July 15, 2008

OFF THE WALL CHESS TRIVIA

by Bill Wall

2001: A Space Odyssey

Movie made in 1968 by Stanley Kubrick. It features an astronaut, Dr. Frank Poole (Gary Lockwood), playing a chess game with the HAL-9000 computer. The game in the movie is from an actual game, Roesch vs. Schlage, Hamburg 1910. The initial position in the movie is after Black’s 13^th move. The astronaut says, “Umm…anyway, Queen takes pawn. OK?” HAL responds, “Bishop takes Knight’s pawn.” The astronaut says “Hmm, that’s a good move. Er…Rook to King One.” HAL responds, “I’m sorry Frank. I think you missed it. Queen to Bishop Three (this should have been Queen to Bishop Six). Bishop takes Queen (not forced). Knight takes Bishop. Mate.” It is not a mate in two, but a mate in three. The astronaut responds, “Ah…Yeah, looks like you’re right. I resign.”

Roesch – Willi Schlage, Hamburg 1910

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb4 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Qe2 b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.c3 O-O 8.O-O d5 9.exd5 Nxd5 10.Nxe5 Nf4 11.Qe4 Nxe5 12.Qxa8 Qd3 13.Bd1 Bh3 14.Qxa6 Bxg2 15.Re1 Qf3 and White resigns since 16.Qc8 (if 16.Bxf3 Nxf3 mate; if 16.Re2 Nh3 mate) Rxc8 17.h3 Nxh3+ 18.Kh2 Ng4 mate 0-1

A Chess Dispute

This may have been the first movie with a chess scene. The movie was made in 1903 by R. W. Paul (Paul’s Animatograph Works of England). Two men are playing chess in a restaurant. One man makes a move while the other man is distracted. When he looks back at the board he disputes the move. They get in a fight, in which both fall to the ground below the camera’s view. Only their hats, boots, and some clothing being tossed in the air can be seen. Finally, the manager of the restaurant enters and lifts the two disheveled chess players into view.

Aagaard, Jacob (1973- )

Jacob Aagaard was born on July 31, 1973. He is grandmaster (2007) from Denmark, but now lives in Glasgow, Scotland. He took 2^nd place in the 111^th Scottish Championship in 2004. He took 1^st place in the 112^th Scottish Championship in 2005, but is not a Scottish citizen yet. He has written at least 12 chess books, including Excelling at Chess and Inside the Chess Mind. In 2007, he won the 94^th annual British championship, held in Great Yarmouth.

Schmied – Aagaard, Copenhagen 1985

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 e6 4.Bg5 dxc4 5.Qa4+ Nbd7 6.Qxc4 c5 7.Nc3 a6 8.a4 cxd4 9.Nxd4? (9.Qxd4) Ne5 0-1

Aaron, Manuel (1935- )

India’s first International Master (IM). He was born in Toungoo, Myanmar (formerly Burma) on December 30, 1935 and grew up in Tamil Nadu, India. In 1960 he had a 2509 performance rating at the Leipzig Chess Olympiad (he defeated Max Euwe). He became an International Master in 1961 after winning the Asian-Austrian Zonal. In 1962 he took last place out of 23 players in the Stockholm Interzonal (but he did defeat Portisch and Uhlmann). He became an International Arbiter in 1986. His highest FIDE rating was 2420. He has won the state of Tamil Nadu (Madras) 11 times and the India National Championship 9 times. These records still stand. He is the director of the Aaron Chess Academy, India’s first chess academy and the founder (1982) and editor of Chess Mate magazine.

Aaron - Suer, Varna Chess Olympiad 1962

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.Nc3 O-O 5.e4 d6 6.Be2 c5 7.d5 Na6 8.O-O Nc7 9.h3 a6 10.a4 Rb8 11.Bf4 Nd7 12.Re1 Ne5 13.Nxe5 Bxe5 14.Bxe5 dxe5 15.Bg4 f5 16.exf5 gxf5 17.Bh5 Qd6 18.Qe2 e4 19.f3 b5 20.axb5 axb5 21.fxe4 fxe4 22.Qxe4 b4 23.Nd1 e6 24.dxe6 Bxe6 25.Ra7 Bf5 26.Qe7 Qd4+? (26...Qxe7) 27.Kh1 Ne8?? (27...Rbc8) 28.Bf7+ (28...Kh8 29.Qxf8 mate; 28...Kg7 29.Bxe8+ Kg8 30.Re5 wins) 1-0

Aarseth, Sverre (1934- )

Chess master from Norway. He participated in the 6th World Correspondence Chess Championship in 1971 and finished 14th out of 15 players. He lost one game in 14 moves.

Aarseth - Rittner, 6th World Correspondence Championship 1971

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.Qg4 Ne7 6.dxc5 Nbc6 7.Nf3 d4 8.Bb5 Qa5 9.Bxc6+ bxc6 10.Qxg7 (10.Qxd4) 10...Rg8 11.Qxh7 Ba6 12.Ng5 Bxc3+ 13.Kd1 O-O-O 14.Nxf7 d3! (15.Nxd8 Qa4 16.b3 Qg4+ 17.f3 Qxg2 18.cxd3 Qxh1+ 19.Kc2 Rg2+ 20.Kxc3 Nd5+ 21.Kd4 Qg1+ 22.Ke4 Re2+ 23.Be3 Qxe3 mate) 0-1

Abdelnabbi, Imed (1963- )

International Master (1985) and Egypt’s top rated player, rated 2456.

Domingos – Abdelnabbi, Abuja 2003

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c5 5.e3 Nc6 6.a3 a6 7.Bd3 dxc4 8.Bxc4 b5 9.Bd3 Bb7 10.O-O Rc8 11.dxc5 Bxc5 12.Qe2 Qc7 13.Ne4 Ne5 14.Nxf6+ gxf6 15.Nxe5 Qxe5 16.f3 Rg8 17.Kh1 Bd6 18.f4? (18.g3) Rxg2! 0-1

Abdulaziz, Al Mahmoud (1972- )

Champion of Lebanon in 2000. He is the president of the Lebanese Chess Federation.

Abdulaziz – Talal Abas, Beruit 2001

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.O-O O-O 5.d3 d5 6.Nbd2 c5 7.c4 Nc6 8.a3 b6 9.Rb1 Bb7 10.b4 cxb4 11.axb4 dxc4 12.Nxc4 Nd4 13.Nxd4 Bxg2 14.Ne6 Qd5? (14…exf6) 15.Nf4 1-0

Abolianin, Arthur (1966- )

International Master from Belgium. He played on Board 2 for Belgium in the 2004 Chess Olympiad. His highest rating was 2473.

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.e5 Ng8 9.Bd4 f6 10.f4 Nh6 11.exf6 exf6 12.Bc4 d5 13.Qe2+ Kf7 14.O-O-O Bg4 0-1

Abonyi, Istvan (1886-1942)

Hungarian master from Budapest. In 1922 he published analysis on the Abonyi Gambit of the Budapest Defense (1,d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.e4 Nxd5 5.f4 Nec6) in Deutsches Wochenschach. He was one of the 15 founders of FIDE in 1924.

Abonyi – Hromadka, Prague 1908

1,e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Nd4 5.Ba4 c6 6.O-O Bc5 7.Nxe5 d6 8.Nd3 Bg4 9.Qe1 Nf3+ 10.gxf3 Bxf3 11.e5 O-O 12.exd6 Ng4 13.Qe7 Bxd6 0-1

Abrahams, Gerald (1907-1980)

British lawyer (barrister), chess master and chess author. His eight chess books include Teach Yourself Chess (1948), The Chess Mind (1952), Handbook of Chess (1960), Technique in Chess (1961), Test Your Chess (1963), Pan Book of Chess (1966), Not Only Chess (1974), and Brilliancies in Chess (1977). He introduced the Abrahams variation (also called the Noteboom variation) of the Queen’s Gambit Declined (1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.Nf3 dxc4 5.a4 Bb4 6.e3 b5 7.Bd2 a5) in 1925 (Allcock-Abrahams, England 1925). In 1933 he finished in 3^rd place in the British Championship. In 1946, he defeated Viaschelav Ragozin (who later became the second World Correspondence Champion) in the Anglo-Soviet radio match, winning one game and drawing one game.

Unknown - Abrahams, England 1929

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.e4 Bb4 5.Bd3 e5 6.dxe5 dxe4 7.Bxe4 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3 Qxd1+ 9.Kxd1 Be6 10.Rb1 Na6 11.Rxb7? (11.Be3) 11...O-O-O+! (12.Kc2 Kxb7 wins) 0-1.

Abramovic, Bosko (1951- )

Serbia/Montenegro Grandmaster (1984). He won at Belgrade in 1984 and was second at Montpellier in 1986. He took 16^th-20^th in the 1993 Biel FIDE Interzonal. His highest FIDE rating has been 2633 and currently, it is 2489.

Abramovic – Chiburdanidze, Montpelier 1986

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Bb7 7.c3 g6 8.d4 exd4 9.e5 Ne4 10.Re1 Nc5 11.cxd4 Nxb3 12.Qxb3 Nb4 13.Nc3 Nd3 14.Ne4 Bxe4 15.Bg5 Be7 16.Bxe7 Qxe7 17.Rxe4 1-0

Abreu, Aryam (1978- )

International Master from Cuba. His highest rating has been 2510.

Abreu – Van Riemsdijk, Columbia 2001

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.f4 b5 7.e5 b4 8.Qf3 Ra7 9.exf6 bxc3 10.Qxc3 gxf6 11.Be3 Rc7 12.Qd2 Nd7 13.Be2 Bb7 14.Ne6 Qc8 15.Nxc7+ Qxc7 16.O-O Rg8 17.Bf3 f5 18.Bd4 d5 19.Rae1 e6 20.Bh5 Qc6 21.Rxe6+ Qxe6 22.Re1 Kd8 23.Rxe6 fxe6 24.Bf7 1-0

Acers, Jude (1944- )

Jude Acers was born in Long Beach on April 6, 1944. He is a U.S. senior chess master now living in New Orleans who has set several world record simultaneous exhibition records. He learned to play chess at age 7 and was a master at age 17. In 1966 at the Louisiana State Fair, he played 114 opponents simultaneously and won all 114 games. In 1976 he played 179 opponents simultaneously in Long Island. He has toured 48 states and 5 countries to give over a thousand chess exhibitions. When not touring and playing in other chess tournaments, Jude can be found at his World Chess table on the Gazebo sidewalk terracem 1018 Decatur Street (the French Quarter), New Orleans, Louisiana. He is known as the man with the red beret. In 2005, he survived hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and was evacuated to Tennessee. In 2007, he was the topped rank American player at the 17^th Senior World Open Championship, held in Gmunden, Austria, but finishe 39th. The event was won by IM Butnorius Algimantas of Lithuania.

Steers - Acers, Santa Monica 1968

1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.d4 Nxd5 4.c4 Nb4 5.Qa4+ N8c6 6.a3 Na6! 7.d5 Nc5 8.Qb5 b6 9.dxc6 a5 10.b4 Ba6 11.bxc5 Bxb5 12.cxb5 Qd4 (13.Ra2 Qe4+ 14.Ne2 Qxb1) 0-1

Acevedo-Millan, Armando (1937- )

FIDE master and former champion of Mexico. In 2001, when Nigel Short thought he was playing Bobby Fischer on the Internet, he asked his opponent when he played Acevedo. The response was immediate. “Siegen 1970.” Fischer had played Acevedo in the Siegen Chess Olympiad in 1970. Acevedo played in the 1966 and 1970 chess Olympiads for Mexico. He was the first Mexican FIDE master.

Acevedo – Fischer, Siegen 1970

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 3. c3 g6 4. g3 b6 5. Bg2 Bb7 6. O-O Bg7 7. Nbd2 O-O 8. Re1 d5 9. Ne5 Nc6 10. Ndf3 Rc8 11. Nxc6 Bxc6 12. Bh3 Bd7 13. Bf1 Bc6 14. Ne5 Bb7 15. a4 Ne4 16. f3 Nd6 17. e3 Qc7 18. a5 f6 19. axb6 axb6 20. Nd3 e5 21. Nf2 e4 22. f4 Ra8 23. Bd2 Rxa1 24. Qxa1 Ra8 25. Qb1 Qc6 26. b3 Ba6 27. Qb2 Bxf1 28. Rxf1 c4 29. b4 Qa4 30. Rb1 Bf8 31. Kf1 Nb5 32. Ke2 f5 33. Nd1 Kf7 34. Nf2 Qa2 35. Nd1 Ke6 36. Qxa2 Rxa2 37. Rb2 Ra1 38. Be1 Kd7 39. Bd2 Kc6 40. Be1 Na3 41. Kd2 Kb5 42. Bf2 Ka4 43. Be1 Be7 44. Bf2 Nb5 45. Kc2 Ka3 46. Rb1 Ra2+ 47. Rb2 Nxc3 48. Kxc3 Ra1 0-1

Acs, Peter (1981- )

Peter Acs was born May 10, 1981 in Eger, Hungary. He is a Hungarian Grandmaster (1998) and the 2001 World Junior Chess Champion, held in Athens. His highest rating has been 2603. He has represented Hungary in three Olympiads (2000, 2002, and 2004).

Van Wely – Acs, Netherlands 2002

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 O-O 5.Bd3 d5 6.cxd5 exd5 7.Ne2 Re8 8.O-O Bd6 9.a3 Ng4 10.h3 Nh2 11.Re1 Nf3+ 12.gxf3 Qg5+ 13.Kh1 Qh4 14.Nf4 Bxh3 15.Ncxd5 Re6 16.Nxe6 Bf5+ 17.Kg1 Qh2+ 18.Kf1 Bg3 0-1

Acs – Donchenko, Tel Aviv 2001

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 Ng4 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Bg7 10.Be2 h5 11.Nf5 Bxf5 12.exf5 Qa5 13.O-O Bxc3 14.bxc3 f6 15.Rb1 Nc6 16.Rxb7 Rd8 17.Qd3 h4 18.Qc4 Nge5 19.Bxe5 Nxe5 20.Qe6 Nd7 21.Bc4 1-0

Active Chess

Active chess (30 minutes per game) was introduced in 1987 by FIDE and was mostly used for demonstrations and other unofficial events. The first official Active Chess (30 minutes per game) tournament was held in Gijon, Spain in 1988 and won by Karpov. Karpov, in December of 1988, won the World Active Championship (a FIDE event with 61 players) in Mazatlan, Mexico and received $50,000. The organizers of the event donated $100,000 for AIDS research. Initial attempts to organize a world championship for active chess was opposed by world champion Gary Kasparov. He was quoted as saying, “Active Chess? What does that make me, the Passive World Champion?” Later, Kasparov organized his own brand of fast chess, called “Rapid Chess” with a time control of 25 minutes a game. This name and event was adopted by FIDE in 1989 so as not to imply an inactive chess title if FIDE awarded an Active Chess title.

Active Chess Player

In 1995, Robert Smeltzer of Dallas, Texas, played 2,266 USCF rated games in one year, the most ever. Smeltzer has played on over 2,700 chess events since 1991.

Adams, Michael (1971- )

Michael Adams was born on November 17, 1971. He was the highest rated 13 year old ever, rated 2405 in 1986. In 1988 he was the only winner in a 10-board satellite simultaneous exhibition with Kasparov. He won the 76th British Championship in 1989 at age 17, the youngest ever. In 1989, he became at Grandmaster at 17. In 1997, he tied for first with Matthew Sadler in the British Championship. In 1997 he lost to Anand in the semi-finals of the FIDE World Chess Championship. In 1998 he had an Elo rating of 2715 and was the 5th strongest player in the world. In 2002 he was rated 2757 and was the 4^th strongest player in the world (behind Kasparov, Kramnik, and Anand). Three times he has reached the semi-finals of the FIDE World Chess Championship. In 2004, he reahed the final in the World Championship, losing out to Rustam Kasimdzhanov in the tie-break games. In 2005, while ranked 7 in the world, he lost a chess match with the Hydra chess program, losing 5 games and drawing one game. In 2008, he is number 13 in the world and the number one British chess player with a 2735 Elo rating.

Wickert - M. Adams, Islington 1992

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 Ne4 3.Bf4 c5 4.d5 Qb6 5.Nd2 Qxb2 6.Ngf3? (6.Nxe4 Qxb4+ 7.c3) 6...Nc3 7.Nc4? (7.Qc1 Qxc1+ 8.Rxc1 Bxa2) 7... Nxd1 (8.Nxb2 Nxb2) 0-1

Ziemann – M. Adams, Germany 1992

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.O-O Nxe4 5.Re1 Ng5 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Rxe5+ Ne6 8.Ng5 Bd6 9.Qh5 g6 10.Nxf7 Kxf7 11.Qf3+ Qf6 12.Re3 Qf6 13.Qe4 Bf5 0-1

Adams, Weaver Warren (1901-1963)

Weaver Warren Adams was born on April 28, 1901 in Dedham Massachusetts. He was an American chess master. He participated in the U.S. Championship in 1936, 1940, 1944, 1946 and 1948. He won the Massachusetts State Championship in 1937, 1938, 1941 and 1945. In 1939, he wrote a book entitled White to Play and Win. After publication he played in the U.S. Open at Dallas. He did not win a single game as White (3 losses and 1 draw) and won all his games (4 games) as Black! Weaver Adams won the 49^th U.S. Open, held in Baltimore, in 1948. He also wrote Simple Chess, How to Play Chess, and Absolute Chess. He died on January 6, 1963.

Weinstock - W. Adams, New York 1944

1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Bb4 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bh4 d6 8.e3 Qe7 9.Be2 g5 10.Nxc6 bxc6 11.Bg3 Ne4 12.Qd4 O-O 13.O-O Nxc3 14.bxc3 Bc5 15.Qd3 f5 16.Rae1 Kh8 17.Bd1 Ba6 18.Bb3 Rae8 19.Kh1? (19.Qxf5) 19...f4 (20.exf4 Qxe1) 0-1

W. Adams – Santasiere, Baltimore (49^th US Open) 1948

1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4 c6 4.d4 Bb4 5.dxe5 Nxe4 6.Qd4 d5 7.exd6 O-O 8.Bf4 Re8 9.Ne2 Bc5 10.Bxf7+ Kf8 11.Qc4 b5 12.Qb3 Bxf2+ 13.Kf1 Nc5 14.Qa3 Nba6 15.b4 Kxf7 16.Kxf2 Ne4+ 17.Nxe4 Rxe4 18.Qf3 Qe8 19.Be5 1-0

Adamski, Andrzej (1939- )

Polish International Master (1980).

Adamski, Jan (1943- )

Polish International Master (1976). Polish Champion in 1982. He represented Poland in the 1968, 1970, 1974, and 1978 chess Olympiads. His FIDE rating is 2345.

Adamski – J. Christiansen, Copenhagen 2000

1. Nf3 f5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Be7 5. c4 O-O 6. Nc3 d6 7. d4 Qe8 8.b3 Nc6 9. d5 exd5 10. cxd5 Ne5 11. Nd4 Qh5 12. f4 Neg4 13. h3 Nh6 14. Qd3 Ne4 15. g4 fxg4 16. Bxe4 gxh3 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Kh1 Bh4 19. Qg6 1-0

Adamson, Robby

FIDE master from Tucson, Arizona. He is an attorney. In 1984, he won the National Junior High K-8 championship. He is the chess coach at the Catalina Foothills High School in Tucson. His ELO rating is 2344.

Addison, William Grady (1933- )

Considered the best Go player among chess masters. He was born in Baton Rouge, came to San Francisco in the 1950s, and was the area’s strongest player for 20 years. He became an International Master in 1967. In 1969, he took 2nd place in the 20th US Chess Championship (1/2 point behind Reshevsky and ahead of Benko, Lombardy, etc.) and qualified to play in the Interzonal. He competed in the 1970 Interzonal in Palma de Mallorca, taking 18th place, and then gave up chess to work for the Bank of America in San Francisco. He played in five U.S. championships. His highest rating was 2595.

Addison - Kostro, Havana 1966

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 O-O 5.Ne2 d5 6.a3 Be7 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.e4 Nxc3 9.Nxc3 c5 10.d5 exd5 11.Nxd5 Nc6 12.Bc4 Bd6 13.O-O Qh4 14.f4 Bg4 15.Qd3 Nd4 16.Rf2 Rae8 17.Be3 Rxe4? (17...b5) 18.Qxe4 Bf5 19.g3 (19...Bxe4 20.gxh4) 1-0

Adianto, Utut (1965- )

First Indonesian Grandmaster (1986) and best chess player in Indonesia. He was born in Jakarta, Indonesia. He learned the game of chess at the age of six. He won the Jakarta Junior Championship at age 12. He won the Indonesian national championship in 1982. He tied for 1^st place at San Francisco in 1987. His highest rating has been 2663. Between 1990 and 1995, he was the second strongest Asian chess player, after Anand. He is the Chairman of the Indonesian Chess Association (Percasi).

Adianto - Neamtu, Biel 1994

1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e4 Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 5.Bxc4 Nb6 6.Bb3 Bf5 7.Nc3 e6 8.Nge2 Nc6 9.a3 Be7 10.O-O O-O 11.h3 h6 12.Ba2 Qd7 13.Be3 Rad8 14.Qc1 Na5 15.Bxh6 gxh6 16.Qxh6 Rfe8 (16...Nac4) 17.Ng3 Bf8 18.Qg5+ Bg6 19.Nce4 Bg7 20.Nf6+ Bxf6 21.exf6 Qxd4?? (21...Qd6) 22.Rad1 (22...Qa4 or 22...Qxd1, 23.Qh6 and 24.Qg7 mate) 1-0

Adjournment

First introduced at Paris in 1878. Adjournment is a time out between playing sessions, generally overnight. The side that is on the move seals a legal move, sight unseen by his opponent. When play resumes, the sealed move is played on the board, and the game continues. Players were forbidden to analyze their games during adjournments, but this became difficult to enforce. In the 1930s analytical assistance by seconds became acceptable.

Adla, Diego Gustavo (1968- )

International Master from Argentina.

Adly, Ahmed (1987- )

Egyptian Grandmaster (2005). In 2003,he contracted malaria while playing in a chess tournament in Nigeria. He then went straight from Nigeria to Greece to participate in the World Youth Championship. Doctors discovered he had malaria and saved him. Two of his chess-playing friends returned to Egypt and died.

Adorjan, Andras (1950- )

Hungarian chess grandmaster who took 2nd place, behind Anatoly Karpov, at the 1969 World Junior Championship in Stockholm. At the time, he played under the last name Jocha. He later adopted his mother’s surname, Adorjan. He became an International Master in 1970 and a Grandmaster in 1973. He is the author of Black is OK! In 1977, during a game with Pachman in Munich, he had a heart attack and fell from his chair. He was rushed to the hospital and survived. In 1979 he tied (with Ribli) for 3^rd-4^th in the Riga Interzonal (behind Tal and Polugaevsky). In 1980, he lost his Candidates match to Robert Huebner with 1 won, 2 losses, and 7 draws. He won the New York Open in 1987. His highest rating has been 2675. As a junior, he played under the name Andras Jocha.

Spassov – Adorjan, Sochi 1977

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 d6 4.Nf3 g6 5.g3 Bg7 6.Bg2 b5 7.cxb5 a6 8.bxa6 Qa5+ 9.Nc3 Ne4 10.Qc2? Nxc3 11.Bd2 Qa4! (12.Qxa4 Nxa4) 0-1

Adorjan - Zsinka, Budapest 1982

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 c5 4.Nc3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 b6 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Bf4 e5 8.Bg5 Be7? (8...Bb7) 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Qd5 Nc6 11.Qxc6+ Bd7 12.Nc7+ (12...Kf8 13.Qxa8 Qxa8 14.Nxa8) 1-0

AF4C

America’s Foundation for Chess, which sponsored the US chess championship since 2000. It was founded in June 2000 to promote chess in the schools. Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan was instrumental in the founding of the AF4C in Seattle, Washington. The AF4C sponsored the US chess championship when the US Chess Federation was unable to sponsor it.

Afghanistan

Chess was forbidden by the Taliban in Afghanistan for 15 years, possibly to prevent intellectuals from getting together. The Taliban believed chess as a form of gambling and it distracted people from saying their prayers. For five years, Afghanistan was the only place in the world where chess was illegal. There is only one master in Afghanistan, Ismail Ibrahim. There are only 7 players from Afghanistan that have a FIDE rating. Afghanistan first became affiliated with FIDE in 1984. In 1989, Afghanistan issued stamps with a chess motif (chess in Alfonso paintings). Afghanistan was temporally excluded from FIDE for non-payment of debt.

Afifi, Assem (1947- )

Egyptian International Master. He played in the 1985 Tunis International and took 16^th place. He played in the 1990 Manila Interzonal and tied for 60^th-63^rd place.

Agababean, Naira (1951- )

Woman Grandmaster from Moldava. She is a former Armenian woman chess champion. Her daughter is Woman Grandmaster Almira Skripchenko, who married Grandmaster Joel Lautier of France.

Agdestein, Simen (1967- )

Norway’s first Grandmaster (1985) who shared first place (with Walter Arencibea) in the World Junior Champion in 1986. He became an International Master in 1983 at the age of 16. He became the youngest grandmaster in the world at age 18 when he won the title. He has won the Norwegian championship four times, the first time as a 15-year-old in 1982. He has also represented Norway on their professional soccer (football) team, but had to give it up due to injuries (torn ligament in his knee). He is currently a teacher at the Norwegian Sports Gymnasium, teaching soccer and chess. He is also a chess columnist for a Norwegian newspaper. His highest rating has been 2716, ranked #12 in the world. Currently, he is a trainer to Magnus Carlsen, one of the youngest grandmasters in the world.

Agdestein - Quinteros, Tessaloniki Olympiad 1984

1.d4 d6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.g3 Nf6 5.Bg2 O-O 6.O-O Nc6 7.Nc3 Bg4 8.d5 Na5 9.Nd2 c5 10.h3 Bd7 11.Rb1 e5 12.a3 b6 13.e4 Ne8 14.b4 Nb7 15.Nb3 f5 16.exf5 gxf5 17.bxc5 Nxc5 18.Nxc5 dxc5 19.d6 e4 20.Nd5 Be6 21Bf4 Nxd6? (21...Kh8) 22.Bxd6 (22...Qxd6 23.Nf6+ and 24.Qxd6) 1-0

Age of Chess players

Capablanca learned the game of chess at age 4 by watching his father play. Karpov was taught the moves at age 4. Spassky learned the game at age 5 and later joined the Pioneer Palace in Leningrad where he spent 5 hours every day on chess. Former world woman champion Nona Gaprindashvili learned at age 5 by watching her brothers play. Fischer learned at age 6, taught by his older sister after reading the rules that came with a box of chessmen. Smyslov learned at age 6 by reading a chess book found in his father’s library. Larsen learned at age 6 and later gave up his civil engineering studies to become a full-time chess professional. Alekhine learned at age 7 from his heiress mother. Petrosian learned at age 8. When his parents died when he was 16, he took up chess full time. Tal learned at age 8 by watching patients play chess at his father’s hospital. He joined the Riga Palace of Young Pioneers and was given a chess coach when he was 10. Euwe learned at age 9 and was taught by his parents. Emanual Lasker learned at age 11, taught by his older brother. Botvinnik learned the game at age 12. Steinitz learned at age 12 from his school friends. Browne learned at age 13 after joining the Manhattan chess club. Blackburne did not learn chess until he was 19 after reading a chess book. Two years later he was giving blindfold simultaneous exhibitions. Staunton did not learn until age 19 and did not become a serious player until age 26. Mir Sultan Khan learned the game at age 21. Two years later he was All India chess champion. A year later he won the British Championship. He was illiterate his entire life, unable to read or write.

Ager Chessmen

Chessmen made of rock crystal that used to be preserved in a church in Ager, Spain. 96 pieces were made around 1071. Only a few pieces survive today. There is a myth that this chess set belonged to Charlemagne. It is also known as the Urgel or Urgell chess chessmen, a nearby village. Parts of these pieces are preserved in Lerida. 15 pieces reappeared in a public auction and purchased by the Emir of Kuwait. The collection was plundered by Iraqi soldiers during the Gulf War, but has since returned.

Agnel, Hyacinth R. (1799-1871)

He was a professor (taught French) and Colonel at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a chess problemist. In 1845, he formed the first chess club at West Point. Author of a chess book with perhaps the longest title. The Book of Chess containing the Rudiments of the Game, and Elementary Analysis of the Most Popular Openings, Exemplified in Games Actually Played by the Greatest Masters; Including Staunton’s Analysis of the King’s and Queen’s Gambits, Numerous Positions and Problems on Diagrams, Both Original and Selected; Also a Series of Chess Tales, With Illustrations Engraved From Original Designs, The Whole Extracted and Translated From the Best Sources. The book was written in 1847 by Agnel and published in 1859 by D. Appleton and Company of New York. The book is 509 pages long. In 1848, he wrote Chess for Winter Evenings. It was later called Agnel’s Book of Chess. Agnel was on the Committee on the Chess Code during the First American Chess Congress. He was a frequent chess opponent of General Winfield Scott. He died in 1871 and is buried at West Point.

Agrest, Evgenij (1966- )

Grandmaster now living in Sweden (since 1994). He was born in Belarus. His FIDE rating is 2592. In 2003, he won a game from former world champion Ponomariov when Ponomariov’s cell phone rang during their match. A cell phone ringing during a match is an automatic disqualification. Ironically, Agrest lost a game in 2004 when his cell phone rang. Was it Ponomariov calling? He was Nordic Chess Champion in 2001 and 2003. He was Swedish Champion in 1998, 2001, 2002, and 2004.

Aguado, Jose Sanz (1907-1969)

Spanish chess champion in 1943.

Agzamov, Georgy Tadzhiyevich (1954-1986)

Uzbekistan Grandmaster (1984) who was killed when he tried to take a shortcut to go swimming in Sevastopol. He fell off a cliff and got stuck between two rocks. Some people heard him yell for help, but he was too deep down in the rocks. He died before a rescue team could get to him. His highest rating was 2728, ranked #8 in the world. He won Belgrade 1982, Sochi 1984, Tashkent 1984, and Calcutta 1986.

Agzamov - Gulko, Sochi 1985

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bf4 Bg7 5.e3 c5 6.dxc5 Qa5 7.Rc1 Ne4 8.cxd5 Nxc3 9.Qd2 Qxa2 10.bxc3 Qa5 11.Bc4 Nd7 12.Nf3 Nxc5 13.Be5 O-O 14.O-O f6 15.Ra1 Qd8 16.Bc7 Qd7 17.d6+ e6 18.Nd4 Qf7 19.Ra5 b6 20.Rxc5 bxc5 21.Nb3 Qd7 22.Qd3 Rd8? (22...Qc6) 23.Qe4 (23...Bb7 24.Qxb7 Rab8 25.Bxe6+ Qxe6 26.Bxb8) 1-0

Ahlhausen, Carl (1835-1892)

Librarian of the Berlin Chess Association. His historical chess rating is 2471, ranked #44 in the world in 1889. He was an early player of 1.g4, sometimes known as the Ahlhausen Opening (better known as Grob’s Attack).

Ahues, Carl Oscar (1883-1968)

German International Master (1950). German champion in 1929. He was winning blitz chess tournaments in Germany in his 80s. His Elo rating was around 2490. His highest historical rating was 2651, ranked #11 in the world in 1931. Father of Herbert Ahues.

Ahues – Gregory, Hamburg 1921

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Nc3 d6 5.d4 Bd7 6.O-O exd4 7.Nxd4 Be7 8.Nde2 O-O 9.Ng3 Kh8 10.b3 Qe8 11.Bb2 Bd8 12.f4 Ne7 13.e5 Ng4 14.Bxd7 Qxd7 15.Nce4 Ne3 16.Qh5 Qg4 17.Rf3 N7f5 18.Qxg4 1-0

Ahues, Herbert (1922- )

Son of Carl Ahues. In 1989 he became a Grandmaster for Chess Compositions.

C. Ahues – Gregory, Hamburg 1921

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Nc3 d6 5.d4 Bd7 6.O-O exd4 7.Nxd4 Be7 8.Nde2 O-O 9.Ng3 Kh8 10.b3 Qe8 11.Bb2 Bd8 12.f4 Ne7 13.e5 Ng4 14.Bxd7 Qxd7 15.Nce4 Ne3 16.Qh5 Qg4 17.Rf3 N7f5 18.Qxg4 1-0

AIPE

The Association Internationale de la Presse Echiqueene (AIPE) was the International Association of Chess Press. It was an organization of chess journalists founded in 1967 by Jordi Puig of Barcelona, Spain. AIPE awarded the Chess Oscars from 1967 (first won by Bent Larsen) to 1988 (won by Kasparov for the 7th time in a row) to the outstanding male and female players of the year. AIPE dissolved in 1989. The Chess Oscar was revived in 1995 (won by Kasparov).

Aitken, James Macrae (1908-1983)

Scottish player who won the Scottish chess championship 10 times (1935, 1952, 1953, 1955-1958, 1960, 1961, and 1965). He was also London champion in 1950. His highest rating was 2525. His PhD dissertation was on the Lisbon Inquisition.

Aitken - Hunter, Scotland 1949

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Bb4 5.O-O Nge7 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 d5? (7...O-O) 8.exd5 Qxd5 9.Nxc6 Qxd1 10.Nxb4+ Bd7 11.Rxd1 (11...Bxa4 12.Nc3) 1-0

Ajeeb

The name of the chess automaton built by Charles Alfred Hopper, a Bristol cabinet-maker, in 1865. Several chess and checker masters (such as Albert Hodges, Ferdinand Burille, and Harry Pillsbury) operated the life-size Indian figure. One opponent shot at Ajeeb after losing a game, wounding the operator. One of the operators of Ajeeb was chess and checker master Constant Ferdinand Burille. During his years as operator, he played over 900 games of chess and only lost 3 games. He never lost a single checker game. Pillsbury was its hidden operator from 1898 to 1904. When Ajeeb was on display in New York at the Eden Musee, it played checkers for a dime and chess for a quarter. Opponents included Theodore Roosevelt, Houdini, Admiral Dewey, O. Henry and Sarah Bernhardt. Ajeeb was 10 feet high. Ajeeb was first exhibited at the Royal Polytechnical Institute in London in 1868. It was lodged at the Crystal Palace between 1868 and 1876 and then went to the Royal Aquarium at Westminster until 1877. It was then taken to Berlin where over 100,000 saw it in three months. It came to New York in 1885. It was destroyed by fire at Coney Island in 1929. Charles Barker, US checkers champion, also worked Ajeeb, never losing a single game.

Akesson, Ralf (1961- )

Swedish Grandmaster. He was European Junior Champion in 1980-81. He was Swedish Champion in 1985. His has been rated as high as 2535.

Akhmilovskaya, Elena Bronisklavovna (1957- )

Woman Grandmaster (1977) from Tbilisi, Georgia who was the 1986 World Women's Championship challenger (losing to Maya Chiburdanidze with 1 win, 4 losses, and 9 draws). She was equal first in the 1988 challengers, but lost the playoff to Ioseliani. In 1988 she eloped with American International Master John Donaldson, captain of the US team, while playing in the chess Olympiad in Thessaloniki, Greece. At the time, she was the number two Soviet woman player. The two were married at the U.S. Consulate in Greece. She returned to the Soviet Union almost a year later to get her 7 year-old daughter. It took three weeks to secure their exit visas. Her mother, Lydia Akhmilovskaya, qualified several times for the USSR Women's Championship and was a top-ranked correspondence player. She later divorced John Donaldson and married IM Georgi Orlov.

Akhmilovskaya - Dahl, Thessaloniki Olympiad 1988

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 e6 4.e3 f5 5.g4 fxg4 6.Ne5 Nf6 7.Nc3 Nbd7 8.Nxg4 Nxg4 9.Qxg4 Nf6 10.Qg5 Bd7 11.Bd2 Qe7 12.O-O-O O-O-O 13.f3 c5 14.Be1 cxd4 15.exd4 h6 (15...Bc6) 16.Qe5 Qd6 17.Bg3 Bc6 18.Bh3 dxc4? (18...Kd7) 19.Qa5 (19...Qd7 20.Bxe6 Qxe6 21.Qc7 mate) 1-0

Akhsharumova, Anna Markovna (1957- )

Woman Grandmaster who finished first in the 1976 Soviet Women's Championship. Her husband, Boris Gulko, tied for first in the 1977 Soviet Men's Championship. By all rights, she should have won the 1983 Soviet Women's title played in Tallinn when she defeated her main competitor, Nana Ioseliani after she won by time forfeit. It would have given her 12 points to Nana's 11 points. The next day, Ioseliani filed a protest alleging a malfunction in the clock. Anna refused to play. The result of her game was arbitrarily reversed by the All-Union Board of Referees in Moscow, thereby forfeiting her title and ending up in 3rd place. She was the USSR Women’s Champion in 1976 and 1984. She and her husband immigrated to the United States in 1986. She won the U.S. Women's championship in 1987 with a perfect 9-0 score. In 1990, she tied for 5^th-6^th place in the Genting Women’s Interzonal.

Rudolph - Akhsharumova, Malaysia, 1990

1.e4 g6 2.Nc3 Bg7 3.g3 c5 4.Bg2 Nc6 5.d3 d6 6.Nge2 e6 7.O-O Nge7 8.Be3 Nd4 9.Nf4 O-O 10.Qd2 Rb8 11.Nd1 b6 12.c3 Ba6 13.Nh5 gxh5 14.cxd4 cxd4 15.Bg5 f6 16.Bh4 Ng6 17.Qe2 Kh8 18.Qxh5 Bxd3 19.Re1 Nxh4 20.Qxh4 f5 21.Qh3 e5 22.f3 (22.exf5) 22...fxe4 23.fxe4 Qf6 24.Rc1 Rb7 25.Bf1 Bh6 (26.Rc6 Be3+ 27.Nxe3 Qf2+; 26.Bxd3 Bxc1 27.Rf1 Qg7; 26.Rc8 Bd2) 0-1

Akins, Claude (1926-1993)

Movie and television actor (Sheriff Lobo) and chess enthusiast. He taught Dean Martin how to play chess. He played chess and won several games against John Wayne.

Akobian, Varuzhan (1983- )

International Grandmaster (2004), born in Armenia. In 2002, he tied for 1^st place in the World Open. In 2002, he won the Samford Fellowship. In 2003, he won the U.S. Junior Championship and the American Open. In 2004, he won the World Open, National Open, and North American Open. He lives in Glendale, California.

Akopian, Vladimir (1971- )

Armenian grandmaster (1991) who won the World Under-16 Championship in 1986 at the age of 14 won the World Under-18 Championship at 16 and was World Junior Champion in 1991. He tied for 1^st at the U.S. Open in 1991. In 1999 he played without a single loss in the FIDE knockout world championship at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas until Alexander Khalifman defeated him in the final match. He was given the title of Vice Champion of the World. His highest rating has been 2714, ranked #12 in the world.

Steinbacher - Akopian, Groningen 1990

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e3 Bg7 6.Bc4 Nxc3 7.bxc3 c5 8.Qf3 O-O 9.Ne2 Qc7 10.Bd5 Nd7 11.Bb3 Nf6 12.e4 cxd4 13.cxd4 Bg4 14.Qg3 Qa5+ 15.Bd2? (15.Qc3) 15...Qxd2+ (16.Kxd2 Nxe4+ and 17...Nxg3) 0-1

Al-Adli (800-870)

The first great Arabic chess champion and author. He lived during the reign (847-861) of Caliph Mutawakkil. Al-adli’s chess book (now lost) contained chess problems, endgames and openings.

Al-Modiahki, Mohamad (1974- )

First Grandmaster from Qatar. He is the highest rated Arab, with a FIDE rating of 2570. He is married to former world women’s champion Zhu Chen.

Al-Mutamid

Moorish poet-king who reigned over Seville in the late 11th century. He was regarded as a chess patron and kept several chess masters in his kingdom. In 1078 Alfonso VI and Ibn-Ammar, chess master in al_Mutamid's court, played a game of chess for the stake of Seville. Ibn-Ammar won and the city was spared from siege. Alfonso kept the chess set and board.

Al-Rashid (?-809)

Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad (786-809) who favored chess and granted liberal pensions to chess masters in his court around 800 A.D.

Aladdin (Ala’Addin, As Tabrizi)

The strongest chess player at the end of the 14th century. He was also known as Ali Shatrangi (Ali the Chess player). He could successfully give odds to all other leading players. He was Chinese and a lawyer from Samarkand (now in modern day Uzbekistan). He was at the court of Timur (Tamerlane), who made Samarkand his capital.

Alapin, Semyon Zinovievich (1856-1923)

Russian chess master and openings analyst. He was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. He later settled in St. Petersburg, then Heidelberg, Germany. While studying at St. Petersburg Engineering Institute, he became one of the strongest players in the city. In 1879, he tied for first in the Best Russian Players tournament in St. Petersburg, but lost the play-off to Chigorin. In 1880 and 1881, he lost a match against Chigorin. In 1893, he tied for 1^st place in the championship of Berlin. In 1899, he drew a match with Schlechter in Vienna (+1-1=4). In 1902 he was ranked #8 in the world. In 1911, he won the championship of Munich. Alapin’s Opening is 1.e4 e5 2.Ne2. The Sicilian, Alapin variation is 1.e4 c5 2.c3. Alapin’s Gambit is 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Be3. He was a linguist and involved in grain commodities. He spent his later years in Heidelberg, Germany and died there in 1923.

Alapin - Marshall, Ostende 1905

1.e4 e5 2.f4 d5 3.exd5 e4 4.d3 Nf6 5.dxe4 Nxe4 6.Nf3 Bc5 7.Qe2 f5 8.Nc3 Bf2+ 9.Kd1 O-O 10.Bd2 Nxc3+ 11.Bxc3 Qxd5+ 12.Kc1 Rd8? (12...Bc5) 13.b4 Bb6 14.Qe7 (threatening 15.Qxg7 mate) 14...Qd7 15.Bc4+ Kh8 16.Bxg7 mate 1-0

Alatortsev, Vladimir (1909-1987)

Russian International Master (1950) and honorary Grandmaster (1983). He had been the city champion of Leningrad (1933 and Moscow (1936, 1937). He took 2nd place in the USSR championship in 1933, behind Botvinnik. In 1935, he drew a match with Lilienthal. From 1931 to 1950, he played in 9 USSR championships. He won the Latvian championship in 1945. From 1954 to 1961, he was head of the Soviet Chess Federation. His highest rating was 2626.

Alatortsev - Mazel, Moscow 1931

1.d4 e6 2.Nf3 d5 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bd6 5.O-O O-O 6.c4 c6 7.Nbd2 Nbd7 8.Qc2 Re8 9.Rd1 e5 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.dxe5 Nxe5 12.Nxe5 Rxe5 13.Nf3 Bf5 14.Qb3 Re7 15.Bg5 Be4 16.Bxf6 gxf6 17.Nd4 Bc5 18.e3 Rc8 (18...Qb6) 19.Bxe4 dxe4 20.Nc6 bxc6 21.Rxd8+ Rxd8 22.Rc1 (22...Rd5 23.Qa4) 1-0

Albero, Roman Toran (1931- )

Spanish International Master (1954). Spanish Champion in 1951 and 1953.

Albin, Adolf (1848-1920)

Romanian chess master (born in Bucharest) who learned the game at age 23. In 1872 he authored the first chess book written in Romanian, Amiculu Jocului de Schach. He played in his first international tournament at 43 (Vienna 1891). In 1894 he took 2^nd at New York, behind Steinitz, but ahead of Showalter and Pillsbury. By 1895, his rating was 2643, ranked #15 in the world. The Albin Counter-Gambit is 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5. Albin played this gambit against Emanuel Lasker in New York in 1893, but lost in 31 moves. Lasker won the tournament (13 wins in a row) and Albin took 2nd place.

Albin - Shipley, New York 1894

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.O-O Nf6 5.c3 O-O 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bb6 8.d5 Ne7 (8...Na5) 9.e5 Ne8 10.d6 cxd6 11.exd6 Ng6 12.Bg5 Nf6 13.Nc3 h6 14.Qd3 hxg5? (14...Kh8) 15.Qxg6! Nh7 16.Nd5 fxg6?? 17.Ne7+ Kh8 18.Nxg6 mate 1-0

Alburt, Lev Osipovich (1945- )

Russian Grandmaster (1977) from Odessa who defected from the USSR to the United States in 1979. He was three-time Ukrainian champion, first winning in 1974. He has won the U.S. Championship 3 times (1984, 1985, 1990) and the U.S. Open twice. He led the U.S. team at the 1980 Malta Olympiad. He has a doctorate in physics and natural philosophy. He was the first grandmaster ever elected to the governing body of the United States Chess Federation (USCF). His highest rating was 2667, ranked #28 in the world.

Norquist - Alburt, Chicago 1989

1.e4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.e5 Nfd7 4.Nxd5 Nxe5 5.Ne3 Nbc6 6.c3 Nd3+ 7.Bxd3 Qxd3 8.Qe2 Qxe2+ 9.Nxe2 e5 10.f4 Bc5 11.Nd5 Bd6 12.fxe5 Nxe5 13.d4 Nd3+ 14.Kf1 O-O 15.Nef4? (15.Bf4) 15...Nxc1 (16.Rxc1 c6, winning one of the knights) 0-1

Albert – Hebden, New York 1983

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.cxb5 a6 5.e3 g6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.a4 O-O 8.Nf3 Bb7 9.Be2 b6 10.dxe6 fxe6 11.Qd6 axb5 12.Bxb5 Ne4 13.Nxe4 Bxe4 14.O-O Rf5 15.Rd1 Qf6 16.Nd2 Rd5? 17.Nxe4 1-0

Alekhine, Alexander (1892-1946)

Winner of the first Soviet Chess Championship (1920) and the only man to die while holding the world chess championship. He learned chess from his older brother Alexei (1888-1939). He studied law at the Sorbonne but failed to get his doctorate as he claimed. He married four times to women 20 to 30 years older than he. He was a prisoner of war like all the other chess contestants at an international tournament in Mannheim in 1914. In 1915 and 1916 he served in the Russian Red Cross. In 1918 he was a criminal investigator in Moscow. In 1919 he was imprisoned in the death cell at Odessa as a spy. In 1920 he was back in Moscow intending to be a movie actor. He also served as interpreter to the Communist party and was appointed secretary to the Education Department. In 1921 he married a foreign Communist delegate and left Russia for good. At the Sorbonne his thesis dealt with the Chinese prison system. In 1930 he scored the first 100% score in the Chess Olympiad, winning 9 games on board 1 for France. During World War II, he became a Nazi collaborator and declared he was ready to sacrifice his life for a Nazi Russia. He competed in seven tournaments in Germany during the war and wrote several pro-Nazi articles. During that time, Soviet players changed the name of Alekhine’s Defense to the Moscow Defense. He died in Portugal after choking on an unchewed piece of meat. He was 53. Alekhine was not buried for three weeks because no one would claim the body. The Portuguese Chess Federation took charge of the funeral. Only 10 people showed up for his funeral. The funeral was delayed for five days until the Portuguese Chess Federation raised enough money to pay for his burial. In 1956 his remains were transferred to a cemetery in Paris. FIDE provided the tombstone in the shape of a chessboard. His birth and death date on the tombstone is wrong. The tombstone reads “ALEXANDER ALEKHINE 1ST NOVEMBER 1892 25TH MARCH, 1946 CHESS WORLD CHAMPION 1927-35-37 TO THE END”. He was born on October 31, 1892 and died either on the evening of March 23rd or the morning of March 24th, 1946. He was ranked #1 in the world from 1924 to 1946.

Alekhine - De Cassio, Blindfold Simultaneous Exhibition, Portugal 1944

1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Bc5 3.Bc4 Ne7 4.d3 Nbc6 5.Qh5 O-O 6.Bg5 Qe8 7.Nf3 Ng6 8.Nd5 Bb6 9.Nf6+! (9...gxf6 10.Bxf6, threatening 11.Qh6 and 12.Qg7 mate) 1-0

Alekhine - Vasic, Banja Lika 1931

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Bd3 Bxc3+ 5.bxc3 h6 6.Ba3 Nd7 7.Qe2 dxe4 8.Bxe4 Ngf6 9.Bd3 b6?? (9...c5) 10.Qxe6+! fxe6 11.Bg6 mate 1-0

Alekhine, Grace (1876-1956)

Alexander Alekhine’s fourth wife. She was born Grace Wishard on October 26, 1876 in New Jersey. Her parents were Emile Bernard Wishard (Jewish) and Marie Ida Smith. She later married Archibald Freeman, a British tea-planter in Ceylon. He died in the early 1930s. She took up chess and played Alexander Alekhine in a simultaneous exhibition in Tokyo in 1933. The two started a relationship shortly thereafter. They were married in March 1934 at Villefranche-sur-Mer, near Nice, France. The marriage certificate says her maiden name was Wishaar. She was 16 years older than Alekhine. It was his 4^th marriage and may have been her 4^th marriage as well. She owned a chateau in Saint Aubin-le-Cauf, a few miles southwest of Dieppe in Normandy, France. In 1936/37, she participated in a minor tournament at Hastings. Alexander Alekhine won the premier section and she took 3^rd place in her section. He won 15 pounds for 1^st place and she won 1 pound for 3^rd place. During World War II, the Nazis took over their chateau and looted it. She moved to Paris