EP 440- GM Alexandr Fier: “I Blunder a Lot” – One of the World’s Most Active Grandmasters on Intuition, Endgame Studies, and Maintaining His Love For the Game

GM Alexandr Fier is a 5 time champion of Brazil and 9 time chess Olympian. He also recently qualified for the FIDE World Cup for the 8th time by finishing tied for first at the American Continental tournament. But aside from all of his impressive accomplishments, what interests me most about GM Fier is how frequently he competes. Last year alone, he played nearly 200 classical games,, and he has now travelled to over 50 countries. In our conversation we discussed:

How he maintains his energy and positive outlook through a busy tournament calendar

Why he thinks playing quickly gives him a competitive advantage. (Hence the nickname “No Fear”)

How he reacted to getting some harsh feedback from legendary trainer IM Mark Dvoretsky at age 18.

We also talked about GM Fier’s recent qualification for the 2025 FIDE World Cup, his plans for the rest of 2025, and of course, chess books. It was a pleasure to chat with one of Brazil’s top players, and I look forward to following his nonstop tournament adventures in the years to come.

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0:02- Alexandr is one of the most active Grandmasters in the world- how does he stay motivated?

0:06- How does Alexandr prepare for opponents?

0:11- How did Alexandr begin to collaborate with Imperial sports?

0:13- How Alexandr qualified for the World Cup?

Mentioned: Fier-Shankland 2025

https://www.chess.com/events/2025-american-continental-chess-championship/05/Fier_Alexandrandr-Shankland_Sam

0:16- Why Alexandr plays quickly

Mentioned: GM Giga Quparadze

18:00- What makes the World Cup special to Alexandr?

22:00- Alexandr’s early Chess Development and Influences

Mentioned: Blokh’s Combination Art, Domination by Kasparian, Laszlo Polgar’s Chess: 5334 Combinations and Games

Navara-Fier 2015

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1787858

GM Navara’s Blog Post:

https://lichess.org/@/RealDavidNavara/blog/because-we-care/fauAwr9r

26:00- Was it challenging to get chess books as a kid in Brazil?

28:00- Is chess gaining popularity in Brazil?

Mentioned: GM Rafael Leitao, GM Henrique Mecking

31:00- When did Alexandr decide to pursue chess professionally?

33:00- What languages does GM Fier speak?

35:00- Alex’s approach to following top games

37:28- How he Studies Openings and Uses Engines

39:00- Alexandr’s favorite opening authors

Mentioned: GM Ivan Cheparinov, Nikolaos Ntirlis, GM Alexei Kornev

Memories of Training with Dvoretsky

42:00- Alex’s favorite chess books

Mentioned: GM David Navara’s Best Games, Tal-Botvinnik 1960, The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal

44:00- Memories of a training camp with legendary trainer Mark Dvoretsky Influences and Inspirations in Chess

48:00- Why GM Fier loves endgame studies

50:00- GM Fier’s fondest memories

Fier-Ryan 2009, Ireland

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1601053

Fier-Akopian 2017-

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1870136

54:00- Alex’s passion for music

55:00- Upcoming tournaments and advice for Aspiring Chess Players

1:00:00- Thanks to Alex for joining!

Be sure to follow him on Instagram and Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/alexandr.fier/

https://www.instagram.com/pontocego/?hl=en

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