Coach Fabian Is In The Chess Olympics
Plus, more chess news and opening sources.
Issue 10 | MM Chess | September 2021
Welcome back to the 10th issue of the Mindful Masters Newsletter, the best (and only?) monthly chess newsletter you receive. I cover chess culture and relevant wisdom I've collected along the way.
In August we welcomed the newest MMChess.org students: German, Dafna, Stefan, Adam, Kaylee, and two Peoria Chinese School beginner groups!
Reviews help MM grow. Please review the coaches on Google and you’ll receive $10 off next month’s chess lessons.
My story
More than being a good player, I‘ve always felt proud about building strong student-teacher relationships: I’ve taught 7 state champions. When the pandemic began, I was faced with more students than I could handle while working a full time job. I forward on students that I couldn’t accept, but after speaking with their parents, I was told their children were either “bored with their coaches” or the classes “were too expensive.” After interviewing more than 25 teachers around the world, I found relatable teachers that were qualified, affordable, and with high emotional intelligence. Thus, mmchess.org was born.
Chess News This Month 😄
🏆 Coach Fabian Vivas wins again. MM Coach Fabian, who lives in Peru, is a Venezuelan citizen and is playing the Olympiad (“Chess Olympics”). Earlier this month, he qualified for the Venezuelan Olympiad team, and Venezuela won their section. Onto the next one!
🚸 10-year-old Tani just keeps winning. The formerly homeless chess master, who just began playing 2 years ago, just won the Under-12 North American Youth.
🇫🇷 French Super-Grandmaster MVL (Maxim Vachier-Lagrave) won the Sinquefield Cup. Every year, billionaire Rex Sinquefield, a major chess donor, sponsors the strongest tournament in the USA, bringing together many of the world’s top 100 players.
🥊 Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao plays chess after losing his boxing match. I guess if you can’t move with your hands, move with your brain?
Chess Ideas 💡
🌎 In 1985, the Soviet player Garry Kasparov became the youngest World Chess Champion ever. He was 22 years and 210 days.
👑 The Kings Gambit (1. e4 e5 2. f4?!) sucks. As a master, I still have problems against the Kings Gambit. I found this video very informative.
♚What happens when black plays well against the Fried Liver Attack? Many of us have heard of the opening, but few know what to do. Check out this sweet attack.
🇦🇲 Armenia mandates that chess is taught in all public schools. Chess is so popular in the country; they even put a world champion on their currency.
🇦🇹 Learn The Vienna Game (1. e4 e5 2. Nc3): Warning: advanced opening. Once in a while, I come across a great Lichess Study that outlines a whole opening, from start to finish. I recommend opening this on your PC, not your phone.