GM Jan Smeets speaks ......

This is part of Chessvibes ongoing series of 10-questions interviews of GMs in connection with the chess coaching/training book published recently. (See my previous blog here and here and here.)

The latest interview is with Dutch GM Jan Smeets. And flogging the dead horse, here is Jan Smeets' answer to the perennial chess interview question:

3. How did you develop your chess talent as a kid?
By playing a lot and reading books. And attending lectures/lessons. It may sound strange to the juniors these days but as a kid I never used a computer for anything related to chess.

Need I say more?

Other answers:

6. What would be your advice for young people?
Play chess only if you really enjoy it. If not, join a soccer club.

10. What question do you miss and what would be your answer?
Not so much a question as a small piece of advice. Don’t stare at computer evaluations all the time but keep using your own mind!

Women FIDE Grand Prix, Nalchik, 2010

The 3rd Women FIDE Grand Prix chess tournament is currently on in the Spa-hotel Sindika In Nalchik, beginning April, 25th, 2010. Round 1 was yesterday, April 26th. The biggest news would be Hou YiFan's loss to Russian GM Tatiana Kosintseva. The Chinese did not enjoy a good day with second Chinese GM Zhao Xue losing to Turkish WIM Betul Cemre Yildiz. However, the 2nd strongest women player, Humpy Koneru won.

The PR blurb from Fide:

The FIDE Women Grand Prix is a new series of elite tournaments which will be organised by FIDE and Global Chess. There will be 6 legs over two years in various countries around the world with three tournaments every year.

The winner of each tournament will win 6,500 euros out of a prize fund of 40,000 euros and the overall winner of the series will win a further 15,000 euros at the end of the series.

This is the first time that such a series is being organised and is a significant development for the chess world. The introduction of the Grand Prix series means that there will be a World Championship contest annually now from 2010. In that year, the Champion will be determined from the World Championship Knockout which will also be held in Turkey and the following year, 2011, the World Champions will face the Winner of the Grand Prix series 2009/2010 in a match for the title.

This will be one of the strongest women tournaments of all times and it is important to point out that there are three ex-world Champions taking part as well as the highest ranked women players in the world

Nalchik, Russia 25rd April - 7th May 2010
Jermuk, Armenia 23rd June- 6th July 2010
Ulanbaatar, Mongolia 29 July - 12 August 2010
Santiago, Chile 27th October- 9th November 2010

Chinese GM Zhao Xue is the leader after the first two Grand Prix in 2009, Istanbul and Najing.

For more news and games download in pgn, see here. For pairings, results, schedule, see here. Unfortunately, there is no live games or a games replayer. Nor are there any commentary, bulletins or videos. Also, enjoy the wonderful English or Manglish on display.

Singapore Junior scores final IM norm

For those who played in the 2010 Doeberl Cup and the SIO will remember the young Singaporean sensation, FM Daniel Fernandez. Daniel narrowly missed out on a GM norm at the SIO and had to settle for an IM norm, his second. It looks like he is now an IM-elect, having just scored his 3rd IM norm at the UKM KL Masters 2010 at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Malaysia. (UKM, ie, Malaysia National University, is Malaysia's second university after the University Malaya.) This is the first of the projected mini-tournaments organsied by the KL Chess Association to create opportunities for players to achieve IM norms. This effort is to be applauded. Perhaps Australian juniors should seriously think of heading to Malaysia for their IM norm chances instead of making the trek to Europe. interestingly, none of the Malaysians took their chances and scored a norm result. There were two other IM norms scored but both by Indian players.

You can check out the UKM KL Masters 2010 here and the results here. On the main site, you can replay all the games except the final round (hhhmmmmm! the usual last round neglect of chess organisers the world over??!!)

For those who play white against the Pirc, have a look at the featured game between Thakur Akash (who scored a norm) vs Abdul Haq here.

The World Chess Champion speaks ......

The following video interview with Vishy Anand, World Chess Champion is a bit lengthy by standards of online videos but really worth the time and effort. Bear in mind it was conducted back in 2009.

Changes to the Johns-Putra (AusJCL) JETS 2010_Perth Mini-squad Meeting

The Johns-Putra Junior Elite Training Squad meeting in Perth was announced earlier. However there is now a slight change in the plans. Details are as follows:

Johns-Putra Junior Elite Training Squad meeting in Perth

Date: June 5 (the day before the Foundation Day Open)
Time 10.00 - 16.00
Trainer: Grandmaster Ian Rogers
Contact: GMIanRogers@gmail.com Mobile: 0416599230
Venue: Legacy House, 64 Mill Point Road, South Perth

To be invited:

All WA members of the 2010 JETS Squad and all WA
applicants for the squad, gratis.

Interstate JETS members who are competing in the Foundation Day Open are also
welcome to attend gratis.

A small number of local juniors may also be accepted. A fee of $30 will be charged for non-JETS attendees.

Attendees are requested to reserve their places.

Johns-Putra (AusJCL) JETS 2010_Gold Coast Mini-squad Meeting

AusJCL and Johns-Putra are proud to announce a third Johns-Putra JETS Mini-squad meeting in the Gold Coast. Details as follows.

Johns-Putra Junior Elite Training Squad meeting on the Gold Coast

Date: Monday June 28th (the day after the Gold Coast Open)
Time 13:00 - 17:00
Trainer: Grandmaster Ian Rogers
Contact: GMIanRogers@gmail.com Mobile: 0416599230
Venue: Gardiner Chess Centre, Mudgeeraba

To be invited:

All Queensland members of the 2010 JETS Squad and all Queensland
applicants for the squad.

Interstate JETS members who are competing in the Gold Coast Open are also
welcome to attend.

Attendees are requested to reserve their places and to bring with them their games from the Gold Coast Open.

Four lesser legends of chess speak ......

Basketball is chess ?! Enjoy!

GM Sune Berg Hansen and GM Dimitri Reinderman speak ......

Chessvibes has an ongoing series of 10-questions interviews posed to various GMs in relation to a chess training/coaching book recently published by one of Chessvibes contributors, Dutch IM Merijn van Delft and his father among others. The last two interviews were with GM Sune Berg Hansen and GM Dimitri Reinderman, and reading the interviews, something struck me. When asked the question, "3. How did you develop your chess talent as a kid?", they both gave the same answer.

GM Sune Berg Hansen is 38 years old, a Danish grandmaster and 5 times Danish champion, serious amateur chessplayer, and now professional poker player. Note that he only started in chess club at the age of 12.

I read a lot of books! By the way I don’t believe in ‘talent’ – I think all talents become good by deliberate practice.

The full interview is here.

Hansen also had a question which he answered himself:

How long does it take to become a grandmaster? It takes 10 years or approx. 10.000 hours of deliberate practice. That goes for everybody – even Kasparov :)

IGM Dimitri Reinderman is a Dutch grandmaster 37 years old.

I read every chess book I could get my hands on…

The full interview is here but is bit too whimsical and Monty Pythonish (or trying to in any event).

AusJCL_Applicants for Selection for International events

Please note a further amendment to Applicants for Selection for International events.

This post is notice that the Malaysia Open is removed from the list of events for which AusJCL selections and endorsement is required.

Explanation:
In my haste to publish the list of applicants, I overlooked the fact that one of the events do not require selections, namely the Malaysia Open. Anyone can enter provided you pay the entry fee. I refer you to this ChessChat thread http://www.chesschat.org/showthread.php?t=11727 where FM Brian Jones have posted relevant information. In fact, any juniors/chess parent intending to participate should contact Brian at info@chessaustralia.com.au or call him at 02 9838 1529. He is sort of coordinating the Australian contingent participating in the event.

AusJCL_Selection for International events

International Selections Update

Now that SIO and Doeberl Cup are over, efforts to have selections ready will intensify. I am trying for the deadline of end of April for selections. There may be a slight delay due to a recent bereavement in the family and I had to head overseas for 9 days (not an excuse but an explanation).

I am aware that some events have dates in May and first week in June as the closing date for entries into the International Chess competitions, ie the Asian Youth (Beijing) and the World Junior (Poland), and the Commonweatlh Chess and the Asean Age Group (Subic Bay) are pretty much now accepting entries. If necessary, the selections may be staged.

Again, thanks in advance for your patience.

Australian Junior Chess Championships, 15-23 Jan 2011 Mooroolbark, Victoria

Important announcement for Australian juniors:

On behalf of Chess Victoria, a group of chess club (Ranges and Croydon mostly) members and parents from Victoria will be hosting the Australian Junior 2011 at the Billanook College, Mooroolbark, Melbourne on behalf of the Australian Junior Chess League. This will be the first time the Australian Junior has been held in the state for quite some time, so we are all very excited about the event! This post is just to give some preliminary basic details, all of which are subject to final confirmation; full details will be online on a website established for the event in coming months.

Note that this was announced and some details were distributed last weekend at the Doeberl Cup.

Dates: January 15-23 2011. Note the event will run a maximum of 9 days (and occupying only 1 working week)

Venue: Billanook College, Mooroolbark (www.billanook.vic.edu.au) is located in the gateway to the Yarra Valley of Melbourne. It is located on 15 hectares of natural bushland in a quiet, semi-rural environment. The venue is first class and chess events are run there on a regular basis. The college is 2km from the nearest station and we will be running shuttle buses to there and also to nearby accommodation, depending on demand.

Accommodation: A range of accommodation styles and costs is being negotiated. Stay tuned for more details! There is handy conference centre accommodation and a dozen motels within 20 minutes of the venue, plus a couple of caravan parks and a mediation centre. Those with more up market tastes, well Melbourne IS the capital of suave.

Schedule: This is brand new, not been tried before, but should prove more attractive, especially for visitors, as the younger players event is finished in fewer days. The attached draft schedule may be more useful. But in summary:
Six championship events, in open and girls divisions
The event runs for 9 days for the U18/U16 players, 6 days for the U14/U12s and 4 days for the U10/U8 players
All lightning and problem solving happen on the Tuesday
There is no rapid tournament
Those under 10 could play in both the U10/U8 and the U14/U12 events


Organisers: The main organisers are myself, Scott Humphreys, Pearl Yung, NY Wong, Yew Sze Lim supported by Paul Bearup, Jamie Cross and Kerry Lyall and others too numerous to mention at this stage. All of these people bring a wealth of experience to junior chess events.

Social events: We will be aiming to provide various social events for players and parents to make the event as friendly and enjoyable as possible and give parents more options for things to do while the tournament is on.

Official website should be online by around the end of June, or earlier if the stars align properly. But block out your mini-break in Melbourne dates for now.

Contact: me either via this site, or send an email to ajcc2011@gmail.com. We are looking for all offers of support (in any form, sponsors, volunteers, etc) and am happy to consider all suggestions at this stage.

Scott Humphreys, DOP

AusJCL_Applicants for Selection for International events

Dear All Australian Juniors and Chess Parents,

I have received the following applications from juniors for the honour to represent Australia in 2010 International chess tournaments. If I have made any mistake inadvertently, please email me to rectify. Applications is now closed as the deadline was the 31st March 2010.

If I have emailed you a document, entitled "Rules and Conditions for Overseas Junior Events", please reply by email to confirm your acceptance of the contents of the document. Otherwise, your application will not proceed.

May 9-19
Commonwealth Championships (including age groups)
New Delhi, India
http://www.delhichess.com/

Under 16 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 14 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 12 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 16 Girls
Clarise Koh

Under 14 Girls
Clarise Koh

June 4–13
Asean+ Age Group Championships
Subic Bay, Phillipines

Under 16 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 14 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 12 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 10 Open
Mishael Chellappah
Jamie-Lee Guo

Under 8 Open
Ethan Lim

Under 16 Girls
Emma Guo
Clarise Koh

Under 14 Girls
Clarise Koh
Mirakla Mithran

Under 12 Girls
Denise Lim

July 8-18
Asian Youth Chess Championships
Beijing, China

Under 16 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 14 Open
Chen PengYu
Cedric Koh
Yi Liu
Isaac Ng
Joshua Ng

Under 12 Open
Sean Gu
Cedric Koh

Under 10 Open
Mishael Chellappah
Noah Gong
Jamie-Lee Guo

Under 8 Open
Noah Gong

Under 16 Girls
Emma Guo
Clarise Koh

Under 14 Girls
Clarise Koh
Mirakla Mithran
Caroline Shan
Leteisha Simmonds

Under 12 Girls
Savithri Narenthran

Under 10 Girls
Grace Shan

July 24-Aug 1
World Youth U/16 Chess Olympiad
Turkey,Antalya

Abbie Kanagarajah
Peter Wallmueller

Aug 2-17
World Junior (U/20) Open Ch.and Girls Ch.
Chotowa Czarna, Poland
http://www.wjcc2010.pl/en

Emma Guo
Sherab Guo Yuthok
Abbie Kanagarajah
Tamzin Oliver

Oct 19-31
World Youth Championships
Haikidiki, Greece

Under 18 Open
Sam Grigg

Under 16 Open
Cedric Koh

Under 14 Open
Bobby Cheng
Cedric Koh
Isaac Ng
Joshua Ng

Under 12 Open
Ethan Derwent
Sean Gu
Cedric Koh
Zachary Loh
Peter Wallmueller

Under 10 Open
Mishael Chellappah
Jamie-Lee Guo
Peter Wallmueller

Under 16 Girls
Emma Guo
Clarise Koh

Under 14 Girls
Abbie Kanagarajah
Clarise Koh
Mirakla Mithran
Leteisha Simmonds

GM-in waiting and the famous "Kitchen Sink" Game

We now have a GM-in waiting in Australia and that is the popular and modest young man by the name of George Xie (IM). I think he also has the distinction of being the only GM-in waiting who collected his three GM norms in Australia which is in itself a fantastic achievement having regards to the paucity of tournaments with GM norms chances and GMs themselves.

Shaun Press first drew attention to the following Rd 3 game from the recent Doeberl Cup in Canberra (see here)and it has been picked up at Chessvibes (see here). It is a wildly attacking game but with measured control and poise. Juniors, can you play like this? May I present the "Kitchen Sink" game:

Johns-Putra (AusJCL) JETS 2010_Melbourne Mini-squad Meeting

AusJCL and Johns-Putra are proud to announce a second Johns-Putra JETS Mini-squad meeting in Melbourne. Details as follows:

Date: June 15 (the day after the Victorian Open)
Time 18.30 - 21.00
Trainer: Grandmaster Darryl Johansen
Contact: deva@corplink.com.au 0403 414 833
Venue: Chess Ideas Headquarters, Suite 1, Level 1, 83 Glen Eira Road,
Ripponlea, Vic 3185

Invitees:
All Victorian members of the 2010 JETS Squad and all Victorian
applicants for the squad.
Interstate JETS member(s) who are competing in the Victorian Open is/are also
welcome to attend.

Attendees are requested to reserve their place.

Players are requested to bring along their best game from the Victorian Open.