Erwin l'Ami

Erwin l'Ami (born April 5, 1985 in Woerden) is a chess Grandmaster. He has emerged, along with Jan Smeets, Daniel Stellwagen and Jan Werle, as one of a new generation of talented young players from the Netherlands.

At Gausdal in 2004, he won the tournament, ahead of Magnus Carlsen and despite being expected to finish no higher than mid-table. He soon fulfilled the requirements for an International Master title, awarded the same year. Becoming a full time professional, the opportunities for travel continued to suit his lifestyle and in 2005, he complemented his training and dedication with a few good wins, gaining the necessary norms to be awarded the Grandmaster title.

At the 2006 Turin Olympiad, he played a small but helpful role in the national team with a very respectable score of 3.5/5. By then, his Elo rating was reflecting the consistency in his performances and he passed the 2600 mark by the early part of 2007. At the European Team Championship at Heraklion in 2007, he contributed another plus score (4.5/8) to the Netherlands team total.

2008 was a rewarding year for l'Ami. He finished with a share of second place at the European Individual Championship in Plovdiv, missing out on the medals after an eight-way play-off. More recently, he took part in the EU Individual Open Chess Championship at Liverpool, maintaining touch with the leading group throughout and finishing with a share of fifth place, alongside compatriots Sergei Tiviakov and Jan Smeets.

L'Ami is renowned for his ability at rapid chess and even the more extreme forms of speed chess, where for example, each player has only 1 minute for the entire game.