#77. Erwin l'Ami Talks About Giri's Top Form, Working With Topalov, And More!

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.

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.

Interviewed by Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam, Erwin talks about all things chess, from the current wave of Indian players to his own experience working with champions.

0:00 – Intro

1:55 – Welcome Erwin!

2:05 – Previewing the upcoming European Team Championship

4:00 – How Erwin has maintained his passion for chess

10:53 – Erwin’s strong performance in this year’s Tata Steel Tournament

17:40 – Going from commentator to participant in Malmö

19:25 – The eccentricities of Vasyl Ivanchuk

24:00 – The incredible talent of Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus

26:45 – AD BREAK

27:19 – Faustino Oro

31:40 – How computer chess continues to evolve

36:25 – Freestyle

37:42 – The indefatigable new generation of Indian players

41:20 – Working closely with Veselin Topalov

46:40 – AD BREAK

47:20 – The Topalov – Kramnik controversy

50:15 – Cheating

52:45 – Working closely with Anish Giri

58:01 – AD BREAK

59:01 – The FIDE Grand Swiss

59:25 – The impressive play of Matthias Bluebaum

1:02:29 – Hikaru’s rating strategy

1:04:35 – The World Cup

1:07:49 – Thank you Erwin!

1:08:02 – Outro