#30. Botvinnik: His Journey To Immortality, Part 2 | The Essential Sosonko

This week's episode of the New In Chess Podcast features the second half of the narration from Genna Sosonko's “The Essential Sosonko” on Mikhail Botvinnik.

Continuing where we ended two weeks ago, we find Botvinnik giving his perception on several his chess colleagues. He then proceeds to talk about other matters that are close to his heart, such as the future of computer chess and his own painful losses.

Narrated by professional voice actor Nick Murphy, in “His Journey to Immortality” Sosonko does recites a long monologue given by the former World Champion himself, in a way making this chapter a double autobiography.

00:00 Introduction
01:18 Botvinnik's position to the divide between Karpov and Kasparov
04:34 Botvinnik's regards on Kramnik, Shirov and Beliavsky
07:27 Botvinnik defused Bronstein, Smyslov and Tal
09:35 How Botvinnik took care of himself
12:13 Botvinnik on the future of computer chess
13:03 AD BREAK
13:56 Botvinnik's relation with and views on politics
17:31 What old age meant to Botvinnik
23:08 Botvinnik remembered his painful losses
24:28 Botvinnik's principles and convictions
27:17 AD BREAK
27:50 To understand Botvinnik is to understand him in the context of his time
30:44 The last time Sosonko met Botvinnik
34:30 Botvinnik’s death and the journey to immortality