Nigel Short was the stand-out player among a large cohort of English GMs who enjoyed success in the 1980s and 1990s. Having left school at the age of 17 and attaining the GM title at the age of 19, Nigel enjoyed a great career, playing at the highest level into his 50s. His pinnacle came in 1993 when he challenged Garry Kasparov for the 1993 World Championship, which was then under the auspices of the newly formed Professional Chess Association. A three-time winner of the British Championship, Nigel has been a prolific writer and commentator on chess, and in 2022 he became FIDE Director for Chess Development. His 2021 book Winning was Chess.com’s Book of the Year, and was Highly Commended by the ECF. In 1999 Nigel was awarded an MBE for services to chess.
Following a superb career over the board, you are now FIDE Director for Chess Development. What does this role entail, and how much do you enjoy it?
My job entails assisting what I call the ‘smaller’ federations – that is, in the sense of their level of chess development, rather than population. It is a fascinating job, as federations tend to vary quite a lot, and have very different challenges. Some are inexperienced, and benefit from simple advice. For example, I was recently in Belize, where quite a lot of people play chess, thanks to an extensive chess in schools programme that ran for some years. However, when I contacted the federation, their executive was in total disarray, and their acting President seemed unsure as to whether they were members of FIDE (they are), or had statutes (they do), or anything.
I considered my main task was to bring people together. I usually give a simul, which is partly to engage with the chess community, but mainly to obtain publicity. I asked the British High Commissioner, Nicole Davison, whether she could offer the Residence in the capital, Belmopan, as a venue, and she kindly agreed. As a consequence, we obtained good television coverage, and the event was attended by the Sports Minister.
To cut a long story short, there is now a functioning executive team, and a Grand Prix (five events in different regions) where none had existed before. The official website has been improved. There is also a new club in the scuba diving paradise of Caye Caulker – which was my first stop on the trip. Of course, I cannot claim full credit for all these positive moves, but my visits are frequently a catalyst for change.
Your book Winning (Quality Chess) was well received by chess writers and enthusiasts. The premise is a study of your overall performance in eight selected tournaments that you won. Your publisher wrote: ‘GM Nigel Short realised that every tournament win has a unique narrative and challenge’. How did the concept and writing of this book evolve?
The concept was suggested to me by Allard Hoogland, the owner of New in Chess, over dinner some years ago. It seemed very appealing. First of all, it satisfied my vanity in that I could include some interesting and important tournaments that I won. But at the same time, it would be far more realistic, and indeed instructive, than a typical ‘best games’ collection, because it gave context and also showed the hard struggle involved in finishing on top. The format had another distinct advantage: despite having written many hundreds of articles for newspapers and magazines, I had never really written a book. But each chapter is like a separate story, and so I could write it like eight different (lengthy) articles, which made completing it easier. They can be read in any order.
It still took far too long to complete. I felt a lot of self-revulsion while writing it. But when I saw the finished product I realised it was actually pretty good. I am quite proud of it. The comments and reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. It won the 2021 Chess.com Book of the Year award. It did not win the ECF book of the year - although it did receive a glowing endorsement.
Younger ECF players were not around when you played for the World Championship with Garry Kasparov in 1993. What are your memories of that match?
Those who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) do not generally enjoy reliving their experiences.
As a former world top 10 player, what are your thoughts on the current state of élite chess, particularly Magnus Carlsen relinquishing his World Champion crown?
I thought the recent match between Ding Liren and Ian Nepomniachtchi was tremendously exciting. I have absolutely nothing against Nepo - indeed he is a nice chap - but I wanted Ding to win because he is very sweet and modest, and his victory may help us crack open the massive Chinese market.
As to Magnus, he can do whatever he wants to do. He seems exhausted by the grind of World Chess Championships. But the game is much bigger than any one individual. I would have preferred to see him defend his title, but so be it. Life goes on.
What is your favourite chess game, and why?
I don’t have a favourite game, just as I don’t have a favourite song. It depends on one’s mood. Right now it is subdued, so I won’t suggest anything too flashy or ostentatious. However, I quietly enjoyed my victory over Vasily Smyslov in the 1987 Subotica Interzonal. It was very satisfying to defeat the former World Champion and renowned endgame expert in the endgame. The game can be viewed here:
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1124291
Outside chess, what are your interests?
I thoroughly enjoy travel, by which I mean on arrival, not the getting there. Each passing year takes a greater toll on my body. Luckily, my job has enabled me to travel extensively - although I have consciously worked on that over the years. Right now, the tally is 143 countries and counting. I have a soft spot for Africa.
I play the guitar every day when at home. Believe it or not, I think I am improving after years of stagnation, mainly due to instructional videos which one finds on YouTube.
I enjoy swimming in the sea during the warm summer months. I usually begin my days that way. My taste in literature is largely confined to histories and biographies, but I occasionally dabble in novels. I love a glass or two of good wine.
You are a prolific writer and commentator on chess, and you have also had success in coaching. What are your plans over the next few years?
I hope to make a real difference to the smaller federations through my work in FIDE. This is my top priority. It is a full-time job which doesn’t leave me with much space for other things. I don’t really do coaching these days, other than the occasional lecture - which is not quite the same thing. Commentating is great fun though.
I hope to complete the second volume of my trilogy (on matches) ‘slowly, slowly’, as the Greeks say.
I also hope to continue playing a little – perhaps twice a year.
What should be the top priorities of the ECF?
The number one priority of the ECF must be to obtain recognition as a sport. All efforts must be directed this way. Even the most miserable, unimpressive minority sport in the UK receives a baseline £750,000 per annum in Sport England funding. This is an amount that would be totally transformative for the game in the UK.
The All India Chess Federation generates a lot of money internally, as it doesn’t allow anyone to play over the board chess unless they are registered. Membership fees should be set low, but they must be collected. They also receive about $1m directly from the government. By establishing a sound financial footing some years ago, the AICF laid the groundwork to making India a chess superpower. Incidentally, their chess strength is increasing all the time.
India of course has a vast population, which gives it a great advantage, so perhaps you may feel there are no lessons to be learned from them. In that case, let’s examine a different country, Uzbekistan (population 36 million) for comparison. They receive about $4m per annum from the Government. Uzbekistan, as you recall, won the gold medal at the last Olympiad. I thus offer the daring hypothesis that funding makes a big difference.
Of course, it would help the cause of government recognition if the UK had one federation, rather than four. I am wryly smiling at the thought of this happening. Petty privilege almost invariably trumps greater good.
What advice can you give to young ECF players finding the 1700 to 2000 rating a tough assignment?
Ask a proper coach.
What are the positive highlights of your career, and your regrets?
The greatest highlight of my career was defeating Anatoly Karpov in 1992 6-4 in the Candidates semi-final in Linares. I am happy to be the only person in chess history to have won tournaments in six continents. In retrospect, my three Commonwealth Championship titles gave me great satisfaction. I have won stronger events, of course, but there are a lot of countries in the Commonwealth. Incidentally, I have visited more Commonwealth countries than King Charles III.
Regrets? I’ve had a few, but then again too few to mention.