Jorden van Foreest - Special Interview with Outpost Chess

GM Jorden van Foreest, born April 30, 1999, is a top Dutch chess grandmaster known for his creative and sharp play. He made headlines in 2021 by winning the Tata Steel Chess Tournament, solidifying his status among the world's elite. Coming from a chess-strong family, Jorden is a leading figure in global chess.

In this interview with Outpost Chess, you’ll get to learn more about us—sit back, relax, and enjoy the conversation.

1. You started playing chess at the age of six but didn't play regularly until you were nine. What motivated you to take up chess more seriously at that age?

JVF:

I was invited to be a substitute player for my primary school chess’ team. I was playing on the 4th and last board, but as a team we did really well and made it to the semi-finals of the country. That really inspired me to pursue chess more.

2. With a current FIDE rating of 2696, you are the 2nd highest-rated player on the Dutch list and also the top-rated player on www.OutpostChess.com , surpassing India’s GM Harikrishna Pentala. When you look back and reflect on your experience, can you explain how the path to becoming a Chess Grandmaster unfolded and what challenges you faced?

JVF:

Finally surpassing Hari is definitely one of my highlights thus far. He surely won’t be happy about that haha. I would say that I quite rapidly improved until about 2200 level, but then hit a plateau for a while and did not improve my rating for a year which is quite a while at a young age. But I always really enjoyed chess, kept working and at some point things just clicked. Maybe I was just accumulating information for a while and at some point it all made sense. Once I broke through to 2300 I quickly made it to GM and 2600 too.

3. With your rating nearing 2700, what are your goals for the next few years in terms of rating milestones and tournament victories

JVF:

It would be nice to make it to the top 20 in the world, or make it to Dutch no 1 someday.

4. Are you going to play for the Netherlands in the upcoming Chess Olympiad in Budapest 2024? What are your expectations, and how is the atmosphere within the team?

JVF:

Yes I will most certainly be playing there! I believe we are now the 4th seed which definitely gives us hopes to go for a medal this year. The atmosphere in team is always very good. Everyone gets along well and we have a good chemistry. Just before the Olympiad begins we all get together for a few days as well, which is nice too.

5. You were part of Magnus Carlsen's team during the 2021 World Chess Championship. What insights did you gain from working with the World Champion, and how has it influenced your own game?

JVF:

It was definitely a really special experience to be able to work for someone that I always looked up to and dreamed of playing against. Before the match we worked for a little less than half a year, but most of the work was with the fellow seconds. The times Magnus would show up at the trainings he would like to beat up one of us at blitz, or we’d usually play some sports.

Perhaps the one person I spent the most time with was Dubov, who is an incredibly strong player in his own right. It is always hard to exactly quantify what you learn when working a lot on chess, but I can say that throughout the camps I definitely learned more about specific openings, but also how to work more organised, and to be more thorough. Of course when working for a match of such magnitude you can not afford to make mistakes in your work.

6. You come from a family with a strong chess tradition, and your younger brother Lucas is also a Grandmaster. Your sister Machteld is also making waves in the chess world. How do you view the future of the Van Foreest family in chess, and do you foresee any sibling rivalry? Are you playing together on family days or are you training them?

JVF:

Surprisingly enough we barely play any chess against each other, especially these days. When growing up we would also work mostly individually. My brother Lucas is a GM but does not play as much as he used to. These days sometimes Lucas and I do check some openings or training a bit, or I help Machteld a bit before her games during a tournament by sending her some opening files.. We prefer to do other things than chess when we see each other I guess

7. How do you balance your professional life with your mental and physical health?

JVF:

I wish I did a better job at that than I am currently doing. Fortunately I am a pretty easy going person and I usually feel good and physically I go to the gym at times.

8. Blitz, short questions - What do you prefer to play:

• OTB or Online: OTB

• favorite opening: Spanish, maybe.

• best chess friend: Nick Maatman, we know each other since we are kids.

**9. Regarding some comments on social media and your YouTube interviews do you agree that you are: ‘the most handsome chess player of all time’ ? **

VF:

Beauty lies in the eye of beholder.

10. Throughout your entire chess career, was there something that the chess industry has been missing? For example, any tools, platforms, career managers, or anything else that comes to your mind?

JVF:

Chess has never been exactly as professionally managed as other sports. This comes with some advantages but sometimes also some disadvantages. Tournaments come and disappear from one year to another, Chessbase still has many bugs etc. But all in all I do like the chess world and the freedom that comes with it.

11. How did you hear about OutpostChess.com? What is the platform for?

JVF:

I was on a trip to Stockholm for new years celebrations. I somehow heard about a blitz event taking place on January 1st, played it and it turned out to be sponsored by outpostchess.

12. Any inspirational or other thoughts for our readers?

JVF:

Go to outpostchess.com and play/enjoy chess as much as you can!

Best,

Lena CEO Outpost