Coach NM Marcus Chan

What do you do?
I am coaching chess full time in Penang. I have been coaching chess part time for the past 8 years.

When did you start to play chess?
“Start to play chess” is a subjective phrase. For some it means when they start learning how to move chess pieces. Thus they might actually start pretty young like 4-5 years old by the guidance of their parents or relatives. But my definition for it is the time when one starts to play seriously at competition level. I started playing chess at 13 years old when I began to play in competitions.

How did you get to know about the chess game?
My dad introduced me to chess. He thought me how to play. He brought me to bookstores to buy chess books so that we can improve our skills. Then we started to challenge uncles and relatives. That was how I got introduced to the chess game.

Do you remember the first game you played with your dad? How was it?
I don’t really remember but mostly it was to know the moves and just to play. He would normally let me win. He would simply make his moves to bring up my interests. I think the motivation increases when I challenge other players. When I lose to someone of my own age that is when I think I started to learn more about chess.

Where did you get chess training?
Most of the time, I would play in school. Other times, when we have family gatherings, I would play with my uncle who is a Kepong district chess player. When we play, he would not hold back in each game. Whenever I lose, that gave me motivation to improve myself in the next game and eventually I managed to win.

Did you take any chess coaching?
I stepped into the game of chess together with my brother. No, we did not have a coach. Back then, our only coaches were the coaches at chess camps. There was a competition held every year, the Selangor Under 16 competition. The top 10 winners of this competition were eligible to join a chess camp coached by a FIDE chess master. This chess camp was pretty cool as it would be held in Genting for 4-5days. To be able to join this camp was a very big thing for us. We trained hard for this camp. When I started playing at 13 years old, I didn’t make it because my brother and I had just trained for a year. The following year, when I turned 14 and my brother 12, we managed to be among the top 10 winners of the Selangor Under 16 competition. Thus, we managed to attend the chess camp in Genting. From this camp onwards, our chess skills improved a lot.

Why do you continue to play chess?
I have tried playing different kinds of sports like the badminton, football and swimming. However, at chess, I soon realized that I have talent in the game because I seemed to be able to win a lot of my peers comparing to other sports. I represented the Selangor State after 2 years of serious playing. So my family and I see it as a big thing. I wanted to make it big and had the desire to pursue the National’s championship.

Is chess is more of a passion or has it become a winning symbol to you?
I would say it’s a combination of both. I was very competitive since young. I will not doubt that playing chess has rubbed off some competitiveness in me. Always wanting to win, I would spend a lot of time reading books, improving skills and eventually become very passionate about it. Even my church members or relatives can attest that once there was free time or when my parents were busy entertaining guests, my brother and I would be sitting at the corner reading chess books to improve our skills.

Did you attend tournaments with your parents?
Yes. During the weekends, I had the luxury travelling with my parents and family. The whole family would go to Penang or Johor together. They were good bonding times.

Good to hear that you have parents and family who encourage you.
As a chess player, the emotional and financial support from parents and family are very much needed.

How many tournaments have you participated in?
A lot! In fact, during then, there were many weekend tournaments in KL or Selangor in a single year. There would be 3 to 4 big events annually. Up to now, I would say I have definitely attended more than a 100 tournaments.

What was your biggest win so far?
There were two significant wins. One of them was when I received my National Master (NM) title back in 2005 in the National Close tournament. The National Close is an open tournament for Malaysians only and it is a once a year event where every state can only send 4-5 players. Whoever wins the tournament gets the NM title. Since young, it has been my goal to win the National Close. So I trained hard to win it. My second win was when I played in the SEAGAMES. This was a special win because my brother and I were in the same team. We won the Bronze medal in the team event. With my parents there, it was indeed a very joyful event.

Did you go for International tournaments as well?
Yes. I was lucky to be able to represent Malaysia at age 16. I had the chance to travel to Asian countries like India, Yemen and Indonesia. All those experiences were very dear to me. Some travel expenses were sponsored by the Government but mostly it was self-paid.

What have you gained from the chess game?
After playing for more than 10yrs, I find that chess game helps me in my personal growth. It helps to develop my critical thinking and I can now analyze things better. It has also helped me in developing my decision making skills, enabling me to make the right decision by weighing the pros and cons of available options. So it helps a lot now that I am going into investments. Nowadays, it is all about “survival of the fittest” in the society, be it career or finance matters. Chess definitely can sharpen a person’s “survival” skills as I have learnt to be competitive from this game.

Other than helping you to analyze things better, can I say that chess also helped you to be more courageous?
Yes, it does help to build courage. Seeing the advantages it brings to personal growth, I really recommend young kids to learn chess. Whenever possible, I would encourage my 8yrs old and 10yrs old students to play against adults. I believe that playing with older opponents gives them courage and confidence to be fearless. When triumphant, it is a pleasant accomplishment to have, knowing that they can be better than older players. The triumph provides a perspective that in life, age does not really matter. What matters most are focus, hard-work and strong determination. When defeated, failure provides motivation to push oneself to work harder to achieve the necessary skills to be better in future. So it is a win-win endeavor.

What have you gained from joining chess tournaments?
I met a lot of people from different cultures, both locally and internationally. Most of my closest friends are chess friends.