Embracing change

WHEN I wrote three weeks ago on the challenges that local chess coaches will face from organisations that are able to bring in qualified foreign coaches, I was prepared for criticism.

Sure enough, some of the local coaches were outraged. One said the capabilities of local coaches were not any less than those of foreign ones. Another said my opinion could affect his ability to attract students and, therefore, their parents.

But surely, that’s what change is all about, isn’t it? The way the chess world is developing, time will not stand still for anyone, much less for the local chess coaches.

Even as my story appeared three weeks ago, an organisation called Global Chess was announced in Prague, the Czech Republic, a day earlier. Global Chess BV is a Euro4.5mil (about RM21mil) company based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and is a collaboration between Fide president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and Bessel Kok.

According to a memorandum of understanding signed between the two, Global Chess will be responsible for all major World Chess Federation (Fide) events and chess-related projects, which include setting up chess training academies worldwide.

So, it does not matter whether or not the local chess coaches agree or disagree with me. Along with the rest of the world, the face of chess training in Malaysia will be changing.

Maybe my message was too subtle for most people to grasp but certainly, nobody can accuse me of discrediting the local coaches.

On the contrary, knowing that such will be the changes, it is even more logical that our chess coaches recognise them early and be prepared. Closer scrutiny will reveal that I was encouraging them to upgrade and improve their skills.

If the local coaches want to consider themselves professionals in this field, they should look into getting the necessary certifications. It is not for them to resist this because, in the long run, it is for their own benefit. I can safely say that wise parents will want to ensure that their money is well spent.

And I’ll tell you further why local chess coaches should seek certification.

Right now, coaching certification is at an early, developmental stage. There aren’t many qualified chess coaches around so it seems reasonable to me if Fide wants to grow the initial numbers quickly. As long as a coach can meet the minimum required standards, I don’t see why he cannot be certified properly. In the future, coaching certifications may be even harder to attain as standards rise.

One point held against me was that I was extolling the Singapore-registered Asean Chess Academy which had recently set up a Malaysian office in Kuala Lumpur. Why not? This academy is only one of two active organisations worldwide that is Fide accredited as a training centre.

Last month, the Asean Chess Academy and the Singapore Chess Federation jointly organised a certification seminar in Singapore for new coaches and trainers. From the cost perspective, it made sense that our local coaches should seek the cheapest path to gain their certification but not many did. Unless, of course, they do not mind travelling further, to Berlin, next month – and end up paying more – to attend a similar programme from the Fide Trainer Academy.

Our local coaches should aim to be among the pioneer group of qualified coaches in Malaysia. In any venture, it is always more advantageous to be a first mover rather than coming in at the tail-end when there are already too many to choose from.

To these compelling reasons, I can only add one last suggestion. It is no longer the time for them to operate individually. Come together and form alliances. There is only so much an individual chess coach can do. Tap on one another’s strengths. Once you have your certification, working together as a team will benefit everyone in the long run.

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Quah Seng Sun has been writing a fortnightly chess column for The Star, Malaysia’s leading English language newspaper, since 1980. This article first appeared on 12 Jan 2007.

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