I have been a chess enthusiast ever since as a boy I was taught the game by some neighbouring boys and I have been playing chess on and off (over the board and latterly online) ever since, although these days it is more off than on but I am often up for a game when the circumstances allow.

Even though I do not play much, I am fascinated these days by those who know and love the game who stream online content, typically on YouTube, which I check out despite its annoying interruptions for adverts. There are many, it seems, who have forged a career as an Internet chess content provider. By way of light relief from some of my heavier writing undertakings I check out chess online content from time to time, notably when big chess events are going on, in order to learn and even just for pure fun.

The best of the bunch concerning those who provide such content is GothamChess (aka Levy Rozman). According to Wikipedia: “Levy Rozman (born December 5, 1995), known online as GothamChess, is an American chess International Master, content creator, commentator, and author. Often referred to as “The Internet’s Chess Teacher”, he produces content on the online platforms Twitch, TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Rozman grew up in a Russian-Ukrainian immigrant family and began playing chess at 5. In 2018, he earned the title of International Master and reached his peak Elo rating of 2421. From July 2022 to April 2024, Rozman stepped away from competitive chess. Rozman began content creation in August 2018. His Twitch and YouTube channels gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic and the release of The Queen’s Gambit in 2020. His YouTube channel became the first chess channel to surpass one billion views. As of August 8, 2024, he has over 5.2 million subscribers and more than 2.6 billion views on YouTube”.

His latest venture has been commentating on a chess speed event bringing together the world’s top players, which I found enjoyable and enlightening as I do most of his other commentaries. Before that, he has been doing his Road to Grandmaster series where he plays in various chess tournaments around the world to score enough points needed to become a chess grandmaster, seen as the pinnacle of the career of anyone aspiring to be a top chess player. In his latest tournament, where he fared badly, he did what he does best, say what went wrong or right in his games, including the thought process behind making moves. Besides trying to fulfill his dream to become a grandmaster he commentates at many of the big classical and speed chess events the world over, plying his trade.

Gotham is pretty versatile for, besides commentating on his games and those of others, as well as other points of chess interest, he is an excellent chess teacher and imho his gift is not to be a great chess player but to be a great chess teacher that can entertain while he informs in his own inimitable way. I loved some of his teaching videos and recommend them to any who wish to learn. One of my favourite Gothamchess videos (and there are loads on the web) is one titled “It took me 3 seconds to realize how STRONG this kid is at chess” (see here) where he played against a young lad who he referred to as a scary kid who had told him prior to the game that he was not as funny as he thought he was, but for pure entertainment and educational value Gotham is as good as it gets.

My chess playing days are almost over and I doubt I can get better. Things have moved on enormously, especially with the advent of the Internet, e.g. Chess.com, which platform I have used on many occasions to play potentially anyone, anywhere in the world, as well as playing over the board with opponents at various levels including competitions ever since I also began playing as a nine year old. I will continue to commend the game as one that is worth taking up, as it is a great game to play. And always, when it comes to suggesting a teacher that it is Mr Gotham who is the man you need to check out.