Iulia Poama-Covaci
Quick facts
Chess rating: 1700
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Started playing chess since: 4 years old
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Favourite chess player: Judit Polgar
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Fun facts: I speak 3 languages: Romanian, English and Spanish! I'm also trying to improve my Greek and German.
QA with me
Q: What inspired you to start coaching chess and how long have you been doing it?
Q: What is your proudest chess achievement or moment?
Q: How would you describe your coaching philosophy or teaching style?
Q: How do you tailor your coaching to fit the needs of different students?
Q: Can you share an example of how you've helped a student improve their game?
Q: Who is your favourite chess player and why?
Q: If you had one piece of advice for either new players or students wanting to progress what would it be?
Q: What is the most valuable lesson chess has taught you in life?
Q: What are your favourite chess openings or strategies to teach?
A: I started coaching in 2018 after moving to the UK and starting University. I think chess is an art that needs to be kept alive and my goal is to encourage the next generation of players and hopefully inspire more people, particularly girls and women to pick up chess!
A: My proudest chess achievement was when I became junior national champion in Romania (where I am orginially from).
A: I think learning chess should be fun and engaging. I like to combine theory with interactive puzzles and examples that are easy to understand for players of all ages and abilities!
A: I appreciate that every student has a different pace, so I tailor my lessons based on their specific needs and preferences. I am very patient, friendly and have extensive experience coaching and working with children and adults from various cultural backgrounds and different learning abilities.
A: I've been coaching a 12 year old student that only knew the basics when we started. By teaching relevant tactics for each stage of the game and practicing them together using fun puzzles, his online rating raised to over 1000 in a few months!
A: My favourite chess player is Judit Polgar, as she is regarded as the strongest female chess player of all time and has been a great inspiration for many women playing chess worldwide.
A: Trying to improve your chess skills can be very daunting, even with so many sources of information out there. I think the best approach is to take it step by step, learning a few tactics at a time and then just playing a lot of games to put them into practice. Puzzles can be really fun and helpful as well, so I always incorporate some into my lessons and recommend them to my students to practice in their own time as well.
A: Always keep going and keep looking for the next opportunity. You can always turn a situation around, so never give up!
A: I always start with e4, going into the Italian game. I love playing and teaching the Fried Liver Attack as it's brave, fun, and usually ends in a win or at least in a very interesting game!