Perpetual Chess is back with a banger of a double episode. First up is chess superstar, GM Levon Aronian! Levon joined me from Spain after returning from the first season of the Global Chess League in Dubai. Levon reflected on the success of his championship-winning team, and we discussed why he thinks initiatives like this league are vital to the future health of chess. We then broadened the scope of our conversation, and Levon shared memorable stories about his humble beginnings and Armenia, and the lessons he had to learn when he shot to chess stardom in the mid 2000s. Lastly, Levon discusses his move to the U.S., his 2023 plans, and why he is not playing in the ongoing FIDE World Cup.
Following Lev, we are joined by Jagdish Mitra. Jagdish is Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Growth at Tech Mahindra, and served as Chairman of the first season of The Global Chess League. Jagdish looked back on a successful first season, and discussed the ambitious plans and long term vision that the league has for upcoming years. Both interviews left me excited about the future of chess! You can find timestamps for all of the topics discussed below.
Thanks to our presenting chess education sponsors, Chessable. Here are some courses to check out:
Techniques of Positional Play with GM Peter Heine Nielsen
Lifetime Repertoires: Gawain Jones 1.e4 e5
100 Repertoires: Alekhine Defense by CM Vjekoslav Nemec
You can check out some of my recommended courses here: https://go.chessable.com/perpetual-chess-podcast/
4:00- GM Levon Aronian joins me from a park in Spain! How was Levon added as a last-second replacement to the Global Chess League? What sort of things does he usually negotiate before signing a contract to participate in an event?
Mentioned: Chess.com’s Dog-Themed Bots including Levon’s Famous Dog, Ponchik
10:00- What was it like to be in Dubai for the Global Chess League?
15:30- How can new players be incorporated into future Global Chess Leagues?
17:30- What steps are necessary to continue to grow chess and attract corporate sponsors?
Mentioned: Indian Express article by Amit Kamath
25:00- Levon’s scouting reports on Hikaru and Gukesh
26:30- Which young star is most likely to emerge as a world champion?
30:00- What was it like to play games for money to support his family as a kid?
36:00- Levon tells an amazing story of how Boris Gelfand taught him to treat chess professionally.
40:00- Why does Levon think chess has become increasingly professionalized?
41:30- Is Chess960 the solution to the over-abundance of opening theory?
Mentioned: GM Vladimir Kramnik, GM Boris Gelfand, GM Jan Timman
49:00- Is it true that Levon traveled in the cargo department of a plane to get to tournaments?
Mentioned: Sean Williams’ 2017 New Yorker feature on Levon Aronian, GM Melik Khachiyan
55:30- Patreon mailbag question: “What obstacles did Lev encounter in moving to the US?”
1:03:00- Will Levon write a book some day?
Mentioned: GM Surya Ganguly’s “In Conversation with GM Levon Aronian”
1:08:30- What is Levon’s study routine?
1:09:00- Thanks to Levon for joining me!
1:11:00- Jagdish Mitra, the Chairman of the Global Chess League joins the podcast! We begin by discussing the origins of the Global Chess League.
1:25:00- How did they decide on the unique format?
1:30:00- How will they acquire new players? How can teams foster allegiance with chess fans?
1:41:00- Thanks so much to Jagdish for sharing the vision behind the Global Chess League. Here is how you can keep up with it:
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/GCLlive?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
EP 321- GM Cristian Chirila on Past and Upcoming World Championship Matches, his OTB game, and the Growth of the C Squared Podcast
EP 320- Adult Improver Ben Hunt of “Chess Boot Camp" YouTube Channel on going from 0-1500, “The Goldfish Method” and Transitioning to OTB Chess
EP 319- Dr. Howard Burton- An Award Winning Documentary Filmmaker and Author on the Growth Opportunity for Chess, the Genius of Morphy, Fixing FIDE, and Whether Chess Skills Transfer to Other Domains
EP 318 - Trainer and Chessable Author IM Yaacov Norowitz on How he Became a Blitz Specialist, His Early Encounters with Hikaru and Gothamchess & His Unique Approach to Chess Learning
Book Recap #31- San Luis 2005- Dr. Christopher Chabris on a A Tournament Book featuring Sparkling Games and Annotations, A Mini Cheating Scandal, at a Crossroad Moment in World Championship Chess Hist
EP 317- GM Jorden van Foreest- The Dutch Chess Champ on Working with Magnus and Anish, How he Became Known as a “Creative Player” and What he is Doing to Work on His Own Game
EP 316- GM Mihail Marin: The Renowned Author and Trainer on Learning from Larsen, Tal, Polgar and other Legends
EP 315- Dr. Jon Edwards- The Correspondence Chess World Champion on what Top Engines think of Different Openings and his Road to the World Title
Bonus pod- Tata Steel in the Home Stretch- FM Michiel Abeln assesses the Tournament so Far
EP 314- Adult Improver Kamryn Hellman on How Discovering Chess via Queen's Gambit turned her into a Fast Improving Chess Obsessive
Bonus pod- Dispatch from the Tata Steel Chess tournament with Renowned Author, FM Michiel Abeln
EP 313- FM James Canty on Staying Motivated and His Grind Toward the IM Title and Beyond.
EP 312- GM Noel Studer- The Swiss National Champ Turned Trainer Shares Advice on Overcoming Plateaus, Calculating, Analyzing Games & More
EP 311- GM Jonathan Speelman- A British Chess Legend on His Time as a Top 10 Player and His Encounters with Anand, Korchnoi, Tal and many more!
EP 310- John Hartmann joins to Review the Year in Chess: A Carlsen/Niemann Update, A New Cheating Scandal, The Chess.Com/PM Merger, & lots more
EP 309- Dr. Joel Sneed- An Author and Psychology Professor on How to Regain One's Chess Motivation, Curbing "Blitz Tilt" and How he Made Unusual Rating Gains as an Adult
Book Recap #30- 10 Underrated Chess Books for Different Ratings Levels, with FM Carsten Hansen
EP 308- GM Srinath Narayanan- Lessons Learned from Training Some of the Chess World's Brightest Young Talents
EP 307- IM Dean Ippolito- A Longtime Trainer, Author and Champion Competitor on the Adjustments one Should Make for the Modern Tournament Landscape
EP 306- Adult Improver Vishnu Warrier. Can a 31 year old USCF 2100 become a GM? Vishnu wants to find out!
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
That Don‘t Sound Right
Adeptus Ridiculous
Gun Talk
Toy Geeks!
Good Job, Brain!