson.htm   49:00- What advice does Tim have for how to tell a good story? Who are his favorite novelists? Mentioned: Lev Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ivan Turgenev    53:00- Tim describes a memorable interaction with legendary World Champion Garry Kasparov.  Mentioned: Kasparov vs. Piket 1995, Tim’s piece A Walk with Garry Kasparov: https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/text/kaspeng.html   Thanks so much to Tim for sharing his stories and wisdom! Read his archive here:https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess/chess.html  Purchase his books here: https://www.amazon.com/Tim-Krabbe/e/B000APEA88%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share You can reach him at timkr At xs4all.nl   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week I am joined by one of my favorite modern authors, Grandmaster Axel Smith. Axel is a two-time Swedish Chess Olympiad member, who is probably best known for co-authoring the 2017 book, The Woodpecker Method with his fellow Grandmaster, Hans Tikkanen. Axel has written a few other books, which are excellent guides for more advanced players. They are Pump Up Your Rating, e3 Poison, and his latest offering from Quality Chess, Street Smart Chess. In our interview we discuss all of these books, and touch on topics like the origins of The Woodpecker Method, Axel’s own experience with using spaced repetition, and his improvement advice for ambitious club players. There are lots of useful nuggets in our conversation, so I hope you will enjoy it. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links.   0:00- We begin by discussing what is probably GM Axel Smith’s most popular book, the famed The Woodpecker Method, which he co-wrote with GM Hans Tikkanen. The book is available from Amazon and is very popular on Chessable.  Mentioned: Book Recap #6 discussing Woodpecker Method with Neal Bruce,  Episode 187 with Christopher Chabris, Episode 216 with Dr. Jana Krivec  15:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:  New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com 16:00- In Pump Up Your Rating, Axel listed the 4 key components of chess improvement: “ (1) analyzing your games and making a ‘list of mistakes;” (2) using a De la Maza-esque program to study tactics; (3) doing serious opening work via the creation of ‘opening files’ in ChessBase; and (4) mastering approximately 100 key theoretical endgames.”  Does he still think this is the best approach?   Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know    20:45- In e3 Poison, Axel mentioned that we may be entering a post theoretical era- what does he mean by that?  Mentioned: GM Anish Giri    24:30- What players does Axel look up to? Mentioned: GM Stellan Brynell, GM Ulf Andersson, YouTube Video- Play Like Ulf Andersson - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDo--EPHnfc 27:00-Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.   28:30 What is the theme of Axel’s newest book, Street Smart Chess?  Mentioned: Forward Chess, Street Smart Chess, Free book excerpt from Quality Chess here: http://www.qualitychess.co.uk/ebooks/StreetSmartChess-excerpt.pdf GM David Navara, GM Aryan Tari, GM Baskaran Adhiban, GM Laurent Fressinet,GM Peter Heine Nielsen, GM Magnus Carlsen, My Chess World, The Secret Ingredient by Jan Markos and GM David Navara    39:45- What is the chess culture like in Sweden?    41:00- What are some of Axel’s favorite books? Mentioned: Learn from the Legends, Move First Think Later, On the Origin of the Good Moves    46:00- Axel Smith shares some life and chess advice before departing. You can keep up with him via his website:   http://www.schackstudion.se/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week’s guest is none other than former FIDE World Champion, 2 time Olympiad Gold Medalist, and 2011 Ukrainian National Champion, GM Ruslan Ponomariov!  With the FIDE Candidates having concluded it was a great time to hear the thoughts of this genial super grandmaster. In our conversation, Ruslan puts the 2020-2021 FIDE Candidates into historical context, shares his perspective on GM Ian Nepomniachtchi’s  victory, and then assesses the 2021 World Championship matchup between Nepomniachtchi and GM Magnus Carlsen. We then delve into GM Ponomariov’s storied career. How does he reflect on having been the youngest FIDE World Champion ever? What is he up to these days? We discuss this and much more in this fascinating, wide-ranging interview. Please read on for lots more details and timestamps.   0:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings, inclluding IM Christof Sielecki's course on the Pirc defense here:  New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com 2:00- We begin, of course, by discussing the just-ended FIDE Candidates Tournament. What were GM Ponomariov’s impressions of the FIDE Candidates Tournament? Mentioned: Curacao 1962: The Battle That Shook the Chess World, GM Garry Kasparov, GM Alexei Dreev, Alexander Grischuk, GM Garry Kasparov, Rublevsky vs. Ponomariov 2007    20:00-  How does he assess GM IanIan Nepomniachtchi’’s chances  vs. Magnus Carlsen?  Mentioned: Bwin World Championship Odds- https://sports.bwin.com/en/sports/events/world-championship-2021-11184631 GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Peter Heine Nielsen   26:00- Ruslan answers a question from the Perpetual Chess Patreon mailbag: “How would a world championship team typically prepare for a match?” Ruslan describes his own experiences working with Magnus Carlsen.  Mentioned: The Anand Files, GM Wang Hao, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, GM Sergei Karjakin, GM Boris Gelfand    37:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does Ruslan place his FIDE World Champion title within historical context?”  Mentioned: GM Viswanathan Anand, GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Bobby Fischer    43:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.   44:30- Patreon mailbag question: “Does Ruslan have any professional chess plans outside of continuing to compete?”  Mentioned: Dortmund Chess Days 2021    51:30- Patreon question: “Does GM Ponomariov have any suggestions for how to avoid information overload?” Mentioned: GM Noel Studer’s blog- https://t.co/4zQNhZV958?amp=1   56:00- GM Ponomariov discusses some of the chess-related projects on which he is working. Mentioned: German Bundeslga, GM Vladimir Baklan, GM Pavel Elianov, GM Yuriy Kuzubov, Russian Language Academy of Olympic Champions website here:  Академия Олимпийских Чемпионов 1:01:00- Does Ruslan have any good stories involving GM Vasyl Ivanchuk? Has he ever played him in checkers?  Mentioned: Ivanchuk interview with Fiona Steil Antoni: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGpT9el_9i8, GM Peter Heine Nielsen, GM Alexander Morozevich, GM Tiger Hillarp Person, GM Emanuel Lasker, GM Anatoly Karpov, GM Mikhail  Podharetz    1:15:00- Twitter question from GM Denes Boros: “Is there anything GM Ponomariov would have done differently from his time at the top of the chess world?” Mentioned: GM Yuriy Kryvoruchko , GM Vladimir Topolov, GM Viswanathan Anand, GM Wang Hao    1:23:00- In view of the fact that Ruslan lives in Spain, I asked whether he does any chess work there, or is it primarily on the road, and in his native Ukraine?    1:29:00- In 2008, GM Ponomariov told Chessbase.com of his desire to travel through the Mongolian steppes. Has he taken that trip yet?    1:32:00- Thanks so much to GM Ponomariov for sharing his time and reflections. Here is how you can keep up with him:   Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/ruslanponomariov Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ponomariov?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Barry Katz, a Brooklyn college writing instructor and father who discovered chess through his son, chats about Irving Chernev’s Logical Chess Move by Move. They explore Chernev’s readable teaching style, whether the book still helps with openings, the value of human explanations in the engine era, and practical advice for club players on development, mobility, and choosing openings that fit your temperament.

My guest on the podcast is adult improver Dr. Luka Popov. Luka is a 39 year-old Croatian dad, theoretical physics Ph.D., software engineer and content creator. Luka started serious chess in 2017, and was primarily emphasizing over-the-board chess before the pandemic. Then he  switched to online chess, and  his Lichess rapid rating has gained about 250 points in the last 1.5 years. Luka shares a lot of his wisdom and experiences on his YouTube channel called “The Adult Chess Improver.”  As the channel and our interview make clear, Luka has quickly gained expertise in the topic of adult chess improvement, and our interview is filled with quality recommendations for like-minded players. Please read on for lots more details. My guest on the podcast is adult improver Dr. Luka Popov. Luka is a 39 year-old Croatian dad, theoretical physics Ph.D., software engineer and content creator. Luka started serious chess in 2017, and was primarily emphasizing over-the-board chess before the pandemic. Then he  switched to online chess, and  his Lichess rapid rating has gained about 250 points in the last 1.5 years.Luka shares a lot of his wisdom and experiences on his YouTube channel called “The Adult Chess Improver.”  As the channel and our interview make clear, Luka has quickly gained expertise in the topic of adult chess improvement, and our interview is filled with quality recommendations for like-minded players. Please read on for lots more details. 0:00- Luka delves into his chess background. Mentioned: Agadmator, Hanging Pawns12:00- Why does Luka think many titled players struggle to understand the plight of adult improvers? Mentioned: IM Andras Toth, Dr. Jana Krivec 17:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com18:30- Why is it important for improvers to try to acquire chess skills rather than gain chess knowledge?  Mentioned: Neal Bruce 26:00 What do Luka’s family and friends think of his chess hobby?28:30- Luka answers a question from the Patreon mailbag relating to developing board visualization. Mentioned:: Jason Cigan, JJ Lang, Benedictine’s Basic Chess Patterns:https://www.chessable.com/basic-chess-patterns-/course/46181/Also Mentioned: Chesstempo, Perpetual Chess Book Recap of Woodpecker Method and Michael De La Maza’s Rapid Chess Improvement:https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/new-blog/2020/4/17/bonus-pod-recapping-the-woodpecker-method-and-rapid-chess-improvement-with-neal-bruce36:45- Patreon mailbag question: “What are the best ways to improve tactically and strategically respectively?” Mentioned: GM Jesse Kraai, IM John Bartholomew, IM Andras Toth, GM Jacob Aagaard’s Thinking Inside the Box 43:00- Luka answers another Patreon question: “What is the best way to improve at endgames?”Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know, Positional Chess Handbook by FM Israel Gelfer 45:30- Patreon question: “What advice does Luka have when it comes to setting goals?” 50:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. If you subscribe use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%. 51:00- How does Luka think about the concept of “ceilings” in chess potential? 55:30- What are Luka’s plans for tournaments as the pandemic recedes? 1:01:00- What other hobbies does Luka have? 1:05:00- Thanks so much to Dr. Popov for joining the show. Be sure to follow his YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCChy0letCdw0KtnMnfAukLwYou can email him at drpopovchess at gmail.com - If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:Donate — The Perpetual Chess Podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on Perpetual Chess, we are fortunate to get a return visit from the legendary commentator, Super GM, and now Chessable author, GM Peter Svidler! Peter talked with me a few days before he was set to depart for Yekaterinaburg, Russia. Yekaterinburg, of course, is where the FIDE Candidates Tournament will resume after being postponed amidst the Covid pandemic in March 2020. The tournament resumes on April 19, and the winner of the tournament will face GM Magnus Carlsen for the World Championship in November of 2021. As a competitor in prior Candidates Tournaments, and someone who is now assisting GM Kirill Alekseenko, one of the participants, it was amazing to hear GM Svidler’s perspective on the tournament.  Of course, GM Svidler has also just released his much anticipated Chessable course, Lifetime Repertoires: Peter Svidler’s Grunfeld. We talked about how he researched this huge project, as well as what surprised him about the process of writing his first Chessable course.  Lastly, we got lots of questions from supporters of the Perpetual Chess Podcast. GM Svidler tackled questions relating to his famed modesty, his plans for competing and commentating in 2021, and much more. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links.        0:00-  We begin by discussing the FIDE Candidates Tournament, which is set to resume on April 19, 2021.  Mentioned: Russian Superfinals, GM Kirill Alekseenko, FIDE Candidates Wikipedia Page including participants and standings here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Chess_Championship_2021 Candidates odds to win: https://sports.bwin.com/en/sports/events/candidates-tournament-2020-9514213 22:30-  Peter answers the first question from the Perpetual Chess Patreon mailbag: “is it possible that Peter’s famed modesty gives him a competitive disadvantage?” Mentioned: GM Sergei Shipov    26:30- Perpetual Chess is proud to be brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can pick up GM Peter Svidler’s The Grunfeld: Lifetime Repertoires Part 1 here: https://www.chessable.com/lifetime-repertoires-peter-svidlers-grunfeld-part-1/course/63116/ The free short and sweet version is here: https://www.chessable.com/short-sweet-peter-svidlers-grunfeld/course/70030/ 27:00 What were the biggest challenges of creating Peter’s much- anticipated course on the Grunfeld opening?  Mentioned: GM Danill Dubov, GM Harikrishna    41:25- Patreon question: How can a player improve at quiet positions?  Mentioned: Peter’s Svidler’s “Training with Tani” Youtube Series   48:30- Patreon question: “When will we see Peter and GM Jan Gustafsson announcing again?”    53:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess  collects and analyzes your online games and gives you actionable advice on what phases to work on. You can check out their site for free, and if you sign up, use the Promo Code “Chess30” to save 30%   54:00- Patreon question: “Does Peter’s love for the video game Hearthstone help his chess?”  GM Evgeny Tomashevsky, GM Ian Nepomniatchi    56:30- Patreon questions: “Will Peter ever write a chess book? If he did, what would it be about?”  Mentioned: Masterclass with GM Yannick Pelletier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paCReNKAcNg Peters’s Recap of his Tilburg 1997 win vs. GM Garry Kasparov https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1iefMAb-Tk   Also Mentioned: GM Boris Gelfand’s books with GM Jacob Aagaard, FM Michiel Abeln’s The Anand Files, From London to Elista    1:04:00- Patreon question: “Who are Peter’s favorite cricket players?”    1:05:30-  Patreon question: “Does Peter think that there are similarities between learning languages and chess?”  Mentioned: Leisure Suit Larry    1:10:00- Thanks to much to GM Peter Svidler for re-joining the show! Here are the links for his Twitter account, Twitch Streaming, and Chessable course: https://twitter.com/polborta?lang=en https://www.twitch.tv/plbrta https://www.chessable.com/discussion/thread/242991/lifetime-repertoire-the-grunfeld-peter-svidler-/ Peter Svidler “Lifetime Repertoires” Grunfeld-Part 1- Course Giveaway Instructions!  Go to Perpetual Chess Youtube page here-  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtcudElmRsQYTwULtd_gnFw/videos  Subscribe to the channel and take a screenshot  Email the screenshot to ben@perpetualchesspod.com with the subject header “YouTube”  Done!  Deadline April 30. Winners will be determined by random drawing, and announced via email on May 1. I will not be able to respond to all contestants emails, but you all should get an email when the winners are announced. Thanks for playing! If you would like to join the Perpetual Chess Patreon community, or to help support Perpetual Chess in other ways, you can learn more here: Donate — The Perpetual Chess Podcast   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week we are joined by Chris Callahan, who is the Community Organizer of LiChess.org. Lichess is a community supported, free, open-source, ad- and tracker-free chess site which plays host to over 5 million chess games per day. Back in 2017, I interviewed its founder, Thibault Duplessis, so it was past time to catch up on all that is new with this great site. It has been especially important during the past year as online chess has surged in popularity. We discussed everything from how they dealt with a huge traffic surge, to their capabilities in the area of cheating detection. We talked about the viability of their current business plan as well as  their future plans. Chris also delved a bit into his own chess background, and shared his unique perspective on scholastic chess teaching and chess improvement. It was fun to catch up with him and to learn more about this website on which so many of us enjoy playing on a daily basis.  0:00- Chris shares a bit about his chess background, what is new with Lichess founder Thibault Duplessis, and how he became a LiChess employee,  Mentioned: IM Christof Sielecki, LiChess Studies , Episode 25- Thibault Duplessis    7:00- LiChess traffic doubled in 2 weeks when the pandemic hit. How did they handle it? As a donation-driven non-profit, how is LiChess holding up financially?  Mentioned: The Lichess Costs document we reference is here: http://lichess.org/costs   16:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com! Check out their latest here, including GM Peter Svidler's much anticipated course on the Grunfeld: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com   17:00- Chris answers a Patreon mailbag question relating to various Lichess capabilities and future plans including what their philosophy is on sharing their open source coding.    25:30- Chris discusses a recent controversy involving Chessbase and the open source community. It is alleged that Chessbase was not transparent about using Stockfish’s Open Source Code for its Fat Fritz engine. More info in Peter Dogger’s summary here:  https://www.chess.com/news/view/chessbase-fat-fritz-2-stockfish-leela-chess-zero   31:00- What is Lichess’ approach to the use of a cheat detection/engine by players?  Mentioned: Episode 18 with IM Danny Rensch, Episode 136 with IM Ken Regan, GM Wesley So, GM Raunak Sadhwhani    48:00- What are the goals of the LiChess Twitch and YouTube channels? What other projects might LiChess work on?  Mentioned: LiChess Study- Logical Chess Move by Move: https://lichess.org/study/Wn7aMkPy   58:00- What is Chris’ guiding principle in teaching chess to kids? What else would Chris like to see change in the chess community?  Mentioned: IM Eric Rosen and The Stafford Gambit, Chess for Zebras    1:05:00- Thanks so much to Chris for sharing his knowledge and catching us up on Lichess. Join the LiChess Discord here: https://lichess.org/team/chesscord-discord-community   You can follow Chris on LiChess here:  https://lichess.org/@/NoJoke   If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here: The Perpetual Chess Podcast     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bruce Pandolfini is a trailblazer for American chess who is well known as a top scholastic coach, prolific author, and consultant on landmark chess productions like the 1993 movie, Searching for Bobby Fischer, and the 2020 smash hit Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit. Bruce even served on the announcing team for PBS in the legendary 1972 Fischer vs. Spassky World Championship match.  With such a resume, obviously Bruce has accumulated a treasure trove of stories, and perspective. In our interview, Bruce drew on his experience as an early coach of future GM Fabiano Caruana and IM Josh Waitzkin to discuss the nature of chess talent, and he told stories of a few of his interactions with Bobby Fischer as a New Yorker of the same generation. Bruce also opined on the growth of and future of chess, and discussed his involvement in The Queen’s Gambit,  both the novel and the series. Obviously,I found this to be an entertaining and informative interview, and I hope that you will as well. Please read on for more details and links related to all that we discussed.  0:00- We begin by reliving some stories from Bruce’s youth in Brooklyn, and his interactions with chess legends like Bobby Fischer and GM Larry Evans.  Mentioned: Caroline Marshall, Fabiano Caruana, Billy Wilder, Stanley Kubrick, Al Horowitz  9:30- How did Bruce end up a part of the announcing team for PBS for the 1972 Fischer vs. Spassky “Match of the Century?”  Mentioned: Shelby Lyman, Eugene Meyer, GM Edmar Mednis, Dustin Hoffman, GM Nicolas Rossolimo, IM Bernard Zuckerman. Bobby Fischer’s Outrageous Chess Moves, Here is the video of Bobby Fischer appearing on The Tonight Show in 1972-  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxvnEwvgfeI, Saul Bellow, Kurt Vonnegut  22:00- Perpetual Chess is proud to be brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can always check out what’s new there through this link:  New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com 23:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does Bruce deal with students whose parents are challenging?“ Mentioned: Bill Goichberg 29:00- Does Bruce notice any traits in common amongst the top talents he has worked with such as  IM Josh Waitzkin and GM Fabiano Caruana?  Carol Ann Caronia, Fred Waitzkin, Bonnie Waitzkin.  Lou Caruana, Robert Hess, GM Joel Benjamin, GM Miron Sher  37:00- Another Patreon Mailbag question: “What are some of Bruce’s favorite chess books?”  Mentioned: My 60 Memorable Games, Botvinnik: One Hundred Selected Chess Games, Alekhine’s My Best Games of Chess, Fred Reinfeld’s The Human Side of Chess, Irving Chernev, GM Andy Soltis   39:00- Another question from a Patreon supporter: “How has Bruce’s chess improvement advice changed over the years?” Mentioned: Shelby Lyman  46:30- Bruce answers the question,  “How has the rise of chess on YouTube and Twitch impacted Bruce’s students?”  Mentioned: Jose Raoul Capablanca, Wilhelm Steinitz  52:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. Check out their website and subscribe to their YouTube channel here:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMBUU6aq2b07VtTAMO0xGTw 53:00- We talk about Bruce’s work on The Queen’s Gambit, both Walter Tevis’ novel and the series.  Mentioned: John Hartmann interview with Bruce Pandolfini: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpfWu-OvAlg Also Mentioned: Bill Horberg, Scott Frank, Anya Taylor Joy, Garry Kasparov’s talk with the US Chess Girl’s Group is here:  https://www.kasparov.com/garry-kasparov-talks-to-us-chess-girls-group-about-the-queens-gambit/ Also Mentioned: Searching for Bobby Fischer, Lasker’s Manual of Chess,  1:03:00- In closing, we discuss Bruce’s future projects, including whether he may ever write a memoir. Thanks so much to Bruce for joining the show!  Mentioned: Kimberly Doo McVay If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here: Ben Johnson is creating Perpetual Chess Podcast | Patreon See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices