#11. Loek van Wely Talks About His Careers in Chess and Politics, Rustam Kamsky, and Bloody Football Matches

This weeks episode of the New In Chess Podcast features an interview with grandmaster Loek van Wely. “King Loek” is an 8-time Dutch champion, and, at 51, has remained active as a player while expanding his activities as a trainer and organiser. He reached his peak in 2001, making it into the world top 10 with a rating of 2714. As a coach, Van Wely has worked with stars like Gata Kamsky, Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov, and more recently with the Italian national team and Dutch GM Max Warmerdam. He can also look back on a political career, as a senator in the Dutch First Chamber from 2019 to 2023. Interviewed by Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam, Loek talks about his career highlights, his political years and his adventures as a second for the prodigious Gata Kamsky (and his father Rustam!), as well as the demanding Vladimir Kramnik. He also gives his take on the way chess preparation has evolved, and who he expects to do well in the upcoming Candidates tournament. 00:00:00 – Intro 00:01:16 – 01:40 Being excited about the podcast 00:01:41 – 02:52 Playing in the German cup, experiencing some fatigue 00:02:53 – 04:40 His fondest (chess) career memories 00:04:41 – 05:24 Turning his prize money into a BMW 5-series , crashing it 00:05:25 – 07:54 Winning numerous open tournaments, eight Dutch championships 07:55 – 10:30 Getting deported from the United States for having the wrong visa 10:31 – 12:00 When and why he got the nickname King Loek, being one of the first online chess players 12:01 – 14:00 His character, challenging himself, rivalries with other players 14:01 – 16:55 Dirk Jan witnessing his bloody football matches with Magnus in Wijk aan Zee 16:56 – 18:02 Loek’s love of placing bets 18:03 – 23:56 His remarkable career switch into politics 23:57 – 27:27 Joining the controversial Forum For Democracy party, leaving because of the weird conspiracy theories of some of its members 27:28 – 30:15 Where does Loek stand politically? 30:16 – 32:14 Similarities and differences between chess and politics 32:15 – 34:31 Does Loek have any regrets about his political career? 34:32 – 35:04 AD BREAK 35:05 – 40:51 Being a second for Gata Kamsky in preparation for the latter’s 1996 World Championship match against Anatoly Karpov, Gata’s crazy father Rustam 40:52 – 45:52 Seconding for Kramnik and Topalov, Loek’s expertise with early engines such as Rybka and Fritz 45:53 – 53:30 His predictions for the 2024 Candidates tournament, the evolution of engine analysis and preparation, not seeing Pragg’s potential early on 53:31 – Outro