Jan Vykouk IM

Hi Jan!

I went through your latest blitz session and pulled out the patterns that matter most for your next rating jump. You already peaked at 2866 (2024-11-07), so let’s build on the things you do well while cleaning up the few habits that are still costing you points.

What you already do brilliantly

• Fast, creative initiative-grabbing. Your wins against tarasivanov and kodangyeulam show an excellent feel for piece activity and the value of tempo tempo.
• Tactical alertness. Motifs such as Bxh7+ (vs. Tarasivanov) or the exchange sac 27.Rxd6 (vs. iliachess2007) are spotted instantly. Your puzzle-rush work is clearly paying off.
• Practical opening repertoire. With White you steer into French Winawer & English/King’s Fianchetto systems; with Black you rely on the French and Benoni structures. You reach playable middlegames almost every time.

Quick rating gains (low-hanging fruit)

1. Time management. Four of the five recent losses are flagged positions you could still hold or even win (e.g. vs. bodia_kyiv03 and ماهان فرجی).
   • Commit to one think-tank per game (≤10 s) and move on.
   • Add 3-minute “no-increment” sparring; aim to finish each game with ≥20 s left.
   • Drill pre-move sequences in dead-won endings.
2. Endgame conversion. In the marathon vs. GMahan717 you handled the pawn race well but spent 45 moves repeating when 70 .Kc5–c6–c7 could have sealed the draw earlier.
   • Daily endgame trainer: 10 rook-and-pawn studies + 5 minor-piece endings.
   • Revisit the Lucena & Philidor techniques Lucena position.
3. Solidifying your Black repertoire. The Old Benoni loss vs. Cyril Felrod Telesforo shows that you know the themes but underestimate central breaks (19…e5?!). Have a second system ready (Caro-Kann or Slav) for “tilt” days.

Opening snapshots

Below is the critical stretch of the Old Benoni game. Black’s last chance to equalise is 18…Red8 instead of 18…Rad8; the queen stays active, d8 is protected, and 19.Rd1 runs into …e5.

White repertoire tweaks

• French Winawer: your 7.h4 h5 8.h5 idea scores well, but add the quiet 7.Nf3 + 8.Bd3 to keep opponents off balance.
• English/King’s Fianchetto: excellent structure sense; just watch the early pawn wedges (…d5, …e5). Solving 10 model games by Kramnik will help.

Black repertoire tweaks

• French: consider the Rubinstein setup (3…dxe4) to avoid heavy theory and the annoying 4.e5 c5 positions you got vs. Isengard1.
• Old Benoni: study the ...g6 lines in the Chessable mini-course you already started—focus on move-order traps (…c5 first vs. …Nc6).

Two-week training micro-plan

• Days 1-3: 20-min tactic rush + 20-min French endgame drills + review one annotated Winawer GM game.
• Days 4-7: Play 15 blitz games focusing on finishing with ≥20 s; annotate 3.
• Days 8-10: Endgame focus: rook vs. rook + pawn; aim for 90 % in online drill.
• Days 11-14: Alternate between your French and Caro-Kann in blitz; tag every game where you mis-managed the clock.

Mindset reminder

When the attack doesn’t crash through, trade into a favourable ending instead of looking for “one more” tactic. That single decision will add 20-30 rating points by itself.

Keep the energy, tame the clock, and your next peak will follow soon. Good luck, and message me after your next 50-game batch for a follow-up!