Internet practice spurring bigger fields
Saturday January 19, 2013 11:06 AM
A new crop of young, full-time professional chess players is appearing in international tournaments.
The Internet can take substantial credit as a pipeline that fosters and feeds competitive play.
The Web is also potentially a boon for relative newcomers and amateurs as well as more serious competitors who have never played enough to reach their full potential.
Practice makes perfect. If we could hear the thousands of moves being made minute after minute, hour after hour, day after day, the result would be deafening. It’s a “new normal” which, like the growing popularity of soccer, hasn’t come close to reaching its potential.
For the occasional player, an opponent is always available at zero or negligible cost.
Because no one need know whether you win, playing online is an easy learning experience with little pressure.
Mistakes can be seen as opportunities. The sequence is common: Lose a game and start another with a new approach and attitude. In the best of circumstances, improvement is rapid.
In part I speak for myself: a senior player, decades past his prime.
Battle beckons in every game. Something new is always being learned. Enter the lists and immerse yourself in the thrall of an ancient activity that mirrors life itself.
Source: http://www.dispatch.com
Soon we will have 10 year old GMs.