Lukasz Nowak’s motion off the board could also be restricted, however on the chessboard, he can transfer higher than most individuals. Final month the exceptional 25-year-old fulfilled all necessities for the IM title.

Simply months after his beginning, FM Lukasz Nowak from Poland was recognized with a extreme type of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a genetic neuromuscular illness that ends in progressive muscle losing. Presently, he’s unable to maneuver practically all of his physique, needing help to carry out day-to-day actions. 

He discovered chess from his grandfather when he was seven years outdated. He has now reached a stage few others can dream of. On FIDE’s newest July record, Nowak is rated at 2408, due to vital progress within the final two years.

“Being a chess participant with my incapacity is just not straightforward as a result of so is life. I all the time should journey with somebody and accommodate us in a wheelchair-friendly place, which is normally costly. My father has been with me at many of the tournaments however just lately was unable to reconcile work and journeys. Thus I’ve to make use of an assistant,” Nowak mentioned in an interview with Chess.com.

“Thankfully, I can use a laptop computer on my own, which provides me some independence. Throughout a sport, I say strikes, my assistant executes them on the chessboard, presses the clock, and makes the notation.”

Having achieved his first IM norm in 2016, it took one other 5 years to attain the second. Fortunately, it solely took him one other two years to attain the ultimate norm—on the thirty seventh Voivoda Cup GM Event in Legnica, Poland, in June. Working as much as 5 hours a day on his chess and being coached by Polish legend GM Bartosz Socko for the final 5 years has paid off, Nowak says. 

“Making the IM title is a large aid for me. I made my first norm seven years in the past, so I used to be positive I may obtain the title, however by some means I couldn’t carry out effectively sufficient for a really very long time.”

Nowak completed the 10-player round-robin event in second place with 5.5 factors, behind FM Jan Klimkowski, with 6.5 factors.

“I began the event poorly—two out of 5 factors wasn’t the consequence I’d dream of. It was excessive time to win extra video games, however I didn’t panic and got here calm to spherical six,” he mentioned in regards to the sport he analyzed for Chess.com’s viewers:

“The final three video games weren’t so clear, however I managed to attain 2.5 pts and made the IM title.”

Requested about the important thing to his current progress, he mentioned:

“For my part, crucial factor to enhance in chess is a day by day routine. I imply that, for instance, coaching one hour on daily basis is quite a bit higher than coaching seven hours at some point and resting for the following six days. That is one thing that has helped me to boost my stage of play significantly.”

He says that he desires folks to deal with him as another particular person and that the chess neighborhood has helped him really feel like one. “Usually, persons are very form and useful to me,” he says.

Nowak is able to settle for one other problem by chasing the GM title, however with excessive prices as a result of his incapacity, he’s on the lookout for a sponsor who can assist him.

“Chess is my ardour and lifestyle. I’ve targets I can obtain. On the chessboard, I can overlook about my disabilities and compete like everybody else. I like collaborating in tournaments and can’t think about my life with out it.”