Olympiad R3- A FGM Merdeka commentary.

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka! What a beautiful gift for our Country. Very well done Mok and Yee Weng!!

What Merdeka truly means for me is the freedom from tyranny. 

And there cannot be a more resounding way for us to express that than by fighting hard for our beloved Country.

We can see the fight and the thinking on the table. There is no need to write up treatises to defend why a draw should be given, because the opponent is 300 Elo points higher, even when we are winning, like what was done after the last Olympiad.

We are an immensely talented and gifted people. All we need to do is to find back our courage and confidence. Mok and Yee Weng, there is a GM in the both of you. I hope Mok will look into his black game with this new surge of energy. We need genuine wins to get that energy. It cannot be bought cheaply. That is why we need to prepare and train hard before we go. Now you guys can step out of the shadow of the past and make your stake in the new chess world. All my best to the both of you.

My concern for the team now is the lack of a fighting reserve after this tremendous expenditure of energy. That was why I asked for Nicholas to replace Jimmy. I could see that Jimmy has been seriously damaged by something from his past during Datmo and from his writings. And I believe this is an objective evaluation and not personal.

We need our players trained and able to compete in healthy competition at home before we send them out instead of feeding their delusions of grandeur. That is why selection is important. It's a reality check.

Can Jimmy bolster the team now and give those that need to rest a break? Does he have it in him still? Well there are still many more rounds to go.

Malaysia Boleh!

ps: Players do get damaged from time to time in our intense mental sport. I always advocate we find ways to repair the damage before we send them out again. Or the damage can be compounded.