NIC Podcast #93: GM Erwin l'Ami

Today’s guest is an old friend of the New In Chess Podcast, Dutch grandmaster Erwin l’Ami. Erwin was Dutch Champion in 2022, and among his other notable results are his victories in the 2015 Reykjavik Open and in the Rabat Blitz that same year, where he was even too quick for specialists like Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Alexey Shirov.
While Erwin continues to love playing competitive chess in tournaments and club leagues, he has expanded his chess activities in various chess directions over the past years. He’s been working as a trainer for stars such as Veselin Topalov and Anish Giri, and he’s been producing training courses and writing books.

It’s in his capacity as a writer that I have invited Erwin this time, as together with Dutch GM Paul van der Sterren, he has just authored a new book on Max Euwe, who sensationally robbed Alexander Alekhine of his world title back in 1935. The title of the book is Max Euwe World Champion!, with an exclam, and it looks in detail at the brief reign of Euwe, who lost the chess crown again to the same Alekhine in 1937.

The book is a heartfelt reappraisal of Euwe, who has often been described as a lesser champion. A champion who won the title by some sort of luck. In their fine book, the authors demonstrate convincingly that in spite of such reservations, Euwe truly was the best chess player in the world, or among the very best, in those years.
I talk to Erwin about his special interest in Max Euwe, how the book came about, and the remarkable qualities of the fifth World Champion; about the sensation he caused when, as the  underdog, he defeated the great Alexander Alekhine in 1935; about his achievements in his years as champion, and why he lost the title again in 1937.

In the second half of the podcast, we talk about Max Euwe’s celebrated successor in the Netherlands, Jan Timman, who died three months ago, on February 18.
Erwin first met Timman when he attended training sessions for talented juniors, next they met over the board, and then, for the past twenty years, he regularly visited the erstwhile ‘Best of the West’ at his home to talk chess and look at his brilliant studies.  
Euwe, Timman and l’Ami, you’ll love this episode. Don’t miss it.

0:00 – Intro

2:35 – Has Erwin’s appreciation of Max Euwe as a player changed throughout the years?

9:21 – Why is Euwe so underappreciated by chess history?

15:45 – How strong was Euwe actually?

19:55 – The Lasker feud

23:05 – Euwe’s “modern” emphasis on opening preparation and physical preparation

27:06 – AD BREAK

28:05 – The historic 1936 Nottingham tournament

32:33 – Euwe as FIDE president

34:49 – While doing his analyses for this book, did Erwin discover any new things about Euwe?

42:50 – Euwe’s loss in the Alekhine rematch

49:21 – Dirk Jan tells his own personal Euwe story

50:32 – AD BREAK

51:08 – Erwin’s friendship with Jan Timman

56:30 – Jan Timman’s incredible memory

1:00:08 – Timman’s incredible career

1:06:42 – Timman’s final months

1:11:23 – Outro