Ask Magnus, a special live webcast

by ChessBase
11/8/2017 – Want to ask Magnus Carlsen a question? The World Champion will be our guest today on a special live webcast, where he'll take questions and have a look at one of his best games from his most recent tournament in the Isle of Man. | Photo: Amruta Mokal
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Magnus Carlsen live webcast

At approximately 18:15 CET (12:15 EST), World Champion Magnus Carlsen was our guest in the ChessBase studio.

 

Questions for Magnus

Magnus Carlsen

We received some great questions for the World Champion.

All questions received by 18:00 CET will be entered into a random drawing for a copy of Fritz 15 signed by Garry Kasparov, Vladimir Kramnik, Viswanathan Anand, and Carlsen himself!

Magnus has been busy lately, jet-setting about from his home in Norway to the World Cup in Tbilisi, the Isle of Man, and a simul in Singapore. He's now in Hamburg where he will be the special guest a health conference sponsored by Die Zeit newspaper and the star of the Play Live Challenge, an annual event put on by Play Magnus.

Early Friday, he'll be off again, this time to the "Champions Showdown" rapid and blitz exhibition in Saint Louis, USA.

But before that he joins us for his very first visit to the ChessBase HQ. And you can be there too! Tune in shortly after 18:00 for a live webcast Q & A and a look at one of his recent games.

You can watch on-demand above, or on the Ask the Experts category of the ChessBase Videos portal. Afterwards the interview will also be available for on-demand replay.

Fritz 15 autographed by Kasparov

A chess fan's dream? Send us your best questions!

Photo: Alina l'Ami

Reports about chess: tournaments, championships, portraits, interviews, World Championships, product launches and more.
cesar ramos cesar ramos 11/8/2017 05:59
Hekki Magnus, At what age do you intend to stop playing chess?
maxath maxath 11/8/2017 05:58
In a ten games match, you would win against Droidfish on a simple mobile phone?
Serolf Serolf 11/8/2017 05:58
Hello Magnus.
What was the best lesson you got when learning chess as a child?
celeje celeje 11/8/2017 05:56
Magnus, what are your thoughts on the evolution of opening theory, now and in the future, especially with the dominance of computer programs? It seems that in recent world championship matches, the contestants have been exhausted by all the opening preparation, and it has not led to more interesting chess (if anything, the opposite). And what about memory? Does it now play too large a role?
J Nayer J Nayer 11/8/2017 05:55
Dear Magnus, Don't you think that these games between yourself and Karjakin last year were really boring?
RoiDanton2000 RoiDanton2000 11/8/2017 05:51
Hallo Magnus, wie beurteilst Du das "comeback" von Kasparov in New Orleans?
Dark Lord_12 Dark Lord_12 11/8/2017 05:48
Wch Carlsen,
Do you have enough confidence to have a glimpse of Emanuel Lasker on being the World Champion for the longest period of time?

Fan of your accurate play,
Dark.
chessisamazing chessisamazing 11/8/2017 05:47
Hello Magnus. If someone were to dethrone you as a world champion, who do you think will dethrone you, anyone from this generation or from the younger ones? Please name one or few names who may be the prospects? And also how many years do you think would it take to dethrone you?
kenard kenard 11/8/2017 05:44
Do you have favorite chess set that you enjoy playing with, a particular design or set that you enjoy to use?
ankurkhatri ankurkhatri 11/8/2017 05:42
hi magnus,
I just want to ask you how to win winning game?
charlesthegreat charlesthegreat 11/8/2017 05:40
Magnus, which chess playing program you prefer to use, and why?
Nafim Nafim 11/8/2017 05:31
Carlsen,
What do you actually do to release stress or depression when not playing chess?
Bouddha#77 Bouddha#77 11/8/2017 05:30
Magnus,
Who do you believe is your most dangerous challenger?

rgds
BSS BSS 11/8/2017 05:20
WHAT IS THAT YELLOW COLOUR DRINK YOU OFTEN SIPS DURING THE GAME. ANY SECRET??
sporty sporty 11/8/2017 05:20
Hi Magnus,

Timecontrol for topGm games in standard games has decreased in several steps en is now much lower then it uses to be in 1970's, the era of Fischer en Karpov. Nevertheless the level of topplay in chess is by most topplayers considered as being higher then in those old days. Apart from the use of databases and computer in preparation are there any other reasons for the higher level we see today?
Dark Lord_12 Dark Lord_12 11/8/2017 05:20
Magnus,
How much time did you study chess to become a GM? And how much did you study chess to become the World Champ?
Jarman Jarman 11/8/2017 05:12
I've read that you are a poker player too. Do you find your chess expertise to be of any help when you play cards?
jeroen jeroen 11/8/2017 05:11
We know you like soccer, do you play FIFA 18?
Golden Chance Golden Chance 11/8/2017 05:07
YOur Best Game in top ?
vikas2200 vikas2200 11/8/2017 04:52
Hi Magnus,

From books and other resources, we get some ideas about the key skills possess by a GM. I am very curious to know about the key skills that a 2600 rated gm usually lacks which a 2800 rated GM possess. Is it Strategic understanding, Calculation ability, Opening preparation, Psychology or something else?
Petrarlsen Petrarlsen 11/8/2017 04:34
- Taking in particular into account your games from the Isle of Man tournament, I have a feeling that your playing style has significantly changed recently. (Which would be something very interesting.) Am I right or wrong ?

- Is there one (or more) World Champion(s) of the past (ancient or recent) whose style you prefer ? (not at all necessarily a World Champion with a style rather resembling your own style...)
John Upper John Upper 11/8/2017 04:23
I have seen you photographed with a well-worn copy of Meuller and Lamprecht's "Fundamental Chess Endings" at hand. My question is about how thoroughly you have studied it:
1) if you were given 20 random positions out of it, how many would you be able to solve? And,
2) how many of those would you solve almost instantly (from memory)?
DarkMarvel DarkMarvel 11/8/2017 04:20
I once read that being a world champion you were horrified that you did not know certain concepts of chess that for your level you considered basic, what questions do you do to understand chess or what parameters do you use and how do you evaluate your progress in assimilation of concepts that you already know and what you have to learn
KrushonIrina KrushonIrina 11/8/2017 04:11
Magnus, for the developing player, what are your 3 most highly recommended books:

one for the opening
one for the middlegame
one for the endgame

Thanks!
KrushonIrina KrushonIrina 11/8/2017 04:11
Magnus, for the developing player, what are your 3 most highly recommended books:

one for the opening
one for the middlegame
one for the endgame

Thanks!
KrushonIrina KrushonIrina 11/8/2017 04:11
Magnus, for the developing player, what are your 3 most highly recommended books:

one for the opening
one for the middlegame
one for the endgame

Thanks!
Gruso Gruso 11/8/2017 04:08
Hi Magnus
What would you recommend me to do, while playing a tournament?
kaareandersson kaareandersson 11/8/2017 03:48
Judge yourself as a player today vs 21 april 2014 (rating 2889). Several new strong players have arisen since then - do you believe this is the reason for your lower rating today or are there better explanations, like pure coincidence, difference in your playing style, form, or something else? Do you indeed feel that your play is better today than 2014?
hlinik hlinik 11/8/2017 03:46
Hi Magnus.
1. In football: You like to play forward or midfielder ?
2. Your favorite player from europe ?
Etanol Etanol 11/8/2017 03:40
Hello Magnus!

First, I would like to say that I think you are a fantastic World Champion, how you play and how you manage yourself socially.
Secondly, I am wondering what you would have chosen as a career if it had not been chess?
Thirdly, If I were to do only one chess exercise a day, say for 30 minutes, what would you recommend? (Currently, Elo 1930ish)

Kind regards :)

Etanol
cannnjan cannnjan 11/8/2017 03:32
Hi Magnus,

- Who is currently your strongest opponent?
- How do you learn/practice playing chess?
- Do you like playing against computer? Why?
- Could you summarize, what did you learn from Garry Kasparov, when he trained you?
- What will you do, when you stop playing chess? Can you imagine that?
- How do you keep yourself motivated?
- What is the best age for young children to start playing chess?

Regards
Jan (Czech republic)
rubinsteinak rubinsteinak 11/8/2017 03:30
Hey Magnus,

Will the Fischerandom (Chess960) match happen next year with Nakamura? Related to this, have you tried to play Fischerandom against a strong engine? If so, how did you fare? I am of the opinion that the future of chess is Fischerandom; what do you think? Thanks.

Jason
virginmind virginmind 11/8/2017 03:26
Hi Magnus,

-which are your worst fears while in a tournament?
- which of these have most impact on your concentration on the game: lack of sleep, illness, anger/sorrow about something, jet lag?
- what was the last novel you've read and when did that happen?
- about how much time did you spend in your house in Oslo, this year?

Thank you, and best regards!
dimdam dimdam 11/8/2017 03:20
Hi Magnus,

Any favorite football players? On a related very important question, among the top chess players, who do you consider best at football?

Dimitris
Jorge Shinozaki Jorge Shinozaki 11/8/2017 03:18
Hi Magnus.
I have the following two questions:
1. Is the rating of 2900 in classical chess one of your next goals?
2. Which player already classified for the Candidates Tournament do you think would be the most difficult challenger?
habitsofchesssuccess habitsofchesssuccess 11/8/2017 03:02
Hello Magnus,

As a general recommendation for any player, if you had only 5 sessions of 30 minutes each every week to improve your chess

What would you choose to do in prioritiy for each one of those 5 sessions in order to maximize results?

Thank you in advance,

Grégory
brianlee1982 brianlee1982 11/8/2017 02:57
Dear Magnus,

How did you manage to raise your game level when you were stagnant at 2500+? Any formula or routine that you can share with us, like
1. What is the focus and time taken for each routine?
2. Do you solve chess puzzles daily to keep your mind sharp?
3. How many hours spend on Openings, Middlegame and Endgame?
4. Do you have books that you can recommend to us during your early years developing as a chess player?
5. How do you train your attacking skills?
kushu_attack kushu_attack 11/8/2017 02:48
Dear Magnus,
How are you able to play equal positions for hours with ease? What are the key points in such positions while pressing as well as defending to be considered?
Regards,
Kushager
Mtudorache Mtudorache 11/8/2017 02:43
1.Leave your contractual obligations and say frankly, which server you like most than all, to play chess online? 2. You know something about trying to establish a top of professional online players? If you win the competition in which you are now, there are great opportunities to become the number one online chess player! Here is the virtual ranking: http://chessgp.altervista.org/TMRank/Standings.html
DDaniel82 DDaniel82 11/8/2017 02:41
Hello, Magnus!
Do you think chess is a drawn game with best play or what is your opinion on that?
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