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NIC Podcast #89: GM Jacob Aagaard

NIC Podcast #89: GM Jacob Aagaard

My guest in this week’s episode is an old friend of the New In Chess Podcast, Jacob Aagaard. Jacob is a man of many trades and it’s not easy to fully describe all his activities in the chess world without running the risk that you’re forgetting something. So, let’s try. Jacob is a grandmaster who occasionally still feels the lure of competitive chess, and he is a prolific and successful writer, who has authored more than twenty books.Besides a writer, Jacob is also a publisher of chess books, and a top coach who has worked with big names such as Boris Gelfand, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Sam Shankland and many other prominent names that we know or names that are supposed to remain a secret.You may also know Jacob from the online Killer Chess Training courses and the Killer Chess Training camps he organizes in Spain.And as if this is not enough - and as this is the New In Chess Podcast - we should not forget to mention that Jacob is the owner and head of the New In Chess publishing group. A group175

NIC Podcast #88: GM Judit Polgár

NIC Podcast #88: GM Judit Polgár

In this week’s episode of the New In Chess podcast, I talk to none other than Judit Polgar.  Of course, the 'Queen of Chess’ needs no introduction, but then that’s something I have said about many guests - before proceeding to introduce them anyway. Let’s stick to that routine, even if there is every reason to say that this guest really does not need an introduction.Judit Polgar is rightly seen as the greatest female chess player of all time. She not only topped the women’s world rankings for a quarter of a century – I repeat, a quarter of a century, that is 25 years - but she also is the only woman ever to make it to the overall world top 10. Think about it: over the course of her career, Judit defeated no fewer than 11 current or former World Champions in rapid or classical chess.Judit became a grandmaster at the age of 15 years and 4 months, breaking Bobby Fischer’s old record and becoming the youngest grandmaster in the world at the time. Her life has been filled with records, firsts175

GM Jan Timman

In memoriam Jan Timman (14 December 1951 – 18 February 2026)

It’s with great sadness that all of us at New In Chess are trying to cope with the passing away of Jan Timman, a wonderful colleague and dear friend. Jan’s importance to New In Chess cannot be overstated. He was the magazine’s first editor in chief and always kept playing a pivotal role, contributing articles and annotated games, and giving advice on editorial matters till the very end. Besides his work for the magazine, Jan was one of our most beloved book authors. He wrote countless classics in an endless outpour of creativity. His most recent titles include his best games collection Timman’s Triumphs (2020), The Unstoppable American (2021), Max Euwe’s Best Games (2023), 100 Endgame Studies You Must Know (2024) and Timman’s Studies (2025).The latter titles focus on one of his great passions in his later years, the beauty of the endgame study.New In Chess has been blessed that the magazine started out when Jan was one of the best and most successful players in the world and that his love175

NIC Podcast #87: GM Jonathan Tisdall

NIC Podcast #87: GM Jonathan Tisdall

In this episode of the New In Chess podcast, I talk to Norwegian grandmaster Jonathan Tisdall. We look back on the Tata Steel Chess Tournament that ended last Sunday after more than two weeks of captivating chess. Both Jonathan and I were in Wijk aan Zee for the final rounds and witnessed how the Tata Steel Masters ended in a great victory for Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Finally, after several failed attempts, the 21-year-old star from Uzbekistan ended the ‘Wijk aan Zee’ curse that had plagued him in the past years. On more than one occasion, he had seen victory elude him on the final days. This time he remained in control till the very end and at long last won the tournament that he had dreamed of from when he was a kid. Finally, his photo will be included in the winners’ gallery of ‘the Wimbledon of Chess’. Jonathan Tisdall was born in the US from a Japanese mother and Irish father, and then - long story short - he emigrated to London and next to Norway, where he has been living for many175

NIC Podcast #86: GM Loek van Wely

NIC Podcast #86: GM Loek van Wely

On the final free day of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, I invited Dutch grandmaster Loek van Wely to talk about the ten rounds of ‘the Wimbledon of Chess’ that have been played so far. Much to my delight, Loek - who is in Wijk aan Zee as the coach of Dutch grandmaster Max Warmerdam - accepted the invitation.With three rounds to go, Uzbekistan’s top player Nodirbek Abdusattorov is leading the Tata Steel Masters, half a point ahead of three pursuers: his countryman Javokhir Sindarov, Jorden van Foreest (winner in 2021) and Germany’s Matthias Bluebaum. In the Challengers, Azerbaijan’s biggest promise, Aydin Suleymanli is in the lead. He is being chased by Andy Woodward, MarcAndria Maurizzi and good old Vasyl Ivanchuk (56).The final three rounds promise an abundance of tension and excitement. Especially, as so far this year’s edition has seen a remarkable mix of gross errors, oversights and brilliant chess.We had a lot to discuss. Why have we seen so many mistakes? Should175

NIC Podcast #85: GM Peter Svidler

NIC Podcast #85: GM Peter Svidler

My guest in the first New In Chess Podcast of 2026 is Peter Svidler. It’s a special moment. Two years ago, Peter was my very first guest in the inaugural episode of the podcast and I am delighted that he’s returning. Peter can look back on an incredible career as a player and he is one of the most knowledgeable and versatile experts in the world of chess. He is a three-time Candidate for the World Championship, an eight-time champion of Russia, and a World Cup winner. Among his many further successes are five gold team medals at the Olympiad.Over the past years, as he began to play less, Peter has become one of the most popular and loved chess commentators in the world. In fact, it’s fair to say that he was one of the commentators that took chess broadcasts to a new level and did a lot for the professionalization of our game.  For all these reasons, Peter is a perfect guest at the start of 2026, as we look ahead to a well-filled chess year that no doubt will bring us many highlights.First175

NIC Podcast #84: GM Matthew Sadler

NIC Podcast #84: GM Matthew Sadler

In this week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast, my guest is English grandmaster Matthew Sadler. Matthew is a two-time British Champion, a streamer, a YouTuber, an expert in chess engines, and a very successful author.  From his books, I only have to mention Game Changer, co-authored with Natasha Regan, on AlphaZero’s groundbreaking chess strategies and the promise of AI, which was one of the most successful and talked about books of the past years. But I might also mention its sequel, The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement, and the book he wrote together with Steve Giddins, Re-engineering the Chess Classics.These days Matthew is an IT Consultant, but he makes no secret of the fact that he fills his spare time with as much chess as possible. And although the FIDE rating list no longer has him as an active player, his FIDE rating still hovers eerily close to 2700. In fact, Matthew might very well be the strongest amateur chess player in the world.And last but not least, Matthew is the175

NIC Podcast #82: GM Jan Timman

NIC Podcast #82: GM Jan Timman

In this week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast, my guest is Dutch grandmaster Jan Timman. Jan returns to the podcast to talk about his latest book, Timman’s Studies, an impressive volume of 455 pages in which he presents his collected endgame studies and explains how they originated.Of course, Jan Timman is primarily known as the most successful Dutch chess player of the past fifty years; a world-class player who won countless elite tournaments around the world and rose to second place in the world rankings, behind Anatoly Karpov, in 1982.However, in recent years, after Covid, Jan’s appearances as a player had become less frequent, and a few weeks ago he announced in an interview with Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad, that he has ended his active career as a player. Of course, he still follows chess closely – and he stresses that this is classical chess and not rapid chess, even if Magnus Carlsen plays, and certainly not Freestyle chess. As Honorary Editor, Jan also continues to write175

NIC Podcast #81: GM Loek van Wely

NIC Podcast #81: GM Loek van Wely

In this week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast, my guest is Dutch grandmaster Loek van Wely. Loek is a good friend of the NIC podcast and he returns to talk about the chess event that is keeping us glued to our screens these days, the World Cup in Goa, India.  An 8-time Dutch champion, Loek can look back on a rich international career. He’s won tournaments all around the world and reached as high as 10th place in the world rankings. While Loek is still active as a player, his activities are more and more shifting to coaching and training. For instance, at last year’s Olympiad in Budapest, he was the coach of the Italian team.The World Cup started almost two weeks ago and will continue for close to two more weeks. There’s a lot at stake in Goa, as the top three finishers will qualify for the Candidates tournament in Cyprus next year (28 March-15 April). There’s also an attractive prize-fund. The winner takes home $120,000 and the numbers two and three, $85,000 and $60,000, respectively175

NIC Podcast #79: GM Ruslan Ponomariov

NIC Podcast #79: GM Ruslan Ponomariov

In this week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast, my guest is Ukrainian grandmaster Ruslan Ponomariov. Born in 1983, Ruslan embarked on his career as one of the most astonishing prodigies in chess history. When he was 12, he won the U18 European Championship, when he was 14, he was the youngest grandmaster in the world, the youngest ever at that time. When he was 18, Ruslan won the FIDE World Championship by defeating his countryman Vasyl Ivanchuk in the final of the 2002 knock-out World Championship.There are many excellent reasons to have Ruslan Ponomariov on the New In Chess podcast, but the main reason this time is the victory earlier this week of the Ukrainian national team, led by Ruslan, at the European Team Championships in Batumi. A victory that made his country proud in incredibly difficult times, as Ukraine continues to suffer day in day out after Russia’s brutal invasion three years ago.It's also a highly emotional moment that offers a brief moment of reprieve for the chess175

NIC Podcast #77 - GM Erwin l'Ami

NIC Podcast #77 - GM Erwin l'Ami

This week’s episode of the New In Chess Podcast features an interview with Dutch grandmaster Erwin l’Ami. Erwin has been a chess professional for some twenty years now. Among his most notable successes are victories in the Reykjavik Open in 2015 and in the Dutch Championship in 2022. And let me not forget to mention his win in the Rabat Blitz in 2015, ahead of speedsters like Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Alexei Shirov, if only for the fact that I had the privilege of watching this victory from a front row seat in the Moroccan capital. Erwin loves to play in tournaments – that remains his biggest passion - but his chess activities expand into other areas as well. He’s a prolific writer, has made popular courses for Chessable, and is a highly respected trainer. In that role, he has been on Veselin Topalov’s world championship team and has worked with Anish Giri for many years.I invited Erwin to the podcast to talk about his life in chess and to see where our conversation would lead us. Right175

NIC Podcast #70 - GM Viswanathan Anand

NIC Podcast #70 - GM Viswanathan Anand

My guest in this week’s episode is a very special one, it’s none other than five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand. Commonly known as Vishy Anand, he is one of the greatest and most popular champions in the history of our game and one of its most admired and respected ambassadors. Anand was the first ever Indian grandmaster, and look what happened in his wake, today there are 85 grandmasters in India, it’s truly unbelievable. Although no one could blame him if he decided to rest on his laurels, Vishy Anand remains active as a player – and he is still ranked number 13 in the world (2743), which is frankly incredible - but in the past years he has also taken on new roles. He is Deputy Vice-President of FIDE and he is a partner in the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy in Chennai, where the cream of the highly successful young Indian generation is training and, no doubt, many youngsters whose names we do not yet know.Vishy Anand joins us from Leon, in Spain, where he is playing in the invitational175