EP.196 - GM Jan Timman from Perpetual Chess Podcast

Perpetual Chess Podcast

Ben Johnson

Episodes

EP.196 - GM Jan Timman

1 hour 16 minutes Posted Oct 6, 2020 at 11:00 am.

We begin by discussing GM Timman’s latest great book, Timman’s Triumphs. Why does he think that, under today’s circumstances,he would not become a chess professional as an up-and-coming player?

After reviewing his games with today’s state of the art engines, how did the quality of play in GM Timman’s games hold up?

GM Timman tells a story of travelling to a tournament in Stockholm when young, and staying at a hotel where he couldn’t afford lodging unless he won prize money. How did it turn out?

GM Timman answers the first of many questions from the Patreon mailbag relating to his dynamic play as Black. Does GM Timman agree with IM Mark Dvoretsky that this style may have cost him some points?

What was GM Timman’s approach to preparing for games?

Bobby Fischer was a chess hero of GM Timman. What was it like to meet and spend time with him?

-GM Timman tells another great story from Timman’s Titans, of discovering, as he shopped at a second hand shop in Lisbon, a chess set that once belonged to World Champion Alexander Alekhine.

Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Whether you are interested in openings, endgames, or chess history, Chessable has plenty of books and courses to help you learn and retain the information you learn using its MoveTrainer technology.

GM Timman answers a listener question comparing the feeling of playing Kasparov over the board to that of playing GM Anatoly Karpov.

GM Timman discusses his relationship with GM Viktor Korchnoi and offers his theory of how Korchnoi stayed so strong into his golden years.

What has changed in Jan’s chess game over the years?

We discuss modern chess a bit. Who is Jan’s favorite player? What does he think about the soon to be resumed 2020 FIDE Candidates tournament?

Jan answers another question from the Patreon mailbag relating to a memorable result in the Immopar rapid tournament in 1991.

What are Jan’s most pleasant and most memorable chess memories?

What was it like to be a celebrity in his native Netherlands in the 1990’s? Why does GM Timman think Magnus Carlsen prefers to defend his World Championship title outside of Norway?

How does GM Timman spend his chess-focused time these days? What are his interests outside of chess?

What are GM Timman’s favorite cities and tournament venues that he has attended?

What was it like to spend time with legendary World Champion GM Mikhail Tal? If he were to be stranded on a desert island with one GM, who would it be?

GM Timman answers another listener question: Does he think that much of his success in chess can be attributed to the creative environment that surrounded him in the Netherlands?

How much is Jan keeping up with chess literature? What are his favorite chess books?

GM Jan Timman answers one last Patreon mailbag question: How does GM Timman keep his motivation and focus to play lower rated players in club games?

Thanks so much to GM Timman for joining the show! His books are widely available including from New in Chess, as well as Forward Chess.

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Show notes

This week on Perpetual Chess, it's a privilege to be joined by a chess legend. GM Jan Timman! GM Timman is the 9 time champion of the Netherlands and spent decades as one of the top players in the world. He has had numerous tournament triumphs, and played GM Anatoly Karpov for the FIDE World Championship in 1993. For all of his striking chess successes, GM Timman may be equally skilled as a writer. He is a founding editor of New in Chess Magazine, and penned the outstanding and award-winning book, Timman’s Titans, among many other works. In 2020, GM Timman has released another great book, Timman’s Triumphs: My 100 Best Games. GM Timman has a treasure trove of amazing chess stories, and we are lucky that he touched on many of them in this interview. A few of the topics discussed include: what modern chess engines taught him about his classic games, what it was like to drink with Mikhail Tal, and go to a disco with Bobby Fischer, and what his most cherished and painful memories are from a lifetime’s worth of chess battles. GM Timman is someone I have always hoped to interview, so it was an honor and pleasure to hear his stories and reflections. Please read on for more details, timestamps and relevant hyperlinks.

Mentioned: GM Ljubomir Ljubojevic, Chessbase, NICBase, Fritz, GM Garry Kasparov, GM Erwin L’Ami

GM Wolfgang Uhlmann, GM Judit Polgar

Mentioned: Rilton Cup, IM Hans Bohm

Mentioned: GM Max Euwe, GM Hein Donner

Timman-Ribli 1978, GM Bobby Fischer, GM Judit Polgar

Mentioned: Bessel Kok

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

Yasser Chessable interview here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoXeFM3tmZ8

Biel 2001, GM Alexander Grischuk, GM Peter Svidler, GM Lajos Portisch, GM Ljubomir Ljubojevic

Mentioned: The Ragozin Defense

GM Ding Liren, GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Fabiano Caruana, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, GM Ian Nepomniatchi, German Bundesliga

Timman-Karpov 1991, Immopar 1991

Mentioned: GM Arthur Yusopov

Mentioned: Dirk Jan Ten Geuzendam of New in Chess Magazine, Former FIDE President Florencio Campomanes, GM Nigel Short, GM Boris Spassky, GM Bobby Fischer

Mentioned: New in Chess Magazine, Luis Borges, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

Mentioned: Paris, London, Madrid, Prague, Reykjavik Open

Mentioned: Boris Spassky, Bobby Fischer

Mentioned: De Kring, Hein Donner, GM Evgenii Sosonko

Mentioned: My 60 Memorable Games, Paul Keres: The Road to the Top, Rapport-Sprenger 2020

Mentioned: GM Max Euwe

https://www.newinchess.com/en_US/catalogsearch/result/index/q/Jan%20Timman/?authors=66

https://forwardchess.com/product/timman's-triumphs:-my100-best-games?sscid=91k3_fazxa

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