A few months ago I had the good fortune to stumble across a fellow Chess. In the past months, I have really enjoyed the content he has created which includes game analysis, book reviews, his study methodology, board exercises to improve chess vision, and so much more.
I recently approached him and asked him if he would be willing to be interviewed for my blog and he kindly agreed! So without further ado, here's a short interview with Luka Popov, an adult improver who has shown significant improvement in his chess.
Glenn: Luka, it is great to have an opportunity to interview you. We actually have a bit in common. Not only are both of us adult improvers, but we also both possess doctoral degrees; you in theoretical physics and myself in medicine. So I suspect we both are fascinated by and sincerely enjoy the learning process. This is probably why we like chess! I think there is more chess knowledge, texts, and theories than many academic disciplines!
Glenn: So let's get some of the basics out of the way! Tell me a little bit about yourself, where you live, and what you do for a living. Luka: I am 38 years old, I live and work in Croatia. As a theoretical physicist I used to work at the Department of Theoretical Physics University of Zagreb most of my career, but then I shifted more towards applied science. I am also a family man, father of three. Glenn: When did you start getting serious about chess improvement and how have you gauged your improvement rating, etc.
Luka: Well, I used to play some chess as a kid for a start. I played with my father, grandmother, relatives, friends. But nothing too serious nor competitive. When I was a student, I joined the chess club at the Department of Mathematics. This was the first time I experienced competitive OTB chess. At that time I did work on my chess occasionally, mostly using Chessmaster software, but still nothing too serious. Then I quit chess completely and I came back to it some 15 years later, June to be precise.
