The mistakes are there, waiting to be made.

I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken. 

(Years ago, this used to be a quote on my ICQ profile)

Generally speaking, most "chess is a model of life" metaphors seem far-fetched to me. However, there are some significant similarities between the game and how we handle life problems. One of them is our attitude toward making mistakes. 

On one side of the spectrum, we have people who have trouble admitting mistakes. They don't like reviewing their lost games and instead focus on how badly the opponents played. They always have excuses for themselves: they were unlucky, didn't sleep well, were distracted, didn't take the opponent seriously, and so on. In arguments, they typically go all out on you, trying to win the debate even if somewhere deep inside, they know they are dead wrong. Obviously, such behavior is not particularly beneficial for one's improvement as a player or a person. 

On the other side of the spectrum, we have people who are too obsessed with their mistakes. They can't sleep at night due to suffering psychologically about the things they have done wrong. They have low self-esteem since they neglect their excellent moves and look through the magnifying glass at their blunders. In real-life situations, they are often shy and easily dismayed. Even when they are pretty much sure they are right, they can fall under the influence of others and act according to their will just because they dislike conflicts and have no inner confidence to stand up for their views.

Chess is similar to life in the sense that it requires a balanced, objective approach to addressing your mistakes. Let's review a few tips on how to mitigate your wrongdoings over the chessboard.

First of all, it is important to make sure that it was indeed a mistake. Sometimes you realize it by yourself. In other cases, an unexpected reply from the opponent awakens you and forces you to start frantically looking for an alternative to the line you were intending to play. Even if you have overseen your opponent's idea, which is alarming and a sign of not being in the best shape, your previous move is not necessarily a mistake by itself. 

Secondly, if you are confident that you have made a mistake, remain calm and cold-bloodedly reevaluate the position. Strong players are always looking for a way to justify their previous actions. If the move you have made doesn't make sense to you, try to discover a new plan in which the move actually plays a positive role. This method works especially well if you weren't punished for your misstep, i.e., the opponent hasn't realized it was a mistake. 

This reminds me of the "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade" advice. Don't be too hard on yourself in chess or real life when you make a mistake. You missed the train? Go for a walk and enjoy yourself! Did you get turned down at a job interview? Consider it a sign to start your own business. You fell from your bike and broke your leg? Read the chess books you have been missing out on while you are lying in bed. 

GM Marat Makarov is a well-known chess coach and author. Image courtesy of ChessBase.ru

Thirdly, sometimes the mistake is so serious that you must admit you went wrong, even if it costs you some critical tempi. I recall an amusing situation from a tournament between chess pairs. One of the teams was composed of GM Marat Makarov and his student WFM Ekaterina Pakhomova. The latter decided to win an exchange using her dark-squared bishop on g7. Marat realized that the bishop was untouchable in that position because, in its absence, the king would become too exposed. So, he didn't take the exchange and even returned with the bishop to its original location. I don't remember it for sure, but I think that eventually, Katerina found a way to win that exchange and lose the game. 

Iron-willed champions such as Anatoly Karpov were known for their ability to admit their mistakes no matter how painful they felt. If Anatoly has played the knight from c3 to d5 and feels like it belongs to c3 a move later, he will spend another precious tempo to mitigate his mistake. Carlsen is of the same breed. He makes very few mistakes and keeps his objectivity most of the time, being able to admit that something went wrong and revert it. 

Handling the so-called "inexplicable" blunders is tough, even for the absolute best.

Fourthly, some mistakes are too severe and can't be amended no matter how hard to try. For instance, if you blundered mate in one, or the person whom you loved passed away, there is no going back and fixing what was broken. In such cases, you move on and learn the bitter lesson, trying to become a better version of yourself in the future. 

Summarizing, it is a tricky dilemma when to persist and when to admit one's mistake and return to the status quo. Being able to tell which case is which will be game-breaking for your chess and overall success in life. 

Regardless of whether you are afraid to admit your chess mistakes or not, use the code HALLOWEENWEEK22 to receive an exclusive 30% discount on the Play Magnus Plus Membership. The offer is scary good, so don't miss your chance to learn from the 5-time World Chess Champion!

What do you do when you realize you have made a mistake in chess? 

Do You Have What It Takes To Admit Your Mistakes? 

Many years ago, I read yet another book about Bill Gates. Even though I never had role models, Gates was one of the people to whom smart kids of my generation aspired, similar to the worldwide obsession with self-proclaimed "perfume salesman" Elon Musk these days. Anyway, the book mentioned that in his youth, Gates liked chess but used to play in a somewhat straightforward “attack-attack-attack” manner. Consequently, it was not hard to beat him as long as you knew how to handle the early pressure. I have noticed the same traits in my best friend, a top manager of a large IT company: he is very competitive, quick-minded, and enjoys taking risks and seizing the initiative. Positional play adheres to his nature much less; same goes for boring and unambitious projects in life. Both in chess and in life, he is the "let's get into a fight and see how it goes" type of guy, not a patient grinder. 

In the game against Magnus Carlsen, Bill Gates also failed to switch from offense to defense and was duly punished by the World Champion in just 9 moves.

On the other hand, most of the scientists and lawyers I know tend to have a rather cautious style. They love to take their time, and even casual games with friends can last a few hours for them. Also, they normally prefer sound classical openings and love exploiting weaknesses and accumulating positional advantages. They also don’t mind defending for a while for the sake of outplaying the opponent eventually.

Two chess legends, Vladimir Kramnik and Boris Gelfand. Image: TheHindu.com. 

In the award-winning book “Positional decision making in chess”, Boris Gelfand mentions showing one of his early games to Vladimir Kramnik. They both agreed that even at that time, Boris already had a clear-cut style that reminded the way he plays now. Similarly, when Vladimir showed him a game from his youth, Boris “could also recognize his trademark style in that game”. I was a bit confused by this statement because Kramnik’s style has changed at least two times over his career. Initially, he was an aggressive player who had the guts to challenge Kasparov himself on tactical turf. Then he switched to closed positions and started playing ultra-solidly, which is good for matches. Finally, towards the end of his professional career, he became a gambler, going for complications and trying to squeeze out a win in every position. Nevertheless, it is an interesting observation by Boris. Apparently, Kramnik has evolved a lot as a person over the years, which was reflected in his playing style. 

Another case is the “opposites attract” scenario. Some people seek in chess the experience they lack in normal life. Hence, if their job and life, in general, are rather dull and safe, they might try to compensate for it by playing ferocious chess. Similarly, if there is too much drama and risk around, they might feel like settling for something quiet and peaceful.

Overall, I would say that chess speaks for itself for most of the people I know, revealing their personalities, and the "opposites attract" situation is relatively rare. 

As for me, there is a direct correlation between my lifestyle in general and the way I play chess. My chess buddies used to call me "The Calculator". I have an active style, but at the same cold-blooded and materialistic. It is enough to take a brief glance at my games to realize I am not one of the positional players who enjoy closed positions where they have everything under control and can exploit small weaknesses in the opponent's camp somewhere deep down in the endgame. However, I am also not the kind of you-only-live-once caveman tactical beast who goes for the opponent's king throat in any position, willingly fuelling the attack by sacrificing pieces left and right. In a nutshell, I am the kind of guy who adores sharp play and intends to trick you in some complicated tactical line, win some material, and then proceed to convert it...or maybe not! This is precisely how I act in life: am usually optimistic, energetic, and excited about taking on new challenges, but, at the same time, trying to carefully calculate everything in advance and methodically optimize the process as well as I can. 

Of course, there is a lot of room for research here. How do nationality, age, occupation, education, and other characteristics affect the way we play chess? It is quite nourishing and beneficial for the mind to reflect on your own personality for a while. Why do you think you play this way, not the other?

Regardless of your playing style and personality, the 5-time World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen can teach you a thing or two. Make sure to check out the apps created by a star-studded team of experts led by the champ himself!

Is there a connection between your playing style in chess and your personality?

What Does Your Chess Tell About Your Personality?

As a kid, I was a big fan of watching intellectual games on TV and competing in such contests myself. Jeopardy!, Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, What? Where? When?, The Weakest Link, Brain Ring, and so on. I am less fond of them since nowadays when you can search most things online, storing too many relatively useless facts in your head is probably not the way to go. Ironically, this topic reminds me of a conversation between Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes in Arthur Conan Doyle's "A Study in Scarlet":

"You see," he explained, "I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has difficulty laying his hands upon it. Now the skillful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones."

"But the Solar System!" [Dr. Watson] protested.

"What of the deuce is it to me?" he interrupted impatiently: "you say that we go round the sun. If we went round the moon it would not make a pennyworth of difference to me or to my work."

Nowadays, the argument made by Holmes is more alive than ever.

Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes as portrayed by Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch. Image from Popsugar.co.uk

Anyway, I still enjoy trivia questions that get your brain working instead of merely recalling the information you already know. You know, the challenges for nerds HRs ask potential employees of top IT and consulting companies. 

What if I asked you to estimate the median lifespan of the classical World Chess Champions who have already passed away? How would you approach this task? Ponder this question for a bit and see if you can reach a conclusion. 

I am by no means an expert in the field of longevity, so the musings presented below should not be treated as the "solution". 

Overall, there were only 16 classical World Chess Champions. A quick count reveals that ten of them passed away, while six are still alive. 

At 63, Vasily Smyslov played a Candidates Match against Garry Kasparov. Smyslov holds the longevity record so far when it comes to World Chess Champions - 89 years. Not in Yuri Averbakh's league, but still quite respectable! 

If you continue relying on knowledge, you can come up with a reasonably accurate estimate if you know the biographies of the champions well. I wouldn't remember the exact age at which most of them died, but I can easily come up with assessments such as "should be 80+ for Botvinnik" , "Smyslov had the longest life of them, almost hitting 90", or "Tal didn't reach 60". In a matter of seconds, I would tell you that the answer is probably between 60 and 70 years.

If you don't know the biographies of the players well enough to juggle lifespan numbers, the challenge becomes much more formidable. What factors do you think are relevant here? Once again, probably neither of us is a longevity expert, so we have to invent them on the go. 

Country of origin. If you have ever looked at the list of countries sorted by life expectancy, you will realize that the place of living has a tremendous effect on life expectancy. The numbers in the table range from 84+ in Japan to 53+ in Central African Republic. The World Champions had diverse backgrounds. Half of them were from the USSR, and the rest were mostly from developed countries. Overall, this is a tough factor to assess unless you have expert knowledge, but my guess would be that the country of origin is more of a plus than a minus in their case. +

Date of birth. This is also a huge factor to consider. Most of the late World Chess Champions died in the XXth century. The only exceptions are Vasily Smyslov and Bobby Fischer. Overall, this factor is more of a minus since life expectancy has been known to increase rapidly over the last century. +

Education. Nowadays, to become a professional chess player, you typically have to give up on your university studies or even ditch high school. However, historically it was not the case. At some point, Mikhail Botvinnik passionately argued that a person without a college degree would never become a World Champion! A few World Chess Champions of the past had Ph.D. degrees, and my guess would be that they were more educated than their average contemporaries. And since the level of education has a positive correlation with life expectancy, this should give the number in question a boost. +

Gender. In some countries, the gap is more pronounced than in others. However, throughout most of the world, females tend to outlive males by a few years. Since all the World Chess Champions were men, this factor works against them. -

Income. Before Bobby Fischer, chess players usually had a day job since playing chess was not a lucrative occupation. However, there are all sorts of privileges that come with being a World Champion. In the USSR, for instance, they received extensive support from the government. Therefore, I would claim that, compared to their average contemporaries, World Chess Champions were better off and hence more likely to live longer. +

Occupation. This one is a tough cookie. Chess is an intellectual activity that is supposed to prolong your lifespan. However, this mainly refers to playing chess as a hobby. Pursuing it competitively is a different matter. Boris Spassky once pointed out that playing a WCC match takes three years off your life expectancy. Of course, this was not a serious claim, but it drives the message home. Professional chess players have to deal with extreme stress, jet lag, and a passive lifestyle, not to mention staying late at night since to be fresh for the round that usually starts at 3-4 p.m., one has to wake up late. I am torn on this one and can't announce it to be a definite plus or minus. ?

Family status. All the late World Champions were married. The record-holder in this respect used to be Mikhail Tal, who was quite a ladies' man and ended up being married thrice. This made him untrustworthy in the eyes of the Soviet authorities and played a key role in limiting his trips abroad. Later, Garry Kasparov matched Tal's record, also marrying three times. Since, on average, married men tend to live longer than single, this is a plus. +

Mikhail Tal generally had fragile health. His bohemian lifestyle didn't quite help with longevity. Petrosian and Tal both died at 55. 

Here is the trickiest part. How do we factor in everything we have just assessed? Based on the country of origin and date of birth, I would guess something like 60 years. Considering gender, education, income, family status, and occupation, I would probably throw in another 10 years or so. Hence my bet would be around 70. 

Are you interested in Magnus Carlsen's take on his greatest predecessors? Check out the Magnus Trainer app. Among other lessons, you will find biographical articles about the best chess players of all time, presenting intriguing facts and the masterpieces they have created over the board. 

Now it's time to see how accurate your (and mine!) estimates were. Here are the nitty-gritty statistics:

Wilhelm Steinitz (Prague, May 17, 1836 – August 12, 1900) – 64

Emanuel Lasker (December 24, 1868 – January 11, 1941) – 72

José Raúl Capablanca (19 November 1888 – 8 March 1942) – 53

Alexander Alekhine (October 31, 1892 – March 24, 1946) – 53

Max Euwe (May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) – 80

Mikhail Botvinnik (August 17, 1911 – May 5, 1995) – 83

Vasily Smyslov (24 March 1921 – 27 March 2010) – 89

Mikhail Tal (November 9, 1936 – June 28, 1992) – 55

Tigran Petrosian (June 17, 1929 – August 13, 1984) – 55

Robert James "Bobby" Fischer (March 9, 1943 – January 17, 2008) – 64


Now let's take a look at the numbers: 89, 83, 80, 72, 64, 64, 55, 55, 53, 53.
The median life duration for a World Chess Champion is 64 – the number of chess squares on the board! Coincidence? I don't think so. 

Despite the difference in methodology, approaches #1 and #2 have provided relatively close and reasonably accurate estimates. 

Out of six World Champions who are still alive, two have already passed this threshold. Boris Spassky, the oldest living WC, is 85. Anatoly Karpov is 71. Garry Kasparov is expected to turn 60 next year. Viswanathan Anand, who has just returned to the top-10 in the world, is 52. Vladimir Kramnik, who is competing in the Chess Stars event today, is 47. Magnus Carlsen, playing in the European Chess Club Cup, is 31. 

Let's wish the legendary World Champions to exceed the current median age of 64 by far! Records are meant to be broken. 

If you were asked to guess the average lifespan of a World Chess Champion, what would you say? 

Magnus Carlsen, the highest-rated chess player of all time and five-time World Chess Champion, represents Norway (18 GMs and 2 WGMs).

The number of chess Grandmasters has been steadily growing and now officially sits at 1771. Do you know how many GMs your country has? 

An easy way to find out is to check the FIDE site, using the "Advanced search" option and specifying the country and "Grandmaster" title in the corresponding search tabs. 

Let's check out the top 10 countries sorted by the number of GMs they have*:

1. Russia - 211. Another 22 players currently competing under the "FIDE" flag used to represent Russia until recently. 

2. USA - 105. The USA is the only country in the world apart from Russia to have over 100 GMs, even though most of them seem to be naturalized. 

3. Germany - 96. Chess is extremely popular in Germany, and people pay a lot of attention to titles. 

5. India - 74. India seems to have the fastest rate of acquiring new GMs. They have a chess boom going on for them. 

China gets an honorary mention with 48 GMs. Relatively few Chinese players have the opportunity to freely travel the world and hunt down GM norms, hence the relatively small number of title-holders for the largest nation in the world. 

* Some of the numbers above can be slightly off since FIDE needs some time to remove deceased players and add freshly minted GMs. 

A trivia question that catches most respondents off-guard is, "Which country has the largest number of Grandmasters per capita?". A popular reply is "Russia", but Russia has roughly 1 GM per 690,000 people. In the past, the correct answer used to be Iceland. They have 14 GMs and a relatively small population, which amounts to roughly 1 GM out of 27,000 citizens. As of 2022, the surprise winner is...Monaco with 3 GMs and a rate of roughly 1 GM per 12,800 people. 

Hou Yifan, the second-highest-rated female player of all time and four-time Women's World Chess Champion, represents China (48 GMs and 19 WGMs).

Despite the rating threshold for the WGM (Woman Grandmaster) title being much lower than for GM (2300 vs. 2500), there are currently only 322 WGMs in the world. 

Here are the statistics for the top 10 countries with the highest number of WGMs:

1. Russia - 42. Also, three more ex-Russian players currently represent "FIDE". Despite some recent transfers, Russia comfortably holds the first spot here as well, beating its nearest competitor by more than twofold.

2-3. Ukraine, Germany - 20. Ukraine, the winners of the 2022 Women's Chess Olympiad (in the absence of Russia and China), have a strong showing. Germany is lower-rated on average but also has many strong female players. 

4. China - 19. China is home to many amazing Women's World Chess Champions - Xie Jun, Zhu Chen (currently plays for Qatar), Xu Yuhua, Hou Yifan, Tan Zhongyi, and Ju Wenjun. 

10. Georgia - 10. The Georgian chess federation is proud to have such outstanding champions as Nona Gaprindashvili, Maia Chiburdanidze, and others. 

Hungary, Romania, Czech Republic deserve an honorary mention with 9 WGMs per country. 

Don't miss your chance to learn from Magnus Carlsen while he is still the World Champion!

Which countries do you think have the highest numbers of GMs and WGMs? 

How Many Chess Grandmasters Does Your Country Have? 

Magnus Chess Academy (MCA) is a one-stop chess app created under the guidance of the 5-time World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen. It combines the best features of the Magnus Trainer, Play Magnus, and Tactics Frenzy apps and introduces many exciting new features. 

What Can I Find Inside Magnus Chess Academy?

Like Hogwarts or any other magic academy, we will treat you to the optimal mix of theory and practice. 

In terms of theory, Magnus Chess Academy has four extensive courses featuring over 900 theory lessons overall. The number is growing day by day, so you should never run out of study materials. The lessons are presented in a friendly and accessible way as if Magnus Carlsen was sitting next to you and showing you interesting games and positions. Be prepared for his dry humor jokes and tricky challenges, as Magnus will often stop and ask you to solve a chess puzzle or devise a plan. 

Our games tab should probably get you hyped if you consider coursebooks boring! Chess Sprint, Challenge the World, Ace in the Sleeve, Hall of Fame, Key Move: Mates, Key Move: Motifs, Tactics Frenzy and other games will be waiting for you to show off your chess skills and quick reflexes. Please don't worry if the titles don't ring a bell. We will update you on the rules of each game in an upcoming post.

Is Magnus Chess Academy the Right Fit for Me?

Magnus Chess Academy offers world-class chess training for students of any level of expertise, ranging from novice to Grandmaster. 

There are four comprehensive courses in the Magnus Chess Academy. 

"New to Chess"  is the go-to place for people eager to learn the rules of chess and play their first game. 

"Easy" is tailored for amateurs who mainly play casually and want to impress their friends and relatives. 

"Medium" is the right fit for club players who are serious about chess improvement. 

"Hard" is reserved for dedicated tournament competitors who wish to make the most of their chess potential. 

Regardless of how strong you currently are at chess, Magnus Chess Academy will help you take your game to the next level and have fun along the way.

Our courses have been designed by leading chess & education experts to help you master chess as efficiently as possible. However, if you prefer to explore things independently and don't like being guided, you are free to cherry-pick the lessons and games you enjoy the most. 

Tell Me More About Gamification and the Social Features of Magnus Chess Academy

To make the training process more engaging and competitive, we granted you the option to earn various in-game rewards and achievements by studying lessons and playing the games. The rewards may be used for bragging rights or unlocking new content. 

Also, whereas our previous apps were mainly devised for the single-player experience, Magnus Chess Academy will allow you to challenge other users, showcase your achievements, compete for the top spots on the leaderboards and make new chess friends!  

Anything Special for Me as a User of Magnus Trainer, Play Magnus, and Tactics Frenzy? 

As a relatively small team of developers passionate about spreading their love for chess, we greatly appreciate your support. Should you decide to transition from our current apps to MCA, we will offer you an exclusive discount and help make the transfer as smooth as possible. More information will be available later. 

Sign up now to be the first person to enter Magnus Chess Academy! 

Be the first one to check out the upcoming Play Magnus flagship app! 

Magnus Carlsen has had a remarkably active schedule these days, though not all filled with his usual training regimen and chess tournament play. 

From playing in the World Series of Poker to creating his own Chessable course, and a host of other activities, the soon-to-be former World Champion never ceases to be interesting. 

So what exactly has Magnus been up to lately, now that he’s decided not to defend his World Chess Championship title? Here’s a breakdown of the “Summer of Magnus”:

That’s right, Carlsen went ‘all-in’ for the big one: The World Series of Poker Main Event. And while he’s been showing his poker face in other events around Europe, throwing $10,000 to play in the No Limit Hold’em super tournament in Las Vegas is certainly next level. 

Unfortunately for the aspiring rounder, he didn’t make it very far this time - but according to Magnus himself, he’s satisfied with his performance, making it several rounds into the tournament on the first day. And he even got to play in a high-stakes celebrity cash game while in town. 

Now you can even hear about his interesting trip to Vegas in detail - that’s because he tells the tale on the first episode of his new podcast, The Magnus Effect. Hosted together with his friend Magnus Barstad, the Magnuses recount their adventures (or misadventures?) in Sin City after the WSOP, including run-ins with NBA pros, odd passers-by in the street, and an irritating but humorous experience with hotel staff.

He also goes into some detail about his decision not to defend his World Chess Championship title - in fact, it’s the very episode in which Carlsen announced the momentous decision. 

But as he made clear on the podcast, Carlsen is not quitting chess by any means. In fact, he’s been active in chess on and off the board amidst his busy schedule. 

Spending some time in Barcelona to check out the Candidates Tournament before his trip to Vegas, it’s clear his passion for chess still continues as he strives towards his 2900 rating goal. So close but yet so far - though he’s certainly giving it a go by representing Norway on Board 1 in the 44th FIDE Olympiad in Chennai. And don’t forget online events in his Champions Chess Tour, such as the FTX Crypto Cup. 

If there’s one thing we can say about Carlsen’s chess style, it’s that he’s never afraid to grind out a win in a long, drawish-looking game. In fact, he seems to relish it - look no further to Game 6 of the last World Championship for proof.

Luckily for us fans aspiring to play like the World Champion, we can now learn the secrets of Carlsen's legendary endgame technique in his new Chessable course: Grind Like a Grandmaster. 

Set to officially launch on Monday, August 8, Chessable PRO users can get a free sneak peek into the course with a sample lesson. 

Magnus and his co-author, GM David Howell, go into remarkable detail with annotated games, exercises, and in-depth video walkthroughs of the tactics, strategy, and psychology involved in grinding wins when it looks like nothing can come out of a position. 

Get a free Chessable PRO membership for 30 days and try out the course here. 

Magnus Chess Academy — An Upcoming One-Stop Chess App

Have you ever heard of the Magnus Chess Academy? We thought not.  It will be a brand new app, comprising the best of all the previous Play Magnus apps and offering more exciting features. Sign up to be the first to find out when it will be released! 

Now that the World Champion’s schedule is about to free up much more, what will be next? Hard to say, but if we can say anything, it’s this: he’ll never bore us! 

Climbing towards the 2900 rating, unveiling more stories on his podcast, and continuing to trot the globe...in some ways, it seems like the legend of Magnus Carlsen is just beginning to unfold. 

It’s amazing what you can get done when you don’t have the stress of a World Chess Championship on your mind. 

On International Chess Day, Magnus Carlsen left everyone dumbfounded by announcing that he would not be defending his World Champion title. This historical decision will tremendously impact his life and the chess world in general. Let's breathe out and discuss some possible scenarios that could await us. 

As a chess fan and admirer of Magnus Carlsen's games, this is the scenario I would love to see most. There is a certain chance that getting rid of the burden of having to defend the title will positively affect Carlsen's play. He will no longer have to function in siege mode, preparing for one challenger after another. Then he could qualify for one of the next Candidate events by rating. Get sucked in and, knowing his competitive spirit, aim to win the tournament. Then maybe Carlsen will be willing to fight for the chess crown again, especially if the format changes. This would be a highly unconventional path that should help Carlsen become the GOAT in the eyes of most of his contemporaries. And, more importantly, in his book.  

Please show me the chess GOAT in this picture! 🐐

Talking about the GOAT status, most experts were expecting Magnus to play it safe. He would probably beat Nepo again. Then in a couple of years, maybe defend the title again versus a peer or one of the relatively inexperienced young guns. This would amount to a record seven titles. By that time, he would have been on top of the rankings for like 15 years. Coupled with other spectacular achievements, this should have been more than enough to shush all the critics and catapult Carlsen to the #1 spot on the all-time rankings of chess legends. Well, I guess the pundits were wrong! Magnus has his own ways, and that's one of the qualities that makes him such a dominant champion. 

From what I have noticed, most people tend to underestimate how tough it is to keep winning matches one after another. 

For the sake of simplicity, let's assume that Carlsen has an 80% chance of beating the challenger in a match. That is 4 to 1 odds, which most of us would find insanely good. However, under such circumstances, the probability of winning two matches straight is already 64%. Three matches – 51.2%, which is essentially a coin toss. Four matches – 40.96%. Still not bad, but more likely not to happen than to occur. Five matches – 32.768%, less than one-third. This is where Carlsen is currently at. To break Lasker's record, Carlsen needs seven titles, so let's keep crunching numbers. Six matches – 26.2144%, down to almost one out of four. Seven matches – 20.97152%. As you can see, even if you are a huge favorite in each individual match, the odds keep decreasing rapidly if you have to go through a chain of trials. 

I spend hours playing chess because I find it so much fun. The day it stops being fun is the day I give up.

This option is the evil twin of the scenario described above. Switching to playing chess less professionally could have a negative impact on Carlsen's motivation and focus. Without clear goals in sight, other "distractions" could take over his life – poker, fantasy football, bullet, alcohol, dating – who knows what! Also, part of the reason why most opponents are intimidated by Carlsen is his dominance as a World Champion. Will they give him the same level of respect over the board once he concedes the title?

 Also, there is an inevitable change of guard happening. Carlsen was successful in crushing the older generation (Anand, Kramnik, Topalov, etc.). For them, it was natural that he was the guy to replace them at the top. Now, he was also able to beat into submission his peers and GMs aged 25 or so. Most of them seem to have become complacent and more interested in retaining/securing a top-10 spot or recording a best-selling Chessable course than realistically shooting for the #1 spot. The young guns, however, have a different mindset. It is not even personal. For them, it is just a rule of life that to climb to the top, they will have to overcome everyone already there. And as history tells us, this is what will happen eventually. In other words, they don't have this piety towards Magnus and will probably have even less fear of him once he loses the crown. 

While we are at it, I don't believe that the "go for 2900" goal is effective enough. First of all, it is not process-oriented. Secondly, it seems shallow and lacks a purpose behind it. Whenever chess players bring up rating goals, they usually have something very specific in mind. "I need 2800 to qualify for the Candidates tournament". "I have to become 2750+ to get invitations and make a living as a pro player". "Getting to 2650 should be good enough to represent my country along with my friends". "If I hit 2500, I will become a Grandmaster and will be able to make an efficient transition to coaching and writing books". What will change in the world or in Magnus's life if Carlsen pulls off an inhuman feat of chess strength and reaches 2900? We will probably see some articles in mainstream media. I will check out his PM bio section and change 2882 to 2900. And that's about it. 2900 is just a random number! 

Anyway, I fully understand that Carlsen has won pretty much everything there is to win in chess, apart from the Chess Olympiad gold and the World Cup. Hence, it is painstakingly difficult for him to come up with new competitive goals for himself. 

There were some speculations that Magnus would try to postpone his decision and wait until the FIDE elections in August were over. If the Baryshpolets/Nielsen ticket wins, Carlsen should be able to tweak the World Chess Championship format whatever way he likes. 

However, it looks as if Carlsen has made up his mind and is unlikely to reconsider his decision in the nearest future, regardless of who becomes the next FIDE President. Also, there are a few other "ifs" in this narrative, which makes the outcome rather unlikely.

Let's combine this scenario with the one where Magnus reconsiders his decision due to financial concerns. For people who don't care too much about the game itself, it is inconceivable how Carlsen could let go of a more or less "guaranteed" paycheck of another €1.2 mln or so. Well, first of all, WCC matches require a few months of preparation and a large team. If you factor in the expenses, you may as well be left with peanuts. Secondly, if you are someone who doesn't care too much about money and you have reached financial independence, you would probably not do something you don't enjoy just because it allows you to deposit some more cash into your bank account. You have no actual use for that money anyway!

It's nice to be financially secure. Apart from that, I don't really care too much about money. 

Generals are always prepared to fight the last war. It is tempting to think by analogy, recalling the period when Garry Kasparov was no longer the official FIDE World Champion, yet most people perceived him as the best player in the world. 

Compared to Garry Kasparov in 1993, Magnus Carlsen has arguably more resources for an efficient split from FIDE. There are plenty of voices out there chanting that FIDE needs Carlsen more than he needs FIDE. Suppose the general public keeps seeing Magnus as the clear #1 in the world. In that case, there is a possibility that Magnus will, officially or unofficially, compete against other challengers, putting his reputation on the line. 

I find this scenario rather unlikely because smart people tend to learn from the mistakes of others. Carlsen's former mentor, Garry Kasparov, was rather vocal in criticizing himself for the decision to split from FIDE, which resulted in a period of mayhem. Even nowadays, some people still ask whether there are different federations in chess, similar to boxing, and which title exactly Magnus owns. 

Summarizing, I believe there is a chance that Magnus will play some unofficial commercial matches against the players he finds worthy challengers. Still, I doubt that he will go as far as Fischer in 1992 and try to portray those as World Championship matches. 

What if the aliens that reportedly abducted former FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov challenge the Earth to a chess game, Mortal Kombat-style? Magnus Carlsen will probably lead the team of our realm's champions, and we will have to keep our fingers crossed that this will be enough for our planet to win the contest! 

Under such circumstances, people will stop caring about the puny title of the World Champion. Instead, Carlsen could potentially become the best chess player in the Galaxy! 

How will Magnus Carlsen's decision to concede the World Chess Champion title affect his life and our world in general? 

What Does the Future Hold for Magnus Carlsen?

You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

Fear is the greatest obstacle for most of us on our way to happiness. 

The statement is especially true for people who grew up in an environment where "making mistakes" and "failing" were unacceptable things worthy of reproach or even punishment. 

People who lack self-confidence are typically afraid that their behavior will be made fun of by their friends or relatives. 

Perfectionists are even harder on themselves. They have inner censors that prevent them from trying to do something in case there is a possibility of not meeting the surreal self-imposed expectations. This results in anxiety, procrastination, and, eventually, frustration. 

Have you ever caught yourself red-handed doing something of the following?

·       Skipping a tournament that you were planning to compete in due to feeling like you were not prepared well enough, even though your preparation was reasonably OK. 

·       Refusing to play someone rated above yourself because of fear of getting humiliated. 

·       Playing against the computer all the time since losing to a machine doesn't hurt your ego as much as getting defeated by other humans. 

·       Not registering at an online play zone and blitzing there casually without getting a rating or spamming unrated games to avoid potential rating losses. 

·       Happily beating a weaker opponent repeatedly to feel good about yourself. 

In fact, most people are too obsessed with themselves and concerned about what others might think. In reality, when it comes to chess, hardly anyone cares how we perform. All the "crime and punishment" stories exist purely in our heads. Even when top GMs have a terrible tournament, most fans forget about it in a few days. If we consider an average chess player, there are maybe only some family members and a few friends who are concerned…if at all. If one of them breaks a nail, they will probably be more pissed than if you lose 30 rating points in a single event! 

Anxiety and fear overcome not only ordinary people but even legendary champions. We can't get a peek inside the mind of Bobby Fischer and don't know for sure why he chose not to defend his title. A popular simplistic assumption is that he was afraid of the rising star Anatoly Karpov. Another theory I find more convincing is that he put too much pressure on himself and was worried about not playing chess as perfectly as a World Champion should. What we know for sure, however, is that the chess world had suffered a terrible blow when the Fischer vs. Karpov match in 1975 never materialized. 

Overcoming fear is a complicated, multi-faceted subject that can't be addressed in a single column. There are all sorts of techniques that help let go of your fears. For instance, recently, I have read and rated 8/10 a book by Jim Lawless titled "Taming Tigers: Do Things You Never Thought You Could". One of its key messages is simple yet efficient: you become stronger when you embrace your fear and do something that scares you every day. This process feels rewarding and boosts your self-esteem. 

On top of that general advice, let me suggest one of the tips that I find quite useful when dealing with chess fear. In case you don't have a personal Wikipedia page yet, think what you would like to read there. Even better, write a draft without submitting it (you are not supposed to write about yourself on Wiki!). This exercise helps you sort out your long-term goals and understand what is truly important for you in terms of achievements. After you have completed the challenge, go for it and make your dreams come true step by step! 

More specifically, when it comes to chess, decide what your title is going to be. Do you want to become a master? Or even Grandmaster? Dream big and back it up with adequate efforts! Everything in life has a price that you should be prepared to pay. 

Which peak rating are you aiming to achieve? Magnus Carlsen has stated recently that his next target is going to be 2900+ Elo in classical chess, which is an unprecedented height. 

What are going to be your most important tournament victories? For some people, it's essential to have a clear-cut goal in front of themselves. For instance, GM Davorin Kuljasevic mentioned on several occasions that his primary motivation as a kid was to win the junior World Chess Championship. Even though he couldn't accomplish his goal due to immense competition, he became a strong GM as a result of working hard to fulfill his dream. 

One of the benefits of choosing the Wiki page route is that such encyclopedias typically focus only on your major achievements. Unless it is some record, which is remarkable by itself, you are not likely to see there your worst defeats or last-place finishes in tournaments. Therefore, you have nothing to lose by striving to make that profile reality but a lot to gain. Doing something and not succeeding at once is no longer a problem. 

The only way to avoid mistakes is to do nothing, but this is a mistake by itself!

Do you have any chess fears? Let's talk about an efficient way of overcoming them. 

Chess fans all over the world are closely following the Candidates Tournament that is currently underway in Madrid, Spain. Apart from who is going to emerge the winner, the main plot is whether Magnus Carlsen will be defending his chess crown or not. 

That being said, former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik, who commentates on the event on the Levitov Chess channel on YouTube, was skeptical of the players’ chances in a WCC match against Magnus. He was shocked by the candidates’ endgame technique, rating it from “average” to “poor”, whereas Carlsen’s skills in that area he regards to be “fantastic”.  

By occasionally keeping an eye on the broadcast, I realized there is nothing new under the sun regarding the kibitzers’ reactions. Many of them tend to overdramatize the outcome of a single game or even its course. For instance, when Fabi and Nepo won in the first round, it produced plenty of speculations about a Carlsen vs. Caruana or a Carlsen vs. Nepomniachtchi rematch, as if that single game was a good predictor of the outcome of the whole tournament. 

Despite having a much longer history, the Candidate tournaments have been played out under the current “double round-robin, 8 players” since 2013. Let’s look at this issue from a historical perspective and see whether the results of the first round robin offer a good chance of predicting who the winner will be in the end. 

Magnus Carlsen and Vladimir Kramnik drew both of their games at the Candidates in 2013.

What are the most notable takeaways from the table?

·        In all five events, the eventual winner was at least co-leading the tournament after the first half. 

·        There was only one tie for first. In 2013, between two chess titans ­− Magnus Carlsen and Vladimir Kramnik. 

·        Former world #2 Levon Aronian has a remarkable record of sharing the lead thrice (!) after the first half of the Candidates and not getting a single shot at the ultimate chess title. 

·        To win the Candidates, one is typically expected to score 4.5-5 points in the first seven games. 

·        In four tournaments out of five, the winner scored 8.5/14. Fabiano Caruana is the only exception, earning a remarkable 9 points in 2018. 

Of course, it’s too early to make calls at this stage, but so far, Ian Nepomniachtchi (3.5 points out of 5) and Fabiano Caruana (3 points) have a fair chance to score 4.5-5 points out of seven. Also, there is a slim possibility that someone from the large pack of players at the 50% mark (Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Richard Rapport, Hikaru Nakamura) might pull off an impressive streak of wins and achieve the coveted result. 

Who do you think is the favorite to win the whole thing? And who are you rooting for? 

Whether you are aspiring to become a candidate master or a World Championship candidate, Magnus Trainer is the right fit for you. Brought to you by the World Champion Magnus Carlsen, it is a one-stop solution for anyone who loves chess and wants to become better at it. Use the code “CHESSDADS” for a limited-time Father’s Day special discount, 40% off the regular price! 

Let’s recap the previous Candidates tournaments and see if leading the event after the first half is a solid predictor of overall success!

Who Do You Think Will Win the Candidates Tournament?

There is no such thing as chess talent. Some people just have f…ed up brains, and this is it!

International Master Vyacheslav Osnos, the coach of Grandmaster Viktor Korchnoi

This column was inspired by my recent conversation with a mother of a 11-year old girl who is into chess and studies it with a personal coach. Just like many other parents out there, the lady wanted to know whether her daughter has enough talent for chess to keep going. Her question was simple as pie: “How do I know if she is gifted chesswise or not?”

You may be wondering the same about your kids or even yourself. Indeed, how can you tell that you or your children have what it takes to become strong chess players?

You improve in chess faster than people around you. Having a natural talent in a certain field essentially means that you grasp things easier there than most people. It is similar to studying in school or at university. Some of us have to read the same page a few times to understand what it is all about, while others take a glance and can work out the details themselves. In any chess club where kids train in a group, there will be students who make impressive progress and those who lag far behind.

There are a couple of crucial disclaimers that I should make here. First of all, a lot depends on the environment. One thing is to be able to outshine the kids in your typical suburban chess club, where most of your competitors won’t progress beyond 1600 FIDE before quitting. However, if you were to enroll in the Kasparov-Botvinnik chess school and be pitted against the likes of Vladimir Kramnik or Alexei Shirov, you may easily become demotivated and decide that your chess talent is so-so. Everything is relative. 

Can you imagine what it feels like to be coached by Garry Kasparov and Mikhail Botvinnik in a class featuring Vladimir Kramnik, Alexei Shirov, Vladimir Akopian, Sergei Tiviakov, Konstantin Sakaev, Konstantin Landa, and other top players?

Secondly, especially for kids, experience plays a critical role. Some parents become discouraged if they see that some other kids are ahead of their children. However, you must consider how long and under what circumstances the people have been training. For instance, your 7-year-old children may be making their first steps in chess, and the kid you are comparing them against may have been training with a couple of coaches and playing competitively since he was four. Now, regardless of how talented the kids are, the early bird may be currently miles ahead of your kids. However, it doesn’t mean that they can’t surpass him in the future. Of course, he has a better start, but nothing is assured. Quite a few prodigies reach their ceiling and get burned out at an early age, especially if their chess studies are mainly imposed by parents. This smoothly brings us to the second item, which is of utmost importance.

You genuinely love playing chess and studying the game. There are some kids who have an immense natural talent for chess, yet they are not interested in developing it. Basically, they do only the exercises the teacher gives them. Their scores might be close to perfect, but they are unwilling to take that extra step into the unknown. Of course, it is also essential to find the right approach to studying chess that fits you best. Some kids become demotivated to study chess just because they don’t like the coach, the format, or other class members. 

Do You Have What It Takes To Admit Your Mistakes?

What Does Your Chess Tell About Your Personality?

How Long Do World Chess Champions Live?

How Many Chess Grandmasters Does Your Country Have?

What is Magnus Chess Academy?

The Summer of Magnus

What Does the Future Hold for Magnus Carlsen?

The Fear of Failure and Your Wiki Page

Who Do You Think Will Win the Candidates Tournament?

How Big is Your Chess Talent?