I have often heard that the game of chess needs to be amended, that computers have ruined the game, and that memorizations of openings have made chess mundane.  These same opinions have spurred various entities to create and recommend new versions of the game of chess. 

Bobby Fischer created Fischer Random Chess (also called Chess960), 3-way chess and 4-way chess variations have been kicked around, and Gothic Chess (originally thought up in principle by Capablanca in the 1920’s) has made an attempt to gain a following of it’s own.

I thoroughly believe that Classical Chess will never be “played out”.  This great game has stood the test of time over hundreds of years and will continue to do so for generations to come.  There will always be crackpots and naysayers that will attempt to ruin the game with hairbrain innovations of their own. 

Truth be told, Fischer was the only one with enough clout to recommend a variation.  He reached the highest pinnacle of the game and could recite over thousands of moves off the top of his head from games he played over 20 years ago.  Maybe it did become too easy for him, who knows?

The point is that this type of narrow thinking has been going on for hundreds of years, way before computers were even a thought.  To prove this, I have taken an excerpt from an article written in the 1887 Columbia Chess Chronicle:

Innovations In Chess

From time to time schemes are devised, for modifying the game of chess, or of introducing a new notation, thereby giving, according to its inventor, a greater diversity to the game or a superior facility in writing down the moves.  Recently the chess editor of the Globe Democrat of St.Louis has invented a novel piece which he calls the "Chancellor" and which combines the power of Rook and Knight.

He has even organised a problem tournament in which this novel piece should be utilized.  This innovation, like all its precedents, will live as long as its author will occupy himself with it, and then sink into oblivion.  Our game as it is, universally adopted, should be maintained with all its qualities and all its faults, it is already inexhaustible in variety, in opening as well as in the ending.

Do we not see in every instance, the greatest theorists rejecting to-morrow and their preconisations of to-night!  The inventor of the "Chancellor" may perhaps become convinced, that the discovery of errors in the thousands of chess volumes already printed, yields a large field for the ingenuity of chess enthusiasts, and that the demand for "novelties" makes itself felt nowhere. -- La Strategie

This is a test of a newer PGN functionality that we are considering as an alternative to Chess Publisher.

Comments, thoughts, suggestions ??

We have updated our website page on the 1882 Vienna Tournament with the addition of some minor facts and stories from that great event.

Click HERE to view the page. 

With the “Brain Games Network” world chess champion decided after Vladimir Kramnik’s victory over Garry Kasparov in the fall of 2000, the FIDE was in the process of staging a Knock-Out tournament to decide their respective champion.  The event would enable 72 players to vie for the coveted title of FIDE World Chess Champion.

The favored Viswanathan Anand would defeat some relative unknowns through the first four rounds.  In Round 5 he would narrowly escape with a victory over reigning FIDE title holder Alexander Khalifman (+1 -0 =5) and in Round 6 he would defeat Michael Adams of Britain (+1 -0 =3) to set up a final round pairing against Spain’s Alexei Shirov for the title.

The match against Shirov proved less than entertaining, as Anand dominated from start to finish by winning the title with 3 wins, 0 losses, and 1 draw.  Anand was now the FIDE champion of a sport that was divided, as Kramnik was the recognized champion by many others.  Speculation immediately began on whether or not these two would play each other to consolidate the title for the first time since 1993.

For more than 100 years there was only one world chess champion, but when Kasparov broke off from the FIDE in 1993 to form the PCA (Professional Chess Association), the chess world was thrown into chaos and confusion.  The PCA had the fortune of financial backing by Intel in it’s beginnings, but lost sponsorship shortly after Kasparov’s victory over Anand in 1995.  Without the financial backing, the association collapsed.

In 1998 Kasparov found a new financier in the Brain Games Network, who agreed to back a championship match between Kasparov and Kramnik in 2000 (which Kramnik won).  That brings us to this particular point in history with our current day rivals (Kramnik & Anand) holding the two titles and the entire chess world hoping to see some form of unification.

Click HERE to replay Anand’s year 2000 title clinching victory obver Shirov. 

After winning the World Chess Championship in 1969 from Tigran Petrosian, it was very apparent that there was no “rest for the weary”.  The great American chess player Bobby Fischer quickly became the favorite to face Spassky for his crown and did so by winning the 1970 Interzonal and the 1971 Candidates. 

To this point in time, Spassky had not lost a single game against the American.  Boris had won all three encounters with the white pieces and had managed draws in their other two with the black pieces.  But Spassky knew this was a different Fischer, who at one point through qualifying, won 20 games in a row.  Boris quickly went to work on preparations and seemed ready for the contest when he arrived at the site of the battle in Reykjavik, Iceland on June 21st, 1972.

The contest began (after much controversy and a late arrival by the challenger) on July 11th with Spassky playing the white pieces.  The game seemed headed for a draw when Fischer made one of the biggest blunders in world championship history.  He played 29….Bxh2 which trapped his Bishop by Spassky’s 30. g3 move.  Amazingly enough, Fischer decided to struggle on until the 56th move, when he finally resigned the hopeless game.

After the Game 1 loss, Fischer complained about everyting from cameras being too loud to spectators being too close to the stage, and refused to play Game 2 until his demands were satisfied.  Arbiter Lothar Schmid refused to give in to Fischer’s tantrums this time and when Fischer failed to appear for game 2, he was forfeited.  Spassky now led the match 2-0, but a furious Fischer was threatening to foreit the match and leave Iceland.

After much bolstering from his camp and some minor concessions made by the Russians and the arbiter, Fischer eventually decided to contuinue.  However, it was to be played in the back room, away from the stage, the spectators, and any cameras.  Spassky begrudgingly agreed to this and was soundly beaten in Game 3. 

Fischer seemed invigorated by the victory.  Spassky on the other hand, seemed weary and sluggish due to all of the contrversial tactics of his opponent.  Even after the match was moved back to the main stage for Game 4, Boris never seemed to be the same again after his Game 3 defeat.  He would manage a Game 4 draw, but was defeated in Games 5 & 6.  Fischer now had the match lead and Boris would only manage to win one more game for the rest of the contest.  Spassky lost the match by a score of 3 wins, 7 losses, and 11 draws.

Spassky was scorned by his government for the loss.  It seemed that his chess career was demolished in one swift blow.  After taking some time off, Spassky would participate in one of the strongest fields ever assembled for a USSR Championship in 1973.  The participants included three former world champions (Tal, Smyslov, Petrosian), a future world champion (Karpov) ,  a host of past & fututre world champion contenders (Keres, Geller, Korchnoi, Taimonov, Beliavsky), and several other talented Russian players.

Spassky would battle atop the leaderboard with Karpov, Korchnoi, and Petrosian. In the end, he would come out on top to win his second USSR Championship and achieve one of the greatest victories of his career.  He would qualify for the Candidates the following year in 1974, but lose to eventual champion Karpov (+1 -4 =6).  This signaled the end of Spassky’s full time chess career. 

Spassky moved to France in 1976 and was granted citizenship in 1978.  His nemesis Fischer would emerge from seclusion in 1992 and the two would play a rematch of the “Match of the Century” in Sveti Stefan, Yugoslavia.  Spassky was actually happy to see Bobby,  and his hope was that this would spark Fischer to come back to competitive chess, for it was his opinion that the game needed Fischer.  Spassky would again lose to the chess legend by a marathon score of 5 wins, 10 losses, and 15 draws.  Unfortunately, Fischer immediately went back into seclusion and never played again. 

Spassky continues to be an ambassdor of the game of chess to this very day.  His sportmanship and dedication have been an inspiration to people all over the world.  His rival Fischer passed away in January of 2008 at the age of 64.  Oddly enough, his last days were spent at the site of their legenday battle, Reykjavik, Iceland.  Boris recently visited Bobby’s grave to pay his respects and he was obsevered by many …….. fighting back some tears.

Who is this revolutionary chess player and what do you know about him?

Hints available upon request.

Boris Vasiliyevich Spassky was born in Leningrad, Russia on January 30, 1937.  He learned how to play chess when he was five years old and would achieve the rank of International Master by the young age of sixteen.  He was mentored in the early stages of his career by famed Soviet grandmaster Alexander Tolush.

In 1955 Spassky would win the World Junior Championship in Antwerp, Belgium.   That same year he attained the title of International Grandmaster (the youngest ever at that time) and additionally qualifed for his first Candidates tournament (tying for 3rd-7th).  Over the next few years Spassky would have some encouraging results, but he would also have his fair share of heartbreaking losses and too many second place finishes for his liking.

After much deliberation in the summer of 1961, Spassky would part ways with the aggressive methodology of Tolush and join up with the strategist Igor Bondarevsky.  The change in coaching philosophies paid dividends immediately, as Spassky would win his first USSR Championship in December of 1961.  He would tie for first in at the same event in 1963, losing a playoff to eventual winner Leonid Stein.

At the 1964 Interzonal in Amsterdam, Boris would tie for first place with Mikhail Tal, Bent Larsen, and Vasily Smyslov.  He would go on to defeat Paul Keres (+4 -2 =4), Efim Geller (+3 -0 =5), and long time nemesis Tal (+4 -1 =6) at the 1965 Candidates tournament, qualifying him as the next challenger to Tigran Petrosian’s world championship title.

The 1966 World Chess Championship match took place in Moscow, with Spassky losing by the most narrow of margins (+3 -4 =17) in a classic battle between two great players.  Undeterred, Boris would bounce back, marching through his 1968 Candidates opponents (Geller, Larsen, Victor Korchnoi) to immediately earn another shot at Petrosian.

The 1969 re-match was very similiar to their previous encounter,  in that it was fiercely contested and close all the way to the end.  This time Spassky would prevail, winning by a result of 6 wins, 4 losses, and 13 draws.  After many years of determination and struggle, he was finally the World Chess Champion …………….. but for how long??

(click on picture to enlarge)

How many people  can you name in this photograph?   What was the year and location of this tournament?

Bobby Fischer’s legendary rival and long time friend Boris Spassky visitied  the late champion’s grave today in Iceland.  Spassky, showing his usual classiness and compassion, knelt at Fischer’s grave and noticeably fought back some tears.  The former Russian jokingly remarked “do you think the spot next to him is available?”.

Fischer and Spassky are forever linked in chess lore as they played the “Match of the Century” in Reykjavik in 1972.  Fischer would win that match and become the only official American chess champion in history.  The two would clash again in Yugoslavia in 1992, signaling the return of the great Bobby Fischer to chess.  Fischer would triumph again and immediately go back into seclusion. 

Despite their fierce struggle in 1972 during the Cold War between the USA and the Soviet Union, the two reamained respectful and complimentary to each other over the years.  When Fischer was declared a fugitive by the U.S. government after playing their 1992 match while Yugoslavia was under economic sanctions by the United States, Spassky defended Fischer saying that if Bobby was guilty, then they need to arrest him as well.

Spassky, now a French citizen,  is attending a Fischer memorial chess tournament in Iceland.

Source: REUTERS

Robert James Fischer was born in Chicago, Illinois at the Michael Reese Hospital on March 9th, 1943.  He became the 11th official World Chess Champion by defeating Boris Spassky in Reykjavik, Iceland in 1972.  He remains to this day the only official world champion from the United States of America.

Bobby passed away on January 17, 2008 from kidney failure at the age of 64.  He spent his last days on this Earth in the place of his legendary triumph,  Reykjavik, Iceland.  Below are some basic facts about Bobby and one of my favorite games of his.  Enjoy!

Learned the Rules of Chess: 1949

First Recorded Tournament Game: July 1955

International Grandmaster Title Achieved: 1958

U.S. Championship Titles: 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966

Tournament and Match Results: 415 wins, 248 draws and 85 losses out of 748 games played from 1955 through 1992 for a performance average of .721 or 72.1%

Highest Achieved Rating: 2785 ELO

Special Note: Winner of every tournament and match in which he participated from December of 1962 through the World Championship match of 1972, with the exceptions of the 1965 Capablanca Memorial (2nd place – 1/2 point behind Smyslov) and the 1966 Piatigorsky Cup (2nd place – 1/2 point behind Spassky).

 FISCHER-NAJDORF (1966 Piatigorsky Cup – Round 16)

 [Event "2nd Piatigorsky Cup"]
 [Site "Santa Monica, California"]
 [Date "1966.??.??"]
 [Round "16"]
 [White "Fischer,R"]
 [Black "Najdorf,M"]
 [Result "1-0"]
 [ECO "B44"]
 
 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. Nb5 d6 6. Bf4 e5 7. Be3 Nf6
 8. Bg5 Be6 9. N1c3 a6 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Na3 Nd4 12. Bc4 b5 13. Bxe6 fxe6
 14. Ne2 Nc6 15. Ng3 Qd7 16. c4 Nd4 17. O-O b4 18. Nc2 Nxc2 19. Qxc2 h5
 20. Rfd1 h4 21. Nf1 Rg8 22. a3 h3 23. g3 bxa3 24. Rxa3 Qc6 25. Qe2 f5
 26. c5 Qxe4 27. Qxe4 fxe4 28. cxd6 Bh6 29. Ra5 Kd7 30. Rxe5 Bg7 31. Rxe4
 Bxb2 32. Ne3 a5 33. Nc4 Rgb8 34. Rh4 Kc6 35. Rh7 Bd4 36. Rc7+ Kd5 37. d7
 a4 38. Nb6+ Rxb6 39. Rc8 Rd6 40. Rxa8 Rxd7 41. Rxa4 e5 42. Kf1 Rb7
 43. f4 Ke6 44. fxe5 Rf7+ 45. Ke2 Rf2+ 46. Kd3 Bxe5 47. Re1 1-0

Click HERE to replay the game.