Xu Yinchuan, who is in his forties, admits that he is lucky and that life is enough for him. In his early years, his father keenly discovered his potential in chess, so he tried his best to create conditions for him and guide him to dig deep in chess. In his autobiography "Yinchuan Chess Road", Xu Yinchuan recalled many details of looking for a teacher to learn chess in his hometown when he was a child. He eats and lives in the teachers' home, and the teachers show him unreservedly, expecting to be dismissed by the young people he has trained. Chaoshan culture and folk wisdom have given Xu Yinchuan the greatest nourishment.
Xu Yinchuan said frankly that he often encountered bottlenecks in the competition. Suddenly, it seems that he doesn't know how to win, but he can't back down and dare not give up. Things are like new chess, and every champion needs to start from scratch.
set an example
Xu Yinchuan's story can't be told by him alone. The Chaoshan soil where he lived since childhood is rich in cultural nutrients.
Anyone familiar with chess knows that the first move is the first move. The importance of "first hand" is self-evident, especially in the confrontation between top players, which is often the difference between these two hands. For Xu Yinchuan, who is known as "the first chess player in China", there is also a famous "pioneer" in his brilliant chess game, and that is his father, Mr. Hou Xu.
Mr. Lao Xu is a middle school Chinese teacher, and his decades of educational career has made him a popular peach and plum in the world. Although not as "successful" as his son, he is also famous among the students of Huilai Huilong. Some students once wrote an article recalling Lao Xu's class style, and asserted that Xu Yinchuan's success came from the "sweat and credit" of this strict teacher and loving father. Although somewhat arbitrary, the respect for teachers is also beyond words. It can be seen that Mr. Lao Xu's achievements in educating people are not only reflected in his children.
The success of children in China often reflects the efforts of their parents. For example, the famous pianist Lang Lang, whose father's years of hard work and good intentions are talked about by many people in China. On the road of Xu Yinchuan becoming a chess grandmaster, it is natural to imagine the important role played by his father as a county chess champion. In fact, various descriptions and praises of Mr. Lao Xu account for a considerable proportion in all kinds of texts that review, analyze and even summarize Xu Yinchuan's successful experience. However, it is a little surprising that in Xu Yinchuan's own memory, he used a completely different way of inking, and outlined how his father guided himself on this brilliant chess path with a far-sighted "layout".
overall arrangement
Today's Xu Yinchuan is no longer the blockbuster Young Jiang Taigong. Although he still occupies an important position in chess, he has no intention of competing for the throne of "ever-victorious general". When you open Xu Yinchuan's Weibo, you can see him poking fun at himself that "Weibo will only be served if you lose chess". Although he said "a defeat", he didn't put it down. As short as 140 words, there is always a lingering cloud.
1975 Xu Yinchuan, who was born, is in the age of no doubt. For his current state of mind and understanding of chess, his unique skill is two words-"position". Xu Yinchuan said frankly that as a chess player, where the chess pieces should be placed is very important for the development of chess. "Sometimes a seemingly insignificant piece, placed in a very important position, will lead to a very important role. On the contrary, sometimes big guns like chariots and horses are useless and broken, and it is useless for you to work hard, so I think the most important thing to be a man is to put your position right. "
To establish a "position", we must have a leisurely spirit and a firm heart. Xu Yinchuan certainly has such boldness of vision and mind, and he still defines himself as a "chess player". It is hard to imagine that this young man, who has made great achievements and dominated the chess world for more than 20 years, is still so clear in his heart. No wonder many people say that Xu Yinchuan has a "fairy spirit". Chess is a confrontation invisible to outsiders, but the contest between players' minds and skills is very fierce. Outside the stadium, Xu Yinchuan was indifferent, including Ming Che.
up
Xu Yinchuan grew up in longjiang town, Huilai County. In this small town famous for its trotters and rice, the Xu family is also a minor celebrity. In Chaoshan area where chess is popular, there is a father who is a county chess champion. The Xu brothers and sisters are naturally used to the comings and goings of various chess players.
There are four brothers and sisters in the Hsu family, and Xu Yinchuan is the second. My brother is three years older than Xu Yinchuan. He was the first person who became interested in chess. Naturally, he became the first teacher of Little Yinchuan. However, the happy time of playing chess between the two brothers did not last long, and the interest of my brother was quickly occupied by his studies. But young Xu Yinchuan became more and more interested in chess and showed extraordinary understanding. According to Xu Yinchuan's relatives and friends, at the age of 4, Xiao Yinchuan could stand in front of the chessboard and watch chess for an hour or two without being tired or bored. Friends of the same age or a little older at home are no longer his opponents.
Xu Yinchuan's father, Hou Xu, is a superb chess player, a people's teacher and, of course, an out-and-out Chaoshan. Xu's father, like many Chaoshan men, can't say a few words to his son and won't easily interfere with his child's natural hobbies. Whether it's the short-term chess attempts of other children in the family or the chess talent that Xu Yinchuan showed at an early age, this father just sees it in his eyes and reads it in his heart. Because he knows that if he wants to become a professional chess player and go further on the road of chess, he obviously needs more than interest. It is every father's wish to hope his son will succeed. If his son can go far in chess, it is also a good choice.
Whether it is a professional chess player's material depends not only on his talent and interest, but also on whether he can withstand the boring and long study, training and competition and remain unmoved in the face of success or failure and the humanity of all kinds of people in life. As Xu Yinchuan himself often said, learning chess requires only moderate intelligence, and it is important to have concentration.
As a child, Xu Yinchuan had a wide range of interests, not only reading widely, but also keen on painting and calligraphy. "Picture books" and classical novels enriched his vision and distracted his energy. However, the father of the "old chess player" at home is not in a hurry. It was not until Xiao Yinchuan became more and more interested in chess and had no rivals among his peers that he decided to further try the true face of this yellow-mouthed child and take the opportunity to improve his chess skills.
In the Chaoshan area in the 1970s and 1980s, drinking tea and playing chess prevailed in the market. For beginners, actual combat is the best way to improve their chess skills, but they still don't give up because of setbacks in the continuous game with folk masters, which is also a good opportunity to see their true love for chess. So, my father took Xiao Yinchuan to Xiaoqi Tea Shop in the market, and let him play chess with the Jianghu experts who came and went to the market.
Although Xu Yinchuan was gifted at this time, he was young and lacked systematic and solid chess knowledge. In the face of adult players attacking the city, he has to think for a long time to find a solution. Fortunately, my father is famous in the Jianghu, and everyone can see that Xu Yinchuan is a piece of material that can be made. He often doesn't care about his long-term ideas and doesn't change his idea of playing chess seriously ... Before long, the tea shops in Longjiang are not enough for Xu Yinchuan to gallop. With his father's company, finding a stronger opponent in the Chaoshan land of crouching tiger and hidden dragon became his most important daily activity before entering school.
When he was old enough to go to school, his father helped Xu Yinchuan learn Chinese Pinyin and let him study in the second grade. The collective life at school is naturally different from the days of playing chess with adults in the street. Children's nature is to be inspired by playing with their peers. Xu Yinchuan was an excellent pupil at this time. He is not afraid of exams and loves sports. The only difference is that he always "takes photos with his father" during the Spring Festival.
At that time, in longjiang town, chess performances were arranged every Spring Festival. The performance was carried out in the form of challenge, with father as the champion and Yinchuan as the pioneer. Generally speaking, most of the attackers are no match for Xu Yinchuan, and this young man is sitting in the ring. What he misses most in his heart is actually the Longjiang pig's foot rice and cheerful dance under the ring. ...
That's right.
Maybe keeping the ring wasn't enough to impress my father. He wants to pave the way for Xu Yinchuan to become a professional chess player. Talent, interest and experience are all there, but there is also an important factor-opportunity. When the time came to change his destiny, Xu Yinchuan, who was in a daze, did not hesitate to make a beautiful "bare-handed" card (walking or counting when playing games also means playing correctly or being an official).
1984, Huilai county held the first junior chess competition, and prepared to select young players to participate in the Shantou sports meeting the following year. Because of Xu Yinchuan's outstanding academic achievements, faced with such a good opportunity, Hou Xu, the father who has the dual identity of the county chess champion and the Chinese teacher of Longjiang Middle School, hesitated instead-his son was gifted and chose a more unusual road to success, but he would not have achieved great success without seeing it with his own eyes.
After entering school, the focus of Xu Yinchuan's life has already shifted to the classroom, and it is still unknown whether today's chess can win the championship of the junior group in the county. At this time, Lin Jinlong, a cadre of Huilai County Sports Commission, came to Hsu family. With a good eloquence, he finally persuaded Hou Xu, and let Xu Yinchuan go to the chess world for the first time with a professional background.
However, the battle was not smooth. War-torn Xu Yinchuan lost the battle with the young players in Shenquan Town and lost the hope of winning the championship. Finally, it was because the players in Shenquan Town were proud of the spring breeze and lost to others that Xu Yinchuan was given a chance to play the championship. But the "bare-handed" rebirth after this chess defeat made Xu Yinchuan play flawless since he was a child, and cut his opponent under the horse twice in the play-offs, and finally won the championship of Huilai County Junior Chess Competition.
This is the first champion on the chess road in Xu Yinchuan, and it can also be said to be the most important one. The junior champion of this small county not only won him the opportunity to participate in the Shantou Sports Meeting, but also dispelled his father's last worries. Since then, Hou Xu has quietly made a good start for his son.
Enter the presidium
Since then, Xu Yinchuan's chess road has spread out, and many stories familiar to chess fans have been staged in turn: 10 years old, junior champion of Shantou National Games; 1/kloc-0 won the junior chess competition in Guangdong National Games at the age of/,and then joined the Guangdong team. /kloc-won the national junior chess championship at the age of 0/3; /kloc-won the national individual championship at the age of 0/8, becoming the ninth national champion in the history of chess in China; After that, he won five national individual championships and six national championships, as well as Asian and world championships. ...
Throughout the history of Xu Yinchuan's honor, entering the Guangdong team is a watershed. Under the careful teaching and training of Yang Guanlin, Lv Qin and other mentors, Xu Yinchuan soon went to shine on you and climbed to the peak of "the first chess player in China" in more than ten years. However, before this "middle game" melee begins, we still have to start from the solid foundation laid by Hou Xu for our son-
When Xu Yinchuan won the competition in Shantou, Hou Xu made a decision: he took the initiative to communicate with the school, and asked Xu Yinchuan to have a half-day cultural class and go home to practice chess in the afternoon. Since we want to pursue chess as a formal profession, we must go all out. But even the adult chess king in the county, while taking care of his family to make a living, how can he guide and help his son to lay a good foundation and improve his chess skills as soon as possible?
Hou Xu chose a fast but extremely boring way-playing music. The so-called "playing music" is to lay out on the chessboard step by step according to the chess score. When playing chess, we should gradually study why our predecessors played like this, as well as the changes and gains and losses of each game. The benefits of playing music are self-evident, which saves the trouble and burden of running around looking for a suitable opponent. But the "disadvantage" is also self-evident, that is, it is extremely boring. At this time, Xu Yinchuan was only 1 1 years old, and childlike interest was naturally flourishing. From time to time, he was severely criticized by his father for going out to play and peeking at the neighbor's TV.
In addition, in order to help Xu Yinchuan lay a better foundation, my father invited a Raoping chess master who is famous for his endgame to teach at home. At this time, the Xu family, although still running mimeographed business, has gone from bad to worse under the impact of machine printing, and has to bear the burden of asking teachers, and the economy is already stretched.
Chaoshan area has attached importance to education since ancient times, and the special geographical and historical environment has formed a business-oriented cultural tradition. Xu Yinchuan's parents are both teachers. Although he loves playing chess very much and has made small achievements, he doesn't regard it as a lifelong career. Even for those children who showed their talents earlier, he never forced them to learn chess and make a living, but thought it was an interest and a hobby. Hou Xu also had many doubts about Xu Yinchuan's career as a professional chess player, but after careful consideration, he decided that Xu Yinchuan could do something between the chessboards, but he didn't hesitate. Dare to try and be the first, these are the characteristics of Chaoshan people.
Although Xu Yinchuan is far away from his hometown, he has made great achievements and experienced various setbacks, but his father is still his "backbone" and "backer". According to Xu Yinchuan's recollection afterwards, it seems that every time he made achievements, it was what his father expected. Even when Xu Yinchuan was a rookie, his father never wavered his faith and judgment. Sooner or later, Xu Yinchuan will become a chess grandmaster.
mid-game
1987, Xu Yinchuan got the opportunity to go to the provincial team for training before 12 years old. At that time, the Guangdong team was full of talents, with the master Yang Guanlin taking the lead, followed by the "rumbled" Lv Qin, and the men's and women's teams were the best choice for the national championship at that time. Even if he is as smart as Xu Yinchuan, he has to face the test of "survival" pressure in such a team.
This quiet Chaoshan boy still shows that determination.
After the first training session, Xu Yinchuan returned to his home in longjiang town like a bird and spent a sweet and stable Spring Festival with his parents, brothers and sisters. However, after the Spring Festival, the problem of staying in the provincial team was placed in front of Xu's father and son. It is precisely because I can't worry about it, but also to strengthen my son's confidence. This time, Xu Shi and his wife decided to send their son to Guangzhou together, and they also planned to stay for a few days.
When a person was training in the chess team, the taciturn Xu Yinchuan used the "boy's skill" taught by his father-playing the piano and playing chess. He usually comes earlier than others, and naturally he spends his unaccompanied weekends in the training room. And his parents sent him to Guangzhou together this time, which made Xu Yinchuan both moved and stressed.
The scene when his parents left has been haunting Xu Yinchuan's mind for many years, and many old friends of the chess team still remember it vividly.
That spring, the training match of the chess team had already started. Xu Yinchuan, who is trying to realize his dream of staying in the provincial team on the chessboard, glanced at his parents out of the corner of his eye and came to see his game before he left. At this time, no one can know how the young chess player feels, but everyone can see his tears.
12 years old, for the vast majority of peers, the biggest pressure in life may only come from which junior high school to take an examination of. The test that Xu Yinchuan has to face is to strive for his position in the "Chess Dream Team" of Guangdong Chess Team. Hou Xu recalled the scene and said, "At that time, he raised his seat sympathetically and stopped playing, but everyone was silent. This is the first time and the last time that I saw Yinchuan youth cry. Family ties are inevitable, and chicks are hard to be caressed. "
Many things happen. With the guidance and help of Yang Guanlin and other masters, Xu Yinchuan, who had long realized that he was working hard in a quiet place, gradually made a breakthrough in chess. This summer, Xu Yinchuan won the national junior championship. The following year, he successfully broke through in the internal trials, won the national team championship with the Guangdong team, and finally became a full member of the Guangdong chess team.
At this point, the goal in front of Xu Yinchuan is becoming more and more clear. He wants to win the national individual competition and become a chess grandmaster in China!
65438-0990, the national individual competition was held in Hangzhou. After a year of trial and error, Xu Yinchuan ranked ninth in this year's individual competition and became the youngest chess master in China at that time. The joy of success brings greater challenges and responsibilities. When Xu Yinchuan told his father the good news, he got a serious and reasonable answer. In Xu Yinchuan's own words, "Father's letters are always long and good at reasoning. He didn't praise my progress too much, but encouraged me to continue my efforts and reminded me to pay attention to summing up. Sometimes, I think my father is a little clever. He can always predict my upcoming achievements earlier, and he is never surprised by my progress. "
However, how easy is it to win the chess game?
After winning the third place in the national individual competition, Xu Yinchuan suffered a modest "Waterloo". At the end of the national individual competition the following year, he bumped into Hu Ronghua, a "chess saint" and a "grandmaster".
Speaking of Hu Ronghua, what makes chess fans relish most is that after he became a national champion at the age of 65,438+05, he achieved an unprecedented record of "ten consecutive tyrants" and laid the foundation of contemporary China chess school on his own ... While Hu Ronghua, whom Xu Yinchuan met at this time, has bid farewell to the infinite scenery of "ten consecutive tyrants", he is still a frequent visitor on the podium of the national individual competition.
Maybe if you want to achieve great things, you must go through this robbery. This time, Xu Yinchuan's "life-saving magic weapon"-composure, became a stumbling block for him to climb to the top of the chess world. Facing the fierce "Commander Hu", Xu Yinchuan, who had achieved good results before, developed a conservative mentality and wanted to "defend the title" steadily.
Such a result is naturally conceivable.
Looking back on this defeat, Xu Yinchuan felt a lot. He admitted that the failure was tantamount to giving him a blow. "It's like a train running at full speed meets a sudden obstacle and suddenly brakes. The passengers on the train are thrown underground because of too much inertia."
Of course, no matter how painful the unforgettable failure is, it can't beat this sober-minded teenager. "Stability" made him lost and reborn. After clearing up the mood and finding the crux and countermeasures, Xu Yinchuan once again launched an impact on the summit.
1993 In Qingdao, Xu Yinchuan's second championship didn't go well at first. Halfway through the game, he was defeated by Heilongjiang grandmaster Zhao Guorong, and his future was bleak. To make matters worse, he will have to fight commander Hu again in the next round!
Before this war, the future chess king only played against the old chess king Hu Ronghua twice and never won. It also includes the "cone heart" defeat in the last individual competition. Get up where you fell! It's easier said than done. But this time, Xu Yinchuan did it.
This crucial battle can be called a double turning point in Xu Yinchuan's life and chess game, but frankly speaking, Hu Ronghua took a wrong step in World War I, and after the situation fell into a passive position, he was unwilling to fight. For a "commander-in-chief" who has played chess for decades and has had countless glories, even if he loses this game, it is just a "casual trip" on his glorious road. But for a pursuer who is waiting to prove himself in a difficult situation, this victory is no less than a shot in the arm, which makes Xu Yinchuan's national championship road suddenly clear.
After a small victory, Xu Yinchuan tried his best to win the national individual championship. At this time, Xu Yinchuan, just 18 years old, became the youngest China chess grandmaster after Hu Ronghua!
What followed was naturally the return of flowers and clothes. Xu Yinchuan, who is famous in the world, took advantage of the situation and won a series of victories: he won the "King's Cup" in four wars and eight victories, and won the 14th "Yangcheng Cup" national championship invitational tournament known as the "Wang Zhongwang" with unbeaten record ... Of course, this road of honor is not always smooth. Xu Yinchuan suffered "Waterloo" in Chenzhou National Individual Competition from 65438 to 0994.
To be fair, in the first world war in Chenzhou, Xu Yinchuan won the fourth place in the national individual competition, which was quite good. But Xu Yinchuan, who only has the champion in his eyes at this time, finds it hard to accept such a result. If you don't win the championship, it means failure. How many champions have been destroyed in this strange circle! Fortunately, at this time, Xu Yinchuan has learned more about the difference between winning and losing. Once he adjusted his competitive mentality, the champion of ordinary competition was still a cinch.
What really made him temporarily hang up the "war-free card" was actually an "opponent" outside the chess world.
During 1995, Xu Yinchuan was busy playing chess and enrolled in the Chinese Department of Sun Yat-sen University. Busy study, relatively weak foundation and ignorance of one's physical condition finally gave the virus an opportunity. In the prime of life, the national grandmaster actually went to the point where there was blood in his sputum before going to see a doctor seriously!
Perhaps only during his illness did Jiang Taigong, an all-around chess player, finally realize that he was still a "teenager". Although Xu Yinchuan, who is on the rise, missed many important events during his illness, the rare time he spent with his mother and the chess skills and human feelings he realized during his illness have a very important influence on his future chess career. As he recalled when he won the national individual championship again after his illness: "Maybe, after going all out, you still have to bear the pain of failure, but if you don't persist, you will only fail ... As long as you believe that you are going in the right direction, you must go on strongly."
Residual situation
Xu Yinchuan said that chess pieces are actually more like an art, and with the decrease of direct combat contact, the scheduling of sub-forces becomes more critical.
From1990s to now, few people in China can compare with Xu Yinchuan. Although occasionally defeated, the draw is increasing and challenged by rising stars such as Jiangchuan, people who have long been concerned about China's chess still regard Xu Yinchuan as the "first person" of China's chess. It's hard to say that Xu Yinchuan has lost his desire for the championship, but many people say that his desire to win has decreased. Of course, there is also a popular saying that he is "enjoying chess".
2065438+On the morning of August 3, 2005, we finally met Xu Yinchuan at the Ren Chao Overseas Friendship Association located in the south building of Tiyu East Road, Guangzhou. At this meeting, we talked a lot, which also gave us a deeper understanding of this chess grandmaster who is good at writing and drawing. But when we were leaving, Xu Yinchuan told us that he had a bottleneck and didn't seem to know how to win. As a chess player and an unpopular project, if you don't reach the top often, where is the way forward?
No one can answer such questions for him. However, shortly after the interview, we saw @ Chess Player Xu Yinchuan's Weibo chatting about the game. He just won the "Shuangchuan Club" with the new chess king Jiangchuan, with an unbeaten record of two wins and two draws.
We also learned that Xu Yinchuan resigned as the vice president of Guangzhou Chess Institute on 14 and became a "free man". Perhaps, as he said at the beginning, the essence and know-how of chess is nothing more than "position" Before finding a better position, he still put himself in a clear and simple position-"chess player". Weibo's cloud is light, just like the mess he learned from Jianghu experts and masters such as Yang Guanlin when he was a teenager, which is nothing more than that-the clouds are graceful and the people are as good as chess.