Armenia is a country of about three million people with no access to the sea and no oil wealth. Yet its chess players have stood among the world’s elite for decades. How did this happen?
In this video we follow the path from the Soviet chess system and Tigran Petrosian, World Champion from 1963 to 1969, through the hard years of the 1990s and the generation of Levon Aronian, to chess in the school curriculum, the women’s teams at the Olympiads, and the street chess culture of Yerevan. We look at what lies behind the success and what remains debated.
Subscribe if you are interested in the history of small nations and their cultures. Tell us in the comments which player or match you would like to see in the next video.
Chapters (approximate, adjust after editing):
00:00 Introduction
02:30 The Soviet chess system
06:00 Tigran Petrosian
10:00 Armenia after 1991
13:30 Levon Aronian and the new generation
17:00 Olympiads and women’s chess
20:30 Chess in schools
24:00 Yerevan, the diaspora and street chess
27:30 Challenges and conclusion
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2 Comments
Very good explanations
yup