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Thursday, August 2, 2012

US Junior Chess Champion Marc Arnold on How Chess Could be a Profession for More People!

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

FIDE VP Beatriz Marinello recently interviewed the reigning US Junior Chess Champion IM Marc Arnold. Here is the interesting chat with a champion chess players.




Beatriz Marinello: It has been an amazing summer for you! Congratulations on winning the US Junior Invitational for the second time and earning a Grandmaster norm at the World Open in Philadelphia. You are only 19 years old. What are your short term plans?
Marc Arnold: I hope to keep getting better, and gain elo points, and enjoy myself while doing it.


BM: Motivation is an important part of getting good results. How do you keep yourself motivated?
MA:
I think that every chess player is motivated just by being competitive. I try to do my best in each event and that keeps me motivated during tournaments.



BM: This year’s US Junior Closed had a total prize fund (for all places) of $18,000. You as the champion took home $4,000. Do you think it’s important to include prize money in junior events?
MA:
It is nice to have a monetary reward during tournaments even for juniors. I think that juniors as well as older players like having conditions and it makes juniors feel more professional. I think that juniors can also be motivated by prizes and it is indeed necessary.



BM: What are your thoughts about professional chess in the USA? Do you think it’s possible for a young talented player such as yourself to continue playing chess at a high level and at the same time pursue a different profession?
MA:
I think that it is very hard to have a second profession along with playing chess at a high level. Unless you can teach on the side while you play chess I would say that only players who are over 2700 can do this without teaching.



BM: Most players at some point need to make a decision regarding career choices and how to make it work. What do you think needs to change or improve in chess in order for chess to be a suitable career choice?MA: The only way for more people to play chess as a career is to have more tournaments with higher prizes as well as conditions that cover all, or almost all expenses to tournaments.


BM: So far, you have two Grandmaster norms, and you are playing very well. When is your next chess tournament?
MA:
I might already have all 3 norms but it is unclear. My next tournament starts August 3rd in LA and is a round robin.



BM: I wish you the best. You are a role model for thousands of American young players. Keep it up!
MA: Thanks for the kind words!

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3 comments:

  1. Sebastian Wolff, WashingtonAugust 3, 2012 at 5:50 AM

    america has way more chess talent than what is evident but it is nice to know that youngsters are coming up and so are opportunities. I personally think you have contributed much to the awareness thanks chess queen

    ReplyDelete
  2. intelligent kid US chess has much scope

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  3. arnold is talented!

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