Anna Rudolf / Chess Grandmaster / Former Olympian / Twitch Streamer

Anna Rudolf joins Jeff to discuss the world of Chess and how her time playing has taken her to the Olympics. Anna is known as a Chess Grandmaster… don’t worry, you’ll learn all about Chess rankings and titles in this episode. Listen in to hear how Anna bridged the gap between Chess & Poker, by playing ‘Choker;’ and hear how she was accused of cheating because of the lipstick she was wearing.

 

Here’s a glance at what you’ll learn from Anna in this episode: 

 

• Why Chess is booming currently and the effect of The Queens Gambit
• How money and sponsorships work in Chess
• What ‘Choker’ – Chess & Poker is
• How Anna became an Olympian
• How to balance competition and entertainment
• The work behind Professional Chess, Twitch & Chess
• Why Anna was accused of cheating for wearing lipstick
• How Chess rankings and titles work
• Looking back on the Soviet Union dominance of Chess

 

Timestamps:

 

• 0:00 – Introduction
• 1:20 – The Queens Gambit effect on Chess
• 3:35 – Growing up in Hungary
• 5:00 – Money in Chess
• 10:50 – Events to teach and learn Chess
• 15:00 – The Champions Story
• 17:25 – Choker: Chess & Poker
• 20:20 – The Olympics
• 27:10 – Hexagonal Chess
• 30:30 – Parents thoughts on Anna’s success
• 36:00 – Competition vs Entertainment
• 40:10 – Hobbies: Balancing Chess
• 43:05 - Call Me Kevin
• 48:20 – Twitch & YouTube success
• 51:00 – Anna’s Team
• 54:18 – Lipstick cheating accusations  
• 59:30 – Cheating in Chess
• 1:03:00 – The Queens Gambit & Chess Titles
• 1:08:45 – Being “Chess Famous”
• 1:12:30 – Chess platforms and sponsorships
• 1:15:00 – Twitter Questions:
  • Greatest fear
  • Closest Chess players
  • Favourite opening
  • Weirdest place to play Chess
  • Greatest Chess countries
  • COVID-19 impact on Chess streaming/popularity
  • Would a male player be accused of cheating in the Lipstick saga?
• 1:28:00 – How to relax: Piano, Just Dance, Family
• 1:30:30 – Avoiding burnout
• 1:32:55 – Favourite place in the world
• 1:33:45 – Goals in and outside of Chess
• 1:37:00 – Closing Thoughts and Competition

 

Episode Resources:

 

• Anna Rudolf Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annarudolf_chess/
• Anna Rudolf Twitter: https://twitter.com/Anna_Chess
• Anna Rudolf Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/Anna_Chess
• Call Me Kevin: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdoPCztTOW7BJUPk2h5ttXA
• Chessable Courses: https://www.chessable.com/profile/Anna_Chess/

 

Podcast Links:

 

• Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/jeffgrosspoker/
• partypoker: https://www.partypoker.com/
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jeff-gross-the-flow-show/id1463609319
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6Yp1jHCaqvYsLtS7lNCGAA
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeffgrosspoker/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/JeffGrossPoker