Mediaboss Marketing

Anatoly Karpov was the guest of honour at the 2020 edition of the Gibraltar Masters. The former world championopened the festival with a simultaneous performance on 29 boards, in which he got 25 wins and 4 draws. The Russian legend also talked with Tania Sachdev.During the20-minute interview, they went through some of his experiences inworld championship matches, paying special attention to the one that did not take place (against Fischer) and his first encounter againstGarry Kasparov. Karpov also gave his opinion regarding theFIDE administration and the current world championship cycle.

The full video can be replayedat the end of the transcription.

TS: Anatoly, let's start with what it's like to be in Gibraltar.Your first impressions.

AK: It's an interesting place. I think chess players are delighted to play here, at the corner of Europe. For many years already, Gibraltar has become one of theimportant chess centres in the world.

You started playing chess when you were 4years old it's been a long journey, which continues.I have to ask you what is it that you love the most about the game after all these years.

I was growing up as a chess player, and at the age of 11 I became a Candidate Master in the Soviet Union. Then I was the youngest National Master at the age of 15. I just liked to play chess and to produce some ideas results became importantonly much later. First, I just loved to play and to compete with people.

Growing up, were there masters you idolized? Who had a great impact on you in your growing up years?

I think Capablanca was one of the most important world champions for me. I studiedhis games,anda good book about Capablanca's games waswritten by International Master Vasily Panov, a Russian master. There was quite a strong influence of Capablanca's style.

The most exciting is all the world championship matches that you have played, and I want to start with the 1975 matchwith Fischer, which did not happen. Do you remember the first time you heard about Bobby Fischer? What was your feeling about it then?

Of course I knew his name and his games when I was very young, because I followed the Candidates Tournament in Yugoslavia. At that time, it wasa very long competition, 28 games with adjournments, so it was like 45 days,it was very difficult to play [Ed.The tournament ran from September 7th to October 31st, 1959]. Fischer played this Candidates Tournament, and he qualified when he was 15, and at that time he became a grandmaster at the age of 14, very young, the youngest...not in history,butof coursethe weight of the grandmaster title was much more important than nowadays.

Master Class Vol.1: Bobby Fischer

No other World Champion was more infamous both inside and outside the chess world than Bobby Fischer. On this DVD, a team of experts shows you the winning techniques and strategies employed by the 11th World Champion.

Grandmaster Dorian Rogozenco delves into Fischers openings, and retraces the development of his repertoire. What variations did Fischer play, and what sources did he use to arm himself against the best Soviet players? Mihail Marin explains Fischers particular style and his special strategic talent in annotated games against Spassky, Taimanov and other greats. Karsten Mller is not just a leading international endgame expert, but also a true Fischer connoisseur.

When Fischer was going to the 1972 match with Boris Spassky, how did you feel the match would turn out? What were your predictions of the match?

Fischer achieved fantastic results in Candidates matches:against Taimanov and Larsen, 6:0 and 6:0, and then against Petrosian with a four-point advantage, which was a great sportive result. Of course, everybody was impressed with thoseresults, as Fischer dominated. He had a very strong personality, and these players I think mostly missed thepsychological factorduring these games.

When I had to play Fischer, I prepared [a lot], and I think I had chances. I can't say I had better chances [than him] I considered it would be a tough match.

Was that a bit disappointing for you after Fischer's demands were not met and the match did not takeplace? Was it bittersweetto be world champion without a match?

No, I prepared for the match, I was ready to play, but of course I could not force Fischer to play. If he didn't appear, he didn't appear. I wanted to play and to defeat Bobby. It was my personal aim to win that match, but the leaders of my country didn't like the idea.They said, you are world champion, why to take the risk to play Fischer, you are world champion, what else do you want? I said, I want to play the strongest player of the time, I want to beat him, I have chances. And then they asked, are you sure you can win? I said, I have good chances, but it's asport, how can you be sure that you'll win?

That's why I had problems to negotiate. They said, if you guarantee [a win]. I said, are you crazy? I cannot guarantee I'll win, but I have good chances to beat Fischer.

Talking about good chances, there were a lot of mixed views.Kasparov felt that you probably would have won that match, considering that you were very active you were at your toughest, you were peaking, while Fischer hadn't actually played for three years, after 1972. On the other hand,Spassky said that maybe Fischer would have won that match, but you would come back and win the next cycle.

Fischer had a big supporter in Spassky.Probably because of this admiration Spassky missed his chances to play more successfully against Fischer in the match. If you analyse that match, Fischer won with a big gap, but in the middle of the match they both lost energy, so they were playing like boxers fighting in the last round of the battle. From game 11 or 12, I think forsix games both sides could win, so the match could have continued in a different direction. In game 13, Spassky was winning almost by force, and he missed it, in the middle of the game. Actually, I got a lot of respect among our top players, when I showed during the game Petrosian and Keres how Spassky could win the game.

Were you at the venue at that time?

No, we were preparing for the Chess Olympiad in Skopje. We were together, and I just analysed and showed that Spassky missed a clear advantage, almost winning. And then he lost that game. It was an Alekhine Defence. He missed chances and lost opportunities to win.

After you became world champion, you went on to play many tournaments, you were a very active world champion. Was there some sort of motivation to prove thateven though the match did not happenyou were the best in the world?

I always played a lot, but not too much. I normally played around 80 games a year, but I played of course much more than any other world champion. Probably because I accumulated a lot of energyand my preparation was very serious for the match with Fischer so I could play almost without preparation any tournament with any list of players.

You wanted to make the most of that preparation so it wouldn't go to waste?

Yes, I used all my preparation of course.

My Life for Chess Vol. 1

Victor Kortchnoi, two-times contender for the world championship, is a piece of living chess history. He is known as one of the greatest fighters in the history of chess. On this DVD he speaks about his life and shows his game.

You played these matches with Korchnoi, then with Kasparov, and even the ones you played later with Kasparov were very close matches 11 to 11, they were very tough fights. Which World Championship match you think had the biggest impact on you?

I don't know. But Korchnoi reached his peak in '77-'78, which I didn't expect, but I was sure I had better chances in the match. In '78, it was almost a repetition of our match in '74.I won three out of eighteen games andKorchnoi didn't succeed to win even one, so it was a huge advantage:three points before the end and we needed to play six more games. And then, suddenly, I lost two games almost in a row I lost game 19 and game 21. Suddenly Korchnoi recovered, and it was a big competition in the last three games, but I had two Whites and one Black, so I succeeded to get three draws. Even the last game was completely winning for me, but of course Korchnoi had to win to equalize the score, so he played a little bit risky, and then I offered him a draw in a winning position. I needed just a draw, and I didn't make the mistake to try to win, because I didn't need it. Then Korchnoi realized he was losing when I offered a draw and he didn't take the chance to lose another one.

The last title Iwonwas against Anand. It was a very exciting match.

Thefeature documentary "Closing Gambit" reviewed the major rivalry between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi |Photo: Screenbound Pictures

For the chess world, it was a big moment for how rich these world championship matches were the match with Korchnoi, and then in '84 the match with Kasparov, which you were leading after 48 games and it was stopped...

We both lost. We waited...but still we had to continue according to the regulations. There was a big pressure by Kasparov's supporters. At that time, they took very high positions in the Soviet Union, so Campomanes could not resist. He made a crazy decision, which separated the world in two parts.

Actually, if I would have won that match especially if I got a 6:0...I got chances Kasparov would have never become world champion. He would have been completely destroyed, psychologically destroyed, because he's very emotional, so I don't think he would have become the strongest player in the world.

How I became World Champion Vol.1 1973-1985

Garry Kasparov's rise to the top was meteoric and at his very first attempt he managed to become World Champion, the youngest of all time. In over six hours of video, he gives a first hand account of crucial events from recent chess history, you can improve your chess understanding and enjoy explanations and comments from a unique and outstanding personality on and off the chess board.

Would have Garry Kasparov won the world championship after a 6:0 loss in his first match against Karpov | Photo: Owen Williams, The Kasparov Agency

Everybody who studies games, whether from the world championship matches, or the Alekhine Memorial which you won, or the Linares tournament, you want to see the games again to see what really happened, andyour opponents had this feeling of helplessness. Recently, I think it was Yannick Pelletier who said he was playing against you many years ago, and he has never felt so helpless in his life. How would you describe your style of play? What was it that left your opponents so helpless?

I was playing for a win the whole game. Even when I had problems, figuring out how to defend, I was still looking how to defend andhow to counterattack.I could find additional possibilities to create problems to my opponents.

But also a very strong positional style, it was an aggressive positional style.

Yes, so probably this is the part of my style...it was not only positional, because Petrosian played positional chess, but this was different. Let's say, he played the Caro-Kann Defence just to make a draw, and I played the Caro-Kann Defence to win, so there's a big difference it's a very passive opening, but you play it for a win. And I won many games. Who discovered what I did was Kamsky: playing with Black, I made the move e8-e7 without castling in the middle of the game, with the queens and all the pieces on the board. It was a big surprise, and all the players of the tournament in Dortmund were coming, looking, asking what happened.

How do you assess the work of this FIDE under Mr. Arkady Dvorkovich?

I consider this to bea positive change. He's working a lot and he succeeded to organize already many top level official events, and he saved the situation with Saudi Arabia, he moved that championship to Saint Petersburg and then thepast year to Moscow. He made a decision to decrease the possibility of corruption in chess politics, because they decided in the Congress to exclude proxies,a big part of the corruptedsystem which Campomanes and Ilyumzhinov created in the chess world.

So I consider this change as a very important change, and very positive.

You're also involved with a lot of work in Russia as a member of Parliament. Can I ask about that? That must take a lot of your time.

Yes, it's a full-time job, so that's why I'm playing less and less. Now I playonly rapid chess orblitz tournaments, very seldom classical chess, because classical tournaments require moretime. But even now I'm playing quite good in blitz. For instance, Karjakin, who became world champion in blitz two years ago [Ed. Karjakin got the title in 2016], before that tournament I was almost equal with him playing blitz privately. We are friends, so weplay from time to time privately. Before that, let's say six years ago, I was stronger than him.

So you're a specialist in shorter time controls.

Yes, since a young age I play all this blitz. Even now I play quite strong in blitz.

You're also part of the organizing committee for the Candidates Tournament that is coming up. Tell us about that involvement as an organizer. What expertise will you be bringing in?

I gave them advices about how to organize things, and I believe this will be a well-organized Candidates Tournament, probably one of the best, because we have a top level hotel, and we signed an agreement already with the owners of the hotel, so participants will stay there and will play in the tournament hall, in the hotel. With the climate, [transportation] is not so easy, butif they don't want they don't have to leave the hotel. They can stay there, and of course they have a fitness centre, so they can stay there without any problems. Fortunately, we have a governor who supports chess, and I know him for a long time, so we have his support. His deputy is the chairman of the organizing committee. I'm sure it will be very well organized.

The chess world is really looking forward to it. One of the stories around the Candidates recently was the Alekseenko wildcard. In fact, Alekseenko will be here at the Gibraltar Masters. You think that in the world championship cycle there should be a wildcard?

It was a difficult decision, because we had Vachier-Lagrave, who was the main candidate for this place, but at that time Russia didn't have even one...I don't think I'm in favour of having a wildcard for Candidates Tournament, but I can hardly see organizers without their representative in the Candidates Tournament, so that's why it was a difficult decision for FIDE, but at that time Russia didn't have representatives.

And then they had two already.

At the last moment we got another two.

Anatoly, you have played so many different formats of the world championship. The one that currently exists, the world championship cycle as it is right now, do you think it's ideal, do you think there is room for improvement?

I don't like the decisions about changing the time control, I'm not in favour of this it brings classical chess closer to rapid chess, and then I don't see the reason why we have two championships. Make one.

Still, I believe the world championship match should last 16 games.

Master Class Vol.6: Anatoly Karpov

On this DVD a team of experts looks closely at the secrets of Karpov's games. In more than 7 hours of video, the authors examine four essential aspects of Karpov's superb play.

Also, many times the world championship match is going into tiebreaks, which is then decided in rapid and blitz actually.

I'm strictly against this, because you can't combine classical chess and blitz. The world championship title is so important that you cannot decide it with blitz games.

But what do you do if the match is a tie? How do you go forward? Let's say, ifit's even 16 games and it's 8:8, how do you...?

To play until the first win.

(Laughs) Simple.Forthe classical world championship, it should be classical chess.

Yes, yes.

No conversation about the world championship match is complete until I ask you this question: who do you think will challenge Magnus Carlsen in the 2020 match?

This time I think Ding has better chances. He showed his strength last year, and I believe he's the favourite. But still, I believe Carlsen will continue to be world champion at least one more time.

It was an absolute pleasure to have you here with us. Thank you so much for your time, and thank you for inspiring us.

Thank you. Good luck.

Read the original:
Karpov on Fischer, Korchnoi, Kasparov and the chess world today - Chessbase News

Devin Nakano is determined to give at-risk kids in the Treasure Valley a chance at college, and a successful career in the STEM field.

Devin Nakano of Boise is the founder of Y Stem and Chess Inc., a nonprofit that is changing young lives. Since 2017, Nakano has been voluntarily teaching at-risk kids chess, math and computer coding, all in the hopes of breaking the cycle of poverty.

It builds critical thinking, it raises your IQ, it builds math scores, reading scores and writing scores, it helps you communicate, it builds self-esteem, the list really goes on and on and on, Nakano said of the benefits of chess and STEM education.

He volunteers his time at places like the Boys and Girls Club, Taft Elementary, and the Boise Rescue Mission. Nakano is passionate about helping underprivileged kids get to college and beyond.

I saw a huge need. I figured if I get the kids to graduate with a STEM degree, we can break the cycle of poverty within one generation, said Nakano. How can I get these kids with no stem knowledge to eventually become an engineer, pursuing college?

Nakano has quite a story himself, and that story inspires him to give back.

I have Aspergers. When I was first diagnosed at three years old the doctors told my mom the prospects of me living a successful life were slim to none, he said.

According to Autism Speaks, Asberger syndrome, or Asberger's, is a previously used diagnosis on the autism spectrum. In 2013, it became part of one umbrella diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder or ASD.

That little boy with Asperger syndrome went on to prove the naysayers wrong. He went through school with ease and incredible success and earned a master's degree in engineering and cybersecurity. Devin says he was given the support he needed from his mother and teachers to be a success story, and he wants the kids he works with to get that opportunity too. Thats why he started his nonprofit.

The entire idea of this program is to empower kids and to show them what their future can hold if they work hard, said Nakano. We'll give you all the resources you need to be successful.

Nakano also recruits mentors in the STEM field in the Treasure Valley to help teach his students, who believe in his mission.

We are nonprofit, tax-exempt, all the mentors that work with these kids all come on their off-hours, Nakano explained.

Nakano recently started a Chess Club for the Boise Rescue Mission Youth Program, which has been a huge success.

A lot of the kids who come and stay with us at the shelter don't know what they are good at or what they like, said Kelsey Korvela, the events coordinator for the Boise Rescue Mission. It's just exciting to see what he inspires in them. He's going to single-handedly break the cycle of homelessness in some of their lives.

Nakano also helps with college admissions, and financial aid and scholarship applications. He says he thrives on watching kids light up when they see the future that they can have if they work hard.

They need someone that will day in and day out show up and have fun, teach them and mentor them," he said, "and help them empower themselves to a future that is wonderful."

Devin Nakano is determined to prove that all children can succeed with the right mentors and support.

This is going to be my life's work," he said.

For more information on YSTEM and CHESS INC, go to their website here. You can also check out the Facebook page. People can donate to the non-profit or even apply to become a mentor.

See all of the heartwarming segments in ourYouTube playlisthere:

Read more heartwarming 7's Hero articles:

Visit link:
Boise man with Asperger syndrome starts nonprofit to bring chess and STEM education to underprivileged kids - KTVB.com

Chess is very easy to learn, but difficult to master, Chandna said. It takes a lifetime to master. Its always a challenge to learn more and be better.

After years of playing, Chandna decided to take a step back from playing to try his hand at coaching.

The summer after he graduated high school, Chandna created MyChessTutor, an online coaching service that gives personalized chess lessons using a two-dimensional chessboard and video conference tools to give real time feedback and individual diagnostics to students.

Chandna started locally, reaching out to potential students around Chapel Hill and contacting people he had met at tournaments.

Building up clientele was a process he had to give lessons for very cheap, he said. But Chandna was discovering that he had a knack for teaching and his students were responding and improving rapidly.

Theres a lot of intricacies and subtleties with chess, so its a challenge and a big fulfillment of the soul to keep improving, Chandna said.

One of his students described Chandna as one of the best coaches in the world and very understanding." They said they are now able to beat high-level players at bigger tournaments because of the academy.

Soon, MyChessTutor took off and drew students of all demographics.

Our youngest student is five years old, and right now, our oldest is 79, Chandna said. So across the spectrum. We work with complete beginners all the way to people competing at state level.

As the company grew in numbers drawing pupils who included doctors, tech professionals and CEOS the business needed more attention, Chandna said.

As a sophomore business major at UNC, Chandna said balancing the rigor of school with a start-up business became too grueling. So after his first semester sophomore year, he took a semester off from UNC to focus on the managerial aspects of his company and focusing on growing the business and fixing efficiency issues, which meant hiring coaches to help him teach.

Daniel Guel, the first additional coach Chandna hired, said he took the job because he saw an opportunity to get involved with a startup, while also polishing his own chess skills through teaching. An 18-year old from Waco, Texas, Guel has competed in tournaments across the state.

I do genuinely enjoy watching my students progress, Guel said. Seeing them get to some certain rating and being excited about it or seeing them play a tournament or achieve something is fulfilling as a coach.

The academy is growing constantly. Chandna said every month the academy grows by 10 percent, and he projects MyChessTutor will enroll 200 students by the end of the year.

Chandna will return to UNC next semester, but said he is enjoying growing the academy and dabbling in other business projects. He said he has an affinity for education and hopes to continue his entrepreneurial endeavors by eventually creating other business projects dedicated to teaching and learning.

This is something I love, Chandna said. I feel that this semester can really launch my career and really accelerate my progress in life.

@MacyEMeyer

university@dailytarheel.com

Read the original here:
Meet the UNC student who runs his own online chess tutoring service - The Daily Tar Heel

Academy at Palumbo High School senior Timmy Zheng competes in a chess tournament at the School District of Philadelphia. Photo/Mark Zimmaro

Timmy Zheng is a quiet competitor.

But dont let his soft-spoken nature fool you into thinking youve got one over on him. In fact, hes already set his trap.

Zheng is a senior at the Academy at Palumbo school, 11th and Catharine streets, and is lauded as one of the best high school chess players in the city. And hes accomplished that feat in a short amount of time after a long absence from playing the game.

I technically started playing chess when I was little but then I stopped playing, Zheng said. After my sophomore year, I started playing again.

In just two short years, Zheng has risen from a rook to a king as he currently resides in first place individually in the Philadelphia Scholastic Chess League after the fourth and final tournament of the regular season, which was held on Jan. 28 at the School District of Philadelphia.

The Academy at Palumbo also earned the top seed heading into the playoffs and will earn a free pass through the wildcard round on Feb. 11 and will compete in the semifinals on Feb. 20.

The Griffins have formed a tight group of friends that challenge each other during practices and online. Teammate Brandon Luk was responsible for bringing Zheng onto the roster and its been all chess, all the time for the Griffins.

There was really no one to play with, Zheng recalled before he joined the team. So I had less interest in it. But I had Brandon invite me to play again, and it brought the interest back. Now I have more friends that play.

Those friends also include teammates Bobby Fishburn-Spivery, Andy Nguyen, Timothy Sontono, Son Luu and Mythi Nguyen, who were all ranked highly in the league as of last week. They all get along together really well.

Theres a good camaraderie, Academy at Palumbo chess coach Ed Myers said. Generally, weve been able to field a solid team and the distribution of talent is pretty even with the exception of Timmy, who is a super player. For that reason, weve been able to remain in first place.

The PCSL is the competitive arm of After School Activities Partnership Chess, with more than 50 teams and 500 youth competing at the elementary, middle and high school levels.

There are 112 high school students listed on the league standings, with Zheng sitting at the top.

Hes very dedicated to learning the game and studying strategy and tactics, Myers said. He works at it very hard and spends a lot of time online playing chess, where a lot of students build up their knowledge base. Its really gratifying to see how the students teach each other.

Zheng has other talents as well. He takes part in robotics and coding club at school and he plans to study computer science at Drexel University next year. Hes hoping to play chess next year as a club sport for the Dragons. But right now, improving among his peers is the main focus for Zheng, who enjoys the tactical side of defeating his foes.

I like the tactics of it, Zheng said. It feels good when you figure out a tactic that helps you win. Its exciting.

Zheng carries a United States Chess Federation rating of 1654, which is also highest in the league. Players are rated and matched up against other players of a similar caliber to keep games competitive. Zheng plays against the best of the best on a daily basis.

And he quietly enjoys the challenge.

Hes very quiet and very unassuming but it didnt take long for us to recognize that he was an exceptional talent, Myers said. Hes been a great asset to our team.

Read more:
Chess master Timmy Zheng has Palumbo on top of standings - South Philly Review

Alireza Firouzja recently threatened to win the Tata Steel Mastersat the age of 16, and even though he hit the wall of Carlsen, Caruana and Anandhe still starts February with an extraordinary 2726 rating. Hes clearly one ofthe best 16-year-old chess players of all time, but in this new 2-part articleFrench FM Joachim Iglesias looks at the other contenders. In Part 1 he lookschronologically at players from Mikhail Botvinnik to Bobby Fischer, GarryKasparov, Vladimir Kramnik and Judit Polgar.

by Joachim Iglesias

In this two-part article were going to take a look at thesixteen best 16-year-old players in the history of chess. From MikhailBotvinnik to Alireza Firouzja, youll see that even if no-ones serious at 17(Rimbaud) they can be at 16 in chess!

As with any selection, there is of course an element ofsubjectivity.

Among the notable absentees are child prodigies from an erawhen there were few tournaments and they only experienced their first greatsuccesses in their twenties.

Paul Morphy, born in 1837, won his first US Championship in1857, at the age of 20. It was his first major tournament

Jose-Raul Capablanca, born in 1888, won a match against theCuban Champion when he was 13, but he only gained international recognition bydefeating Frank Marshall in 1909

Samuel Reshevsky was a child star, but his career onlyreally began with his victory in the National Open in Tulsa in 1931 - he was 20 yearsold at the time

Among the players from the more recent past who dontfeature here Anatoly Karpov and Vishy Anand are the greatest champions.

And now let's look at the sixteen best 16-year-olds in chess history, inchronological order:

Misha learned to play chess at the age of 12. The man whowas to become the patriarch of Soviet chess started to be talked about at 14years old, when he beat the World Champion Jose-Raul Capablanca in a simul. Twoyears later, in 1927, Botvinnik finished 5th in the worlds strongest nationalcontest, the USSR Championship. He won a miniature with Black againsttheoretician Vladimir Makogonov:

Young Misha concentrated his pieces on the kingside, puttingmaximum pressure on White, who cracked: 23.g4??fxg4! 24.Qxe4 and here not 24...gxf3 25.Qxf3, which would prolong thecontest, but 24...gxh3! and White resigned, since 25.Bh1 h2+26.Kg2 Qh3 is mate.

Mikhail would once again finish 5th in the USSR Championshipat the age of 18 before winning it as a 20-year-old. He went on to be World Champion from 1948 to 1957, 1958to 1960 and 1961 to 1963.

Boris Vasilievich Spassky was spotted very early on by theSoviet Chess Federation, which awarded him a monthly scholarship from the ageof 11 and allowed him to play his first major tournament abroad in 1953.

The young Borya celebrated turning 16 during a tournamentin Bucharest where he finished 4th out of 20 players, behind Alexander Tolush(Spasskys coach) and future World Champions Tigran Petrosian and Vasily Smyslovand tied with GMs Laszlo Szabo and Isaac Boleslavsky. That performance madeSpassky an International Master, a title that was much harder to achieve at thetime than it is to become a grandmaster today.

The icing on the cake was that Boris won the tournamentsbeauty price thanks to his magnificent win over Smyslov, who four years laterwould become World Champion:

33.Nxg7! The mainidea is 33...Kxg7 34.Rg3+ Kf8 35.Rxf7+!! with mate-in-2. The player who wasgoing to win the famous Zurich Candidates Tournament a few months later tried 33...Rxd6 but resigned after 34.Nxe6, since after 34Rxd2 35.Rg3+ its mate next move.

Spassky dethroned Petrosian as the youngest grandmaster inhistory in 1955, at the age of 18. Petrosian had become a grandmaster at 23. Boris Spassky was World Champion from 1969 to 1972.

Robert James Fischer was only 13 when he won the Game of theCentury against Donald Byrne. He became US Champion for the first time in1957, at 14 years of age.

In 1958, at the age of 15, Bobby became the youngestgrandmaster of all time, beating Spasskys record by three years. Were so usedto seeing 13 or 14-year-old grandmasters nowadays that its hard to see whatthe fuss was about at the time. You should know, however, that if not forFischer, Spasskys record would have lasted for 25 years, until 1980, when GarryKasparov became a grandmaster at the age of 17! And Fischers record was onlybeaten 33 years later, in 1991, when Judit Polgar became a grandmaster a monthquicker than Fischer.

In 1959 Bobby Fischer competed in the Bled-Zagreb CandidatesTournament. Mikhail Tal won that 8-player quadruple round-robin, thus winningthe right to face Mikhail Botvinnik. 16-year-old Bobby tied for 5th place withSvetozar Gligoric, ahead of Fridrik Olafsson and Pal Benko. In the first roundhe beat Paul Keres, who would finish 2nd.

Keres was the favourite to win the Candidates and thegreat theoretician sacrificed his queen with 11.Bxf6!? Nxf6 12.e5! Bb7 13.exf6! the only move that couldjustify the previous two - 13...Bxf314.Bxf3 Bxf6 15.Bxa8

White has a temporary material advantage despite being aqueen down, but Bobby shut out the bishop on a8 with 15d5!?, inviting White to sacrifice: 16.Bxd5 Bxd4 17.Rxd4 exd5 18.Nxd5 Qc5 19.Re1+ Kf8 20.c3

The position is more or less equal, but the youngsterdominated his opponent and ended the game with a nice Epaulette mate:

Instead of resigning, Keres played 53.Rc4, allowing 53Qe5# mate on the board!

Bobby Fischer was World Champion from 1972 until 1975.

Alexander Nikitin, Gariks first coach, brought him tothe famous Botvinnik school when the future star was only 10 years old. Inaddition to Nikitins coaching, Garry could take advantage of lessons from theformer World Champion as well as those of Mark Dvoretsky.

Thanks to coaching from the worlds best chess school, Garikwas able to play his first major international tournament outside of the USSRat the age of only 16. Of the 16 players in Banja Luka in 1979 all weregrandmasters except for Kasparov and another talent born in 1953, GuillermoGarcia, who went on to become a grandmaster. Among the big names we find formerWorld Champion Tigran Petrosian, Ulf Andersson, Jan Smejkal, Walter Browne

Garik won the tournament with an unbeaten 11.5/15, twopoints ahead of second place!

Kasparov may not yet have had the thousand eyes thatEnglish GM Tony Miles remarked upon, but he was already a monster in tacticalpositions. Heres the end of his game against GM Slavoljub Marjanovic:

Black was counting on 26.exf6 Qc6 and, even if White has theadvantage, nothing is decided yet. Kasparov instead played with power and precision: 26.Qxh5! Qc6 27.f3 Be7 28.Bh7+! Kf8 29.Qf5+Ke8 30.Bg6+ Kd8 31.Rd1+

If 31Kc7 then 32.e6+! is decisive. The grandmasterpreferred to give up his queen with 31Qd5and resigned a few moves later.

Thanks to that tournament Kasparov obtained a first ratingof 2595, 15th place on the January 1st 1980 FIDE rating list. Garry Kasparovwas World Champion from 1985 until 2000 and the world no. 1 for over 21 years.

Jol surprised the chess world by winning the World JuniorChampionship (Under 20) when he was only 15 years old! The Frenchman finished aheadof Vassily Ivanchuk (19 years old), Boris Gelfand (20) and Gregory Serper (19),and 32 years later the record still stands. Jol became a grandmaster in 1990(nowadays he would have become a grandmaster for winning the World Juniors) andin July of that year, at the age of 17, he was no. 54 in the world, with a 2570rating.

Jol was only 15 years old when he defeated the very strongEnglish Grandmaster John Nunn in great style.

In this typical Kings Indian position the most played moves were 13.c5, 13.Rc1 and 13.b4, with White attacking at full strength on thequeenside and hoping to be quicker than Black will be on the kingside. After havingkept up with the latest theory, Lautier unleashed a move that was almost anovelty at the time and would go on to be one of the main variations - 13.g4!, with the aim of slowing downthe black initiative.

A few moves later and the kingside was perfectly blockaded.Or was it?

Black cant wait around: if White gets to play one moreprophylactic move like Kh2 hell have his hands free on the queenside. TheEnglishman sacrificed with 18...Nxg5!but Lautier didnt respond with the nave 19.hxg5?, after which Black wouldhave uncorked 19...Nxd5! with major complications, but 19.Kh2! After 19...Nh7 20.Kxh3Black didnt have enough play against the fearless white king.

The end was aesthetically pleasing:

In time trouble 39.Rxf7?? would have been a terrible mistake, sinceBlack has a perpetual on the 2nd rank! Jol instead chose the most efficientand beautiful win: 39.Qg1!!. IfBlack takes the queen with check, 39Rxg1+, hell have to give it back withcheck on the next move and transpose into a resignable ending. Nunn played 39Bf2, but after 40.Rxf7 Rxg1+ 41.Kh2 Black resigned since the checks will quicklyrun out.

Jol Lautier reached the world no. 13 spot in 1995 andobtained his peak rating of 2687 in 2002. He quit chess in 2005, no longerhaving any chance of achieving the goal hed set himself: to become WorldChampion.

Gata didnt wait until the Banter Blitz Cup in order tobecome a Famous F*ckingLegend. On the July 1990 rating list, at the age of 16 years and one month,Gata was already the world no. 8. It was therefore no surprise when he won theTilburg 1990 supertournament, tying for first place with Vassily Ivanchuk aheadof Boris Gelfand, Nigel Short, Jan Timman, Ulf Andersson, Predrag Nikolic andYasser Seirawan.

The following year he gave a real positional lesson to noneother than Anatoly Karpov:

The position after 12.Kxd2should have been perfect for the former World Champion. Facing a kid, Karpovwas playing for two results, right?

Karpov went on to play the imprecise 19.Bc3? and Kamsky brilliantly punished him with 19...Na7! threatening Ba4. After 20.Bd2, Gata didnt repeat moves butplayed 20...Nb5! provoking the weakening21.e5. The following moves by Black wouldhave pleased Nimzowitsch and Petrosian: Gata went on to play Bc6, Na7, Bd5 andNc6, with a perfect blockade on the light squares.

On move 48 Gata sacrificed a pawn in order to create apassed pawn:

48...g5!! 49.hxg5 h4+with an advantage despite being a pawn down.

It all ended with a little combination la Capablanca:

56...Rg2+ 57.Kf1Rxe2! 58.Kxe2 Bc4 59.d5!? exd5 60.Kd2 Bxd3 61.Kxd3 d4! with an easily wonending.

In 1996 Anatoly Karpov took revenge by beating Gata Kamskyin the FIDE World Championship match. After that defeat Gata didnt play againuntil 2004, but would still go on to win the 2007 World Cup.

Kramnik won the Dortmund Open (not the closed grandmastertournament) in 1992. Garry Kasparov said in an interview in New in Chess:

The most talented of all the players I have seen here isVladimir Kramnik. In terms of talent he is definitely No. 1. I have never saidthis before, but I think he is the only one who plays as well as I did at thesame age. I have always smiled regarding the talent of Judit Polgar, andlaughed regarding Gata Kamsky, and I do not believe the other players of theDortmund Festival. But 16-year-old Kramnik is already playing big-time chess. Hisis a genuine chess talent. There are many players, but they don't play chess,they move the pieces. Whereas Kramnik plays chess. (Quoted in the book Kramnik,My Life and Games)

Kramnik made real chess history at the Manila Olympiad inJune 1992. Russia owed its first victory since the collapse of the USSR inlarge part to the young Vladimir, who achieved the best result of thetournament, with 8.5/9 and a 2958 performance. The competition ended on the dayof Vovas 17th birthday.

During that Olympiad he easily converted his advantage in anending against the formidable GM Yasser Seirawan:

With Black Kramnik played 27...Kf8! since the exchange of knights doesnt allow an easy draw.For example: 28.Nxc5 Rxc5 29.Rd6 Ra5!. Seirawan played 28.Rd6 and Kramnik responded precisely with 28...Ne4! 29.Rxa6 Rxc4 30.Kf1 Rc2! with a clear advantage. Whitewas helpless until the end:

59...f4! 60.Ra1 g2!61. Kf2 Kh2 White resigns.

Vladimir Kramnik was World Champion from 2000 to 2007.

Known as the Queen of Chess and the best female player of alltime, Judit Polgar for a long time and even still could claim to be the greatesttalent in the history of chess! (even if she would challenge the word talent).On January 1st 1989, at 12 and a half, she was 57th in the world with a 2555rating, a record that will probably never be broken. In 1991 she finallydethroned Bobby Fischer as the youngest grandmaster of all time, 33 years afterthat record was set! Judit was 15 years and 4 months old.

At 16 years old, she was the joint winner of the Hastingssupertournament, tied with Evgeny Bareev and above the strong grandmasters JonSpeelman, Matthew Sadler, John Nunn, Mikhail Gurevich and Lev Polugaevsky.

Heres how she destroyed the very strong GrandmasterAlexander Chernin when she was only 14 years old, in 1990:

22...Rxg2+! 23.Rxg2Bxh3 24.Ne4 Ne5!! The point, and the only move that doesnt lose! 25.Nxe5 Bxe5 and White is helpless.

Chernin couldnt find anything better than 26.Ng5, but after 26...Bxg2+ 27.Kxg2 Qxg5+ Black was attacking with a material advantage.White resigned two moves later.

Judit Polgar reached world no. 8, with a peak rating of2735.

More:
The 16 best 16-year-olds of all time | Part 1 - chess24