Issue 19 | MM Chess
Welcome back. It’s the 19th 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 June, we welcome the newest MMChess.org students: Tripti, Robert, Ella, Tingting, Anna, Edward, Artem, Eric, Bill, Melody, Vidhu, Roby, Clare, Oliver, Noah, Vincent, Elias, Adrian, Raxann, Pax, Josef, and Ian, Anish, Vihan, Amberly, Katti, and Aarjay!
My story 🖼️
I have an announcement: I’m leaving my job to invest fully in MM Chess! There’s so much more to do, from refining the existing curriculum to working with the coaches on communication to expanding our offerings and doing more with the community, from group lessons to tournaments, to everything in between. I’m excited about what’s ahead.
Chess Tournament♟️
📅 Save The Date: Monday, July 21 at 8pm EST (7pm CST, 6pm MT, 5pm PST). We’re skipping June, but then we’re back to our monthly tournaments. This month, congrats to Faaiz (1st Place), Shmuel (2nd), and Tadhg (3rd)!
Chess News This Month 📰
♝ 16-year-old Pragg defeated world chess champion Magnus AGAIN. You know what they say: “Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action.” For the 2nd time in just 3 months, the young grandmaster took down the world champion.
⚔️GM Ding Liren (World #2 from China) defeated Magnus, too. He defeated Pragg in the playoffs for $25,000.
🥇Magnus loses his top place in blitz (quick chess) on chess.com. And Hikaru, chess’ top streamer on Twitch, takes his place. I swear this isn’t a bash-Magnus newsletter!
💪 England children sweep gold medals and world titles in Rhodes. A talented group of kids captured seven golds, one silver, and six bronzes in the Euro Schools, World Rapid, and World Blitz youth championships. Must be something in the water…
Fun Facts💡
🧌The game from Beauty and the Beast (1991) is pretty unrealistic. Can you tell me all things Gaston and his opponent played wrong?
🏆 The position in Jurassic Park 1 (1990), though, is a pretty complicated position. Pretty cool detail for the 90s!
✨Remembering Machgielis “Max” Euwe on his 121st birth anniversary. A teacher and a professed chess amateur, he did the unthinkable when he became world champion in 1935, defeating reining champion Alexander Alekhine.
🧠17-Year-Old Earns Master Title After Four Brain Surgeries. National Master Griffin McConnell earned the national master title on March 19, 2022, at the age of 17, after undergoing four brain surgeries!