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Special Final Four Interview

The golden coaches of the Knight Raiders about the Final Four success
Susan Polgar and Paul Truong in a large interview
Chessdom.com

The Knight Riders were successful at this year's Final Four. The team led by Susan Polgar and Paul Truong managed to win a title in what can be viewed as the Final Four with largest mass media coverage.

After the success, coaches Polgar and Truong gave an extensive interview to Dr. Hal Karlsson, Associate Professor of GeoSciences at Texas Tech University.

Dr. Hal Karlsson: Susan and Paul, first of all, congratulations! This Final Four victory is simply fantastic and quite unexpected. How did it happen?

Susan Polgar: Thank you. I think the team did great, and even though we were the lowest seed, as a team, we believed that we could win. I also think we were more unified and working together more as a team than our competitors. I’m very proud of our guys that they gave their all.

Paul Truong: It is a good feeling for the entire team because they’ve worked very, very hard to be able to accomplish this. As Susan said, they gave it their all and they deserve it.

SP: They were also fearless. They were not intimidated facing much stronger opponents, even ones they had bad records against in the past. In the first round, Grandmaster Timur Gareev of UTB, the highest rated player in Texas, offered our top board, Grandmaster Anatoly Bykhovsky, a draw in a very complicated position. Bykhovsky just lost to Gareev in an earlier encounter in Berkeley. Even with that in mind, Bykhovksy refused the draw offer against a much higher rated opponent and went all out for the win.

In the critical final round, a similar thing happened. Grandmaster Leonid Kritz of the defending champion UMBC, the highest rated player of the entire Final Four, offered our team captain Grandmaster Davorin Kuljasevic a draw with the white pieces. In the same matchup last year's Final Four, Kuljasevic lost to Kritz. Just as Bykhovsky, Kuljasevic refused the draw offer and went all out for the win. Both of them succeeded and they gave our team two vital points toward the national title. As their coach, I could not be more proud of this.

HK: Clearly all the teams must prepared very hard for the Final Four given what was at stake here. But what accounted for Texas Tech's success. What was the secret?

PT: I believe the secret is quite easy. We simply worked harder. We not only studied the games of our opponents just as everyone else, but we also study our opponents' demeanor, body language, movement, facial expression, pattern of thinking and decision making, etc. We dissected every inch of every possible aspect of the game. We put countless hours into the preparation. Even after our players were asleep, Susan spent hours double checking all the analysis to make sure there was no error. We were lucky to even get a few hours of sleep.

It does not mean that we will succeed every time. It just means that we will put our team in the best possible position to win. We had a similar approach when Susan and I ran the 2004 U.S. Women's Olympiad program which brought home the first four ever Chess Olympiad medals (2 gold and 2 silver) for the United States. If you want to win, you have to be willing to work harder than everyone else. No one will just hand the title to you. If you want it, you have to get it.

Another thing we did different than other teams is our approach before the start of the Final Four. The team arrived in Washington, D.C. very late Thursday night. We had Friday free until about 6 p.m. Other teams stayed in the hotel to do some last minute preparation. Being a world class competitor herself, Susan realized that the players were under tremendous pressure. So she decided to give them two choices:

1. To stay in the hotel like other teams to cramp in last minute preparation. 2. Go for a tour in Washington, D.C. to relax, stay fresh, and build further team chemistry.

The players voted to go to D.C. So we spent the day on the famous Double Decker bus tour to visit the White House, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, the Capitol Building, and other landmarks. The players had plenty of good times and good laughs. It worked out great. But if it did not work as planned, I am sure others would be quick to criticize her decision. But as a coach, you need to make tough decisions.

HK: That is impressive. But Susan also accomplished something else in this Final Four.

PT: Yes. Last year, Susan became the first female head coach to take a men’s division I team to the Final Four. This year, she is the first female to take a men's division I team all the way. You cannot even imagine, let’s say, a female coaching a men’s basketball team or men’s football team to the national title, but in chess, she showed that it can happen.

And the success was not only in division I. In just in the past two years, the Knight Raiders also won the national division II, III, and IV titles, in additional to many other individual honors. This is simply another gender barrier that she was able to break. What is even more amazing is this is only our second year competing in division I.

UTD and UMBC have been ruling the collegiate chess world for the past decade. For us to catch up with them on this level, this fast, was pretty amazing. I am sure the competition will be a lot tougher next year as all the schools will try to improve their rosters.

Susan now has done it all. She won Olympiad gold, five of them. She won the Women's World Championship Triple-Crown (Rapid, Blitz, and Classical). Her students have won National Scholastic Championships and now Collegiate Championships. But don't worry, she'll find more barriers to break, I am sure.

HK: Was there any particular player who stood out for Texas Tech in this Final Four?

SP: No. It was total team work. They fought hard as a unit and a different player came through for us in each round. It was Bykhovsky in the first round, Sipos in the second, Kuljasevic in the final round. Diamant was solid all the way through. And Aleskerov, as a reserve player, was the biggest cheerleader for his teammates the whole time. Just like the famous song by Sister Sledge, "We Are Family", the Texas Tech Knight Raider family.

HK: I saw the Final Four chess boards the Knight Raiders were holding up. Those look unique. Did you make those and how can one get one of them?

SP: Those are very special Final Four commemorative boards. They are not for sale. Only twenty of them were done and they were made by our friends at GLOSgames.com. This is an American company out of Kansas City, Missouri. They have done a lot of good things to promote chess and bring kids into the game. When I told them about Final Four, they immediately designed and produced these twenty special boards to give out to each of the four teams and the sponsor, Booz Allen Hamilton. They also sponsored other scholastic events of mine in the past. It is a good company and good people and I am proud that they support chess and the Knight Raiders. You cannot buy these boards but you can design your own chess board with them or use one of their over 110,000 designs.

HK: That is pretty neat. So what is the next step? A long celebration or vacation? I understand the team is going to Vegas (not Disney World like football players). What was that all about?

SP: There is no time to rest. Winning it is hard. But defending it is even harder. We already started to prepare for next year with recruiting. We have a tradition of excellence at Texas Tech and we hope to win many more championship titles.

We are lucky to have strong support from Chancellor Hance, President Bailey, Provost Smith, our supervisor Vice President and Vice Provost Dr. Juan Munoz, our donors, and so many other people at Texas Tech and in Lubbock. To have people waiting to cheer the chess team on at the airport when they returned at midnight was pretty incredible. The media also prominently covered the team success. Everyone believes in us and we want to continue making all of them and this university proud. We will do everything in our power to help Texas Tech become a Tier One university. Through chess, we will attract some of the greatest minds to this university.

HK: What other goals does SPICE have in mind?

SP: As the chairwoman for the FIDE (World Chess Federation) Commission for Women's Chess, I am working with SPICE to promote women's chess and help raise the playing level of the next generation through various important initiatives. SPICE is also actively working to get chess in more schools. This is a very important part of our goal.

University Interscholastic League (UIL) of Texas, the largest inter-school organization of its kind in the world, has approved the proposal from SPICE to include chess puzzle solving as a statewide competition. This can potentially be the biggest scholastic chess initiatives in the United States as more than 2,000 schools in Texas are competing in a number of UIL competitions each year.

I am also hoping to work closer with FIDE to enhance various chess in the schools and chess in education projects in the United States. The future of chess is very bright.

HK: Thank you, Susan and Paul, for your time. Once again, congratulations and Go Tech! Check'em Knight Raiders!

SP and PT: Thank you, Hal.

Dr. Hal Karlsson is original from the chess loving country Iceland. He is an Associate Professor of GeoSciences at Texas Tech University. He is also the founder of SPICE as well as a student advisor for the Knight Raiders.

The Polgar family in 1989

I just received some old pictures of the my family back in 1989 in Rome from a friend of the family, Mr. Gabor Zilahi. This was taken during the famous Rome tournament where Sofia made history.

North Shore Chess Center

GM Susan Polgar Lecture and Book Signing

On Saturday December 11 @ 7:00pm, Grandmaster Susan Polgar will visit the North Shore Chess Center and provide a free lecture and Q&A session to players, parents, and all other interested parties.

GM Polgar will discuss a variety of topics such as advancing chess in education, bringing together chess and corporate sponsors, and the topsy-turvey world of professional chess.

She will also do a book signing of two of her most popular books Breaking Through and Chess Tactics for Champions. Books will be available for purchase at the North Shore Chess Center.

The event is free for everyone to attend but attendance will be limited to the first 50 people registered. To register for the event visit http://www.nachess.org/events

The North Shore Chess Center is located at 5500 W Touhy Ave Suite A Skokie, IL 60077.

For questions please email Sevan A. Muradian at sevan@nachess.org

Another video from Aquaprofit Polgar Chess Day

Video by Timea with nice music and pictures

Improve your chess with Polgar Chess University

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Aquaprofit - Polgár Sakknap 2010

Another video from Aquaprofit - Polgár Chess Day 2010 in Budapest, Hungary

21min skype interview

Aquaprofit - Polgár Chess Day 2010 in Budapest

Video by Timea with nice music and pictures


A short summary about Saturday:

The 4^th Annual Aquaprofit - PolgárChess Day was held this past Saturday. It was a great success as usual, despite the major snow storm that hit Budapest the night before. Around 500 chess fans weathered the snow storm to celebrate the now traditional “Day of Celebration of Chess and its Queens”.

I am impressed by the tremendous interest for chess and this event year after year. There was a huge amount of mainstream media interest (which is not typical for chess) including most major TV stations, before, during and after the actual event. Of course it was great timing for the publicity of the event that Judit just came back a few days earlier from Mexico City with a spectacular victory over Ivanchuk and Topalov to win the UNAM Invitational.

There was one major change from previous years. The Aquaprofit – Polgár Chess Day got extended to a full day event instead of only an afternoon spectacle. Therefore, numerous new colorful activities were added to the program.

Some of them include the two exhibition games Judit and I played in front of the live audience. In the first one, we played while sharing our thoughts by explaining our though-process during our game with the enthusiastic audience in separate rooms (I won that game). The moves were transmitted by cell phones and then we met up to play face to face in the latter part of the game. The second game was a “Trust-Chess” blitz game, (where all the pieces were silver looking, packaged in foil-paper), in which Judit swindled me at the end and balanced the score 1-1.

Sofia gave an hour-long well-attended lecture for beginners, which served also as an introduction to my sisters’ new book: Chess Playground http://polgarchess.com.

The book is aimed to introduce chess to the youngest audience, and is full of chess drawing, rhymes and puzzles. The book, which is already available in Hungarian as well as in English, is being used as the manual in one of the elite Kindergartens in Budapest where chess became part of the curriculum since this Fall. Pre-K students have one hour long chess session weekly, while K, has it twice a week.

The co-authors Sofia and Judit had a book-signing of their first book together. Volume two is already on its way.

The highlight of the event (which also included a press-conference, Q/A, autograph and photo sessions with the fans) was the usual 100 board simul by the three sisters. Among our opponents were numerous celebrities such as Andrea Temesvari, Ivan Fischer, and Marci Eszterhazy, just to mention a few. Also many GMs supported the event with their presence, such as the currently top-ranked Hungarian Zoltan Almasi, chess-legend Pal Benko (82) or the nation’s newest GM and Texas Tech Knight Raider Gergely Antal, etc.

I also went on a chess show, hosted by GM Gabor Kallai, on a major Hungarian Sports TV station (similar to ESPN in the United States). We discussed the Aquaprofit – Polgár Chess Day, Judit’s spectacular success in Mexico, including her final game victory over Topalov, as well as Texas Tech Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence, the Knight Raiders, and the unprecedented success of the program, etc.

Another video from Aquaprofit - Polgár Chess Day 2010 in Budapest, Hungary

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the sponsors and organizers of this wonderful day of “Chess Celebration”, and specifically the main sponsor Aquaprofit and its director Mr. Tamas Nadasi. And of course the initiative of my sister Judit whose brainchild project became a wonderful tradition.

Basic information for new chess players

Chess tips for new / novice players

I have done hundreds of lectures to parents, coaches and young players around the world and across the United States over the years. The questions I am most often asked are about advice and tips for young players and chess parents. I have talked about it in the past in my column, but since I received many requests for a refresher, here they are again. Below are some of the most important basic things that you should know about playing in a chess tournament:

• Once the game has started, you may not interrupt, interfere, or talk to your opponent.

• You may never directly assist any player during a game. If a player raises a hand for assistance, you should immediately summon a tournament director.

• If you witness an illegal move or position, say nothing. It is the responsibility of the players to bring any complaint to the attention of a tournament director.

• You are not permitted to say anything if a player oversteps the time limit on his clock. Only the players themselves can claim a win on time.

• When a player loses a game, you must refrain from getting upset or angry or showing negative emotions. Young players need support and encouragement more than ever after a loss. They do not need scolding. Help your player stay calm and relaxed for the rest of the tournament.

• You may help your player find her correct table and board before each round.

• You should supervise your player between rounds. It is not the responsibility of the tournament director or organizer to mind your children between rounds.

• You should keep your player from distracting other players during and between rounds.

• Players should try to conserve their energy between rounds so they can be fresh for the next game.

• You should always encourage young players to practice good sportsmanship at all times, especially after losing a game.

• Official tournaments are smoke-free.

• You should view your players’ game only from behind them or in the aisle to avoid eye contact with them.

• Keep a distance between yourself and your player. In some large tournaments, you may not even be allowed in the playing room during a game.

• If you see a player or a team playing the wrong opponent, you should notify the tournament director right away.

• Only tournament officials can record information on the wall charts. Parents, coaches and players should never write on them. However, players may record their results on the pairing charts.

• You should make sure that your players’ results are reported in a timely manner.

• If you detect that a prize has been erroneously awarded after the end of a tournament, bring this to the attention of a tournament director.

The following are generally accepted rules of etiquette that should be observed by all chess players:

• It is considered rude and inappropriate for a player to eat or have a meal at the playing table.

• Basic refreshment such as water is OK.

• If you chew gum, chew quietly.

• Smoking at the playing table is prohibited.

• Refrain from singing while playing.

• There should be no communication with your opponent until after the game, except to resign, offer a draw or announce J’adoube (adjusting your pieces).

• Don’t make a draw offer to your opponent after every move once it is refused or rejected.

• Don’t listen to music / MP3 player during the game.

Although the following are not rules, it is recommended to do the following:

• Try to show up to your game in a timely manner.

• Don’t adjust the chess pieces with each move. It is quite annoying for your opponent.

• It may sound too basic to even mention, but don’t cough or sneeze at your opponent.

• Shake hands before and after the game. It is customary.

• Have you ever seen the sign: “No shirt, no shoes, no service”? The same rule holds true in chess. Proper attire should be worn while playing.

• Don’t whistle while you are playing.

• No trash talking before, during or after the game.

• Don’t do anything to annoy your opponent or other players who may be sitting next to you.

Here are some very important chess principles that will help you become a better player:

• Control the center: The center of the board includes the squares e4, d4, e5, and d5. When you start a game, place your pawns in the center to occupy and control as many of these squares as you can. Location, location, location!

• Develop your pieces as soon as possible: Get your knights and bishops out right away. This should be done during the first six or seven moves, before you try to checkmate your opponent.

• Castle as soon as possible: Castle early to keep your king safe. Remember, you can’t win if you get checkmated first. So, don’t forget to castle! After you castle, connect your rooks by developing your queen.

• Keep your pieces protected: Don’t leave your pieces en prise (unprotected). Each and every piece is very valuable, so don’t forget to protect them. Protecting a piece means that if your opponent can take your piece, then you can capture back.

• Have fun: The most important thing in chess should be to have fun, whether you win or lose. My motto in chess is “Win with grace, lose with dignity.” When you win, be a good sport. When you lose, be an even better sport. Shake hands and congratulate your opponent. This will go a long way in making good friends.

Besides the five valuable principles above, there are others that you should try to remember. Chess is a game with logic, strategy, planning and tactics. Keep the following principles in mind as you play.

• Every move should have a purpose.

• Try to discern the idea behind your opponent’s move.

• Always think before you move.

• There is no take back in chess. So make your decision carefully.

• Planning is one of the most important elements of the game.

• Analyze your games and learn from your mistakes: Every player, from beginner to world champion, makes mistakes. It is very important to review your games to find your mistakes and learn from them.

• Pace yourself wisely: There are many different time controls in chess. Use your allotted time wisely. Whatever the time control, use your time to find the best plans and moves. Don’t rush just because your opponents play fast.

These and many more tips can be found in my best-selling chess instructional book “A World Champion’s Guide to Chess” and “Learn Chess in 30 Minutes” DVD, which can be found at www.PolgarChess.com. You can also improve with http://susanpolgar.blogspot.com/2009/10/polgar-chess-university.html.