What is new to this edition? 

According to the blurb: 

‘In this updated version of Moskalenko’s 2013 book of the same name, 33 of the 42 games are new, the structure has been updated in places, and there are fresh ideas on every page.’ 

In truth, the Pirc and Modern defenses have never matched the reputations of semi-open games such as the Sicilian, Caro-Kann, or French Defense and they are rarely seen at the higher levels of chess. When they do appear, they have a habit of making their reputation worse. 

Readers will no doubt remember game 32 of the great Anatoly Karpov – Viktor Korchnoi 1978 World Championship match, plus game nine of the 1983 Candidates match between Garry Kasparov and Alexander Beliavsky, and Vasily Ivanchuk – Vladimir Kramnik in the dramatic final round of the 2013 Candidates tournament. 

Karpov – Korchnoi 1978

Kasparov – Beliavsky 1983

Ivanchuk – Kramnik 2013

In each of those three games, the course of chess history would have been changed if Black had triumphed, and yet each ended in defeat for the second player. Therefore, Karpov kept his title, just when he seemed to be on the point of defeat, Kasparov sailed through the rest of his Candidate’s matches and into his extraordinary series of matches with Karpov (which saw the Soviet Golden Boy ultimately dethroned), and it was Magnus Carlsen, not Kramnik, who qualified to play Vishy Anand in the 2013 World Championship match and start his 10-year tenure on the throne, before his surprising abdication earlier this year. 
 
10 years… now there is a coincidence. Perhaps the Pirc Defense itself was not to blame for the three pivotal Black defeats mentioned earlier and the time is now right for a revival? 
 
As always, Moskalenko writes with an easy and accessible style, clearly on the optimistic side of the fence when it comes to covering his second-favorite defense to 1. e4. 

At first glance, of course, this new edition and the original look extremely similar, but a closer inspection reveals some interesting new ideas for Black – and, for that matter, for White too. 

Here is a striking example, in a popular variation. 
 
After 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. f4 Bg7 5. Nf3 c5 6. dxc5 Qa5 we reach one of the main lines of the Austrian Attack against the Pirc Defense.  

What do we make of 7. Qd4 in this position? 

 
 
Moskalenko calls it: ‘A recent, paradoxical, but strategically interesting attempt to fight for an opening advantage. In this line, White combines two basic ideas: establishing a favourable pawn structure and exchanging the queens.’ 

One point is that after the routine capture with 7…dxc5, 8. Qc4! ‘allows White to put his strategy to good use’ with 8. Qc4! ‘which changes the value of the line 7…dxc5.’ One of the points of this mysterious queen move is to trade the strongest pieces after (for example) 8…0-0 9. e5 Be6 10. Qa4! Qxa4 11. Nxa4 with ‘the desired endgame for White.’ 

Furthermore, ‘7…Nc6?!, attacking the white queen, is unfortunately refuted by 8. Bb5!’, with the attempt at a tactical rebuttal with 8…Qxb5… 
 

…failing to 9. Qxf6! 

Black is therefore advised to avoid trying to be too clever and to play 7…0-0 instead, when 8. cxd6 exd6! appears to give Black good play for the sacrificed material, especially as the White Queen will now be a target. 

Moskalenko provides examples of Black’s potential in his notes, including this drastic collapse. 
 
9.Bd2 Nc6! 10. Qxd6?? Rd8 11. Qa3 Qxa3 12. Bxa3 Nxe4 

Suddenly, Black is winning and has a position any self-respecting Pirc player would be delighted to see appear on the board. 
 
Make no mistake: playing the Pirc or Modern requires specific knowledge of key variations, a great sense of timing and a bag full of tricks. 
 
Careful study of this book, combined with active practice in over-the-board chess, should lead to some very rewarding victories indeed. 
 
Sean Marsh 

The art of the exchange sacrifice is a difficult one to master. Chess players are happy enough to sacrifice pawns left, right, and center in the opening and think nothing of blasting open a castled king’s position with a knight or bishop sacrifice.

Yet the timing of an exchange sacrifice (rook for knight or bishop) is much more difficult, especially when the compensation is not immediately obvious and, indeed, could take many more moves to manifest itself.

The Exchange Sacrifice Unleashed by George Mohr provides excellent coverage of the genre. This new book offers plenty of guidance and examples on this tricky subject, with the exchange sacrifices coming at all stages of the game and in a variety of circumstances, such as attack and defense. There is even a section on World Champions sacrificing the exchange.

Here are some interesting examples from the book.

The Exchange Sacrifice Unleashed: Example 1

Dreev – Peng

Beijing 2000

Black’s bishop appears to be a nuisance but after 25. Rxg3! hxg3 the unexpected follow-up 26. Rb3! brought White success down the g-file (1-0, 29).

The Exchange Sacrifice Unleashed: Example 2

Hort – Petrosian

Kapfenberg 1970

Petrosian is still the undisputed king of the exchange sacrifice and here is a typical example of his style. It looks like White has built up considerable pressure against the black king, but Petrosian was ready with one of his logic-defying specialties.

21…g6! 22. Nf6+ Rxf6 23. exf6 Nf7 when Hort’s attack had been stopped in its tracks and Petrosian went on to prove his superior endgame skills, despite always being the exchange down (0-1, 48).

The Exchange Sacrifice Unleashed: Example 3

Here is a very rare example of a double rook sacrifice on the same square.

Shirov—Short

Yerevan, 1996

15. Rxf6!?

Typical Shirov!

15…gxf6 

16. Nd1 a remarkably cool follow up, sending the knight on a journey to g4, from where it will apply significant pressure to both f6 and h6. After the more obvious 16. Rxf6, Black appears to be fine after 16…Ng6, despite his compromised pawn structure.

Fast forward a few moves and we can see exactly what Shirov was up to.

20. Rxf6!

Now 20…Nxf6 21. Qxh6+ and 22. Nxf6+ would be intolerable for Black, so he had to give up his queen with 20…Qxf6. The position became extremely unusual, but Shirov eventually triumphed (1-0, 60).

Playing through the examples given in this entertaining and instructive book will remind the reader that there is far more to chess than merely ‘banking’ a material advantage. Sometimes, a little investment can lead to impressive dividends further down the line.

Sean Marsh

You can find two of their newly released books; Sicilian Defense: Four Knights Variation and The London System: The Adventure Continues at Forward Chess, (with a few more releases in the pipeline).

Sicilian Defense: Four Knights Variation

One-half of the founding duo, GM Miloš Perunović, is also an author – with books such as The Modernized Benko, and now, under his own publishing house, Sicilian Defense: Four Knights Variation. Perunović is an expert in the Sicilian Defense, particularly the Four Knights Variation which is characterized by the moves 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6:

From this position, the book covers multiple lines that White has:

• 6.Qd3
• 6.Bf4
• 6.Be2
• 6.g3
• 6.a3
• 6.Nxc6
• 6.Ndb5

The pawn on e6 (instead of d6) offers a few benefits; Black’s dark-squared bishop can easily develop to b4 placing pressure on the center, and Black also has the option to strike with d5. In most variations, Black can easily create pleasant positions, and in the case of complex ones, you will be offered different moves for Black. This is why the book’s synopsis states that this line (and the book) will suit both aggressive and defensive players – there is something for everyone!

Sicilian Defense: Four Knights Variation Table of Contents

1. Chapter One: 6.Qd3, 6.Bf4, 6.Be2 and 6.g3
2. Chapter Two: 6.a3
3. Chapter Three: 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.e5 Nd5 8.Ne4 Bb7
4. Chapter Four: 8…Qc7 9.f4 Qb6 10.a3
5. Chapter Five: 10.c4 Bb4 11.Ke2 f5 12.Nf2
6. Chapter Six: 12.exf6
7. Chapter Seven: 6.Ndb5 Bb4
8. Chapter Eight: 6…Bc5 7.Nd6+
9. Chapter Nine: 7.Bf4
10. Chapter Ten: Exercises

The London System: The Adventure Continues

The London System, characterized by moves 1.d4 and 2.Nf3 followed by Bf4 and e3, has become very popular lately, and for good reason – White creates a flexible, solid, and well-protected pawn structure with many opportunities to attack. Moreover, White has a wide range of options after Bf4, allowing flexibility and making preparation and anticipation more difficult for the opponent.

The author, GM Nikola Sedlak, argues that this repertoire is one that can be used for life. He creates a strong foundation for the reader and provides detailed reasoning behind all of his recommendations which means that rather than just memorizing lines, you will understand why they work and the ideas behind them.

The book’s introduction, which you can view in the free sample, prepares the reader for what’s to come by providing snippets of all the chapters.

The London System: The Adventure Continues Table of Contents

1. Chapter One: The Caro-Kann Position
2. Chapter Two: The Classical Setup
3. Chapter Three: Dubov’s Line
4. Chapter Four: The Modern Line …Qb6 – …Qxb2
5. Chapter Five: 5…Bg4
6. Chapter Six: Early Qb6
7. Chapter Seven: Early …Bd6
8. Chapter Eight: The Symmetry
9. Chapter Nine: The Grunfeld Setup
10. Chapter Ten: Exercises
11. Chapter Eleven: Theoretical Novelties

Check out these two new releases by Chess Fortress on Forward Chess, and don’t miss out on their introductory sale offers!

P.S Keep an eye out for more Chess Fortress releases soon

1. Anatoly Karpov
2. Garry Kasparov
3. Vladimir Kramnik
4. Viswanathan Anand
5. Magnus Carlsen
6. Ding Liren

Anatoly Karpov

1975-1985

The young Karpov made early waves in the chess scene, with many tournament wins under his belt including the 1969 World Junior Championship title. Throughout his career, he would attain over 160 first-place finishes, a peak rating of 2780, and over 100 months at the number-one rating spot. Interestingly, Karpov attained the Grandmaster title in 1970 at 19 years old and would go on to become World Champion only 5 years later.

He placed first at the 1974 Candidates matches which placed him as a (dangerous) challenger for the World Championship title against Bobby Fischer. However this largely anticipated match never happened as Fischer abdicated the title, therefore making Karpov the 12th World Chess Champion by default.

Karpov’s style is quite technical and he is considered to be one of the best endgame players of all time. His games were very much “slow burns” where he would suffocate his opponents gradually. In the book Endgame Virtuoso Anatoly Karpov, Karpov’s endgame technique is showcased. Including this example from when he was only 10 years old:

He would go on to defend his title for a decade, but not without problems as a new Soviet rival, Garry Kasparov emerged. In 1984 the two faced off in a seemingly never-ending match that went on for 5 months. The reason for this was that the title was decided by the first player to win 6 games, a score that neither player could reach. Karpov had quickly taken the lead with a 4-0 winning score after 9 games, and it seemed like he would be the clear winner. However, Kasparov taught the world a lesson in persistence and would fight back to a score of 5-3 for Karpov with 40 draws. After the 48th game, and two consecutive wins by Kasparov, the FIDE president halted the match leaving the result as “undecided” with Karpov retaining his title, and Kasparov earning a re-match right for the following year.

Karpov’s endgame skills were brilliantly showcased in game 9 of their match:

Garry Kasparov

1985-2000

The Karpov-Kasparov rivalry was very big for the chess world and chess history. After their halted 1984 match, the two greats met again in 1985 with regulation changes, as the title would then be decided by the best of 24 games. Kasparov emerged as the victor after 5 wins, 3 losses, and 16 draws. He started the match off with a bang by winning the first game in style:

Looking back at Kasparov’s roots, it was perhaps always clear that he would become one of the greatest players of all time. As a child, he had fully devoted himself to chess and stood out in the Soviet Chess School under Botvinnik’s mentorship. Kasparov learned a somewhat scientific approach to chess thanks to Botvinnik’s tutelage, learning how to study chess and moreover, rigorously prepare for tournaments. He dominated the international chess scene, along with Karpov, with a universal style and deep opening knowledge.

His reign as World Champion was not one without problems, as in 1993 Kasparov and his challenger at the time, Nigel Short, split from FIDE for their match to be hosted by the Professional Chess Association. FIDE however, did not approve, and a mess ensued as there would be two World Championship cycles – a PCA Classical World Chess Championship one, and a FIDE World Chess Championships one. We will not delve into the politics of this time, but the separation would continue for 13 years until 2006 when the titles were unified and administered by FIDE.

Furthermore, Kasparov also became a prominent author, writing books such as the “My Great Predecessors” series, which takes a look at all the greats who came before him, and the “Modern Chess” series which details the evolution and developments of chess. Furthermore, the chess legend also details his own life and career in his “Garry Kasparov on Garry Kasparov” series. Perhaps then it can be argued that Kasparov may be the greatest player of all time not only because of his playing strength, but how much he contributed to chess.

Vladimir Kramnik

2000-2007

The 1990s and early 2000s were chaotic years for chess. With two rival titles and two different formats – where FIDE hosted World Championship knockout tournaments for the title, and the PCA along with Kasparov remained true to the old match style, there is a lot of debate around which constituted the true championship, and therefore World Champion. For the sake of this article series, we will follow the old match format.

Vladimir Kramnik was an elite player throughout the 90s, having joined Kasparov at the top of the world rankings. Kasparov had even deemed Kramnik to be his likely successor and invited him to challenge for the title in a 2000 match. For many reasons, it can be argued that Kramnik was better situated for victory in this match, owing to Kasparov’s 5-year match break, his large role in politics and securing sponsors, and Kramnik’s novel eagerness for the title. With a format of best out of 16, Kramnik did not suffer a single loss and comfortably won 2-0 with 13 draws, making him the first challenger since Capablanca to not lose a game in a World Championship match. The ratio disparity of wins to draws was contributed by Kramnik’s weapon of choice against the Spanish; the Berlin Defense characterized by 3…Nf6, leading to an eventual queenless “Berlin Endgame”.

Unlike the long, difficult Berlin draws, game 10 took only 25 moves:

Kramnik retained his title against Peter Leko in 2004, and finally, after years of controversy and disagreement, the Classical and FIDE titles were combined for a 2006 match between Kramnik and Veselin Topalov (the FIDE World Champion at the time). Kramnik triumphed and therefore became the first new age World Champion, in a cycle that we still use today.

Viswanathan Anand

2007-2013

Vishy Anand had an interesting World Championship career, having played (and lost) against Kasparov in their classical PCA match in 1995, to winning the FIDE World Chess Championships (knockout format) in 2000. Therefore, by the time he attained his undisputed World Champion title in 2007, Anand already had a wealth of experience.

The format for the title in 2007, was somewhat of a different one. As a means to correct and combine the PCA and FIDE paths to the title, a world championship tournament was held in New Mexico in 2007 as the first phase of what would be a two-stage process to declare an undisputed world champion. The participants comprised 8 of the top players in the world; Kramnik, Anand, Peter Svidler, Alexander Morozevich, Peter Leko, Boris Gelfand, Levon Aronian, and Alexander Grischuk. An agreement was made that the winner would be declared World Champion, where Kramnik would be assured a right to challenge the winner the following year in a classical match format. Anand won the 2007 Mexico City world championship tournament and also defeated Kramnik in their 2008 match in Bonn to retain the title. He held the title for 6 more years, until his 2013 match against Magnus Carlsen.

In the era of technology and strong chess engines, Anand’s play is considered to be almost mechanical – evident in his ability to do so well in faster time controls. His style is universal, both tactical and strategic, as well as deep opening knowledge. Game 6 in his match against Kramnik perfectly displays this:

Anand’s greatness cannot be argued – he inspired a whole generation of Indian players as the first Indian Grandmaster and the first Indian World Champion. Furthermore, he has displayed his brilliance in chess within multiple formats and time controls – from winning the World Rapid Championships (2003,2007) to winning the World Blitz Cup (2000).

Magnus Carlsen

2013-2023

As we have displayed, there have been many greats in chess, but there is no name more synonymous with chess than Magnus Carlsen. A genius of our time, Magnus has set a standard so high that we can only wonder if it could ever be transcended. Before winning the 2013 World Championship match against Anand, Carlsen was already a superstar – rated 2870 which was by far the highest achieved at the time. The young and ambitious Norwegian won the match without conceding any losses and winning 3 games. One of which was a 28-move masterpiece that displays his defense and attack mastery, and ability to switch between them:

Carlsen’s natural gift for chess was evident from a young age. At the age of 13, in 2004 he attained the Grandmaster title, and five years later in 2009, he passed the 2800 rating barrier. In Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century the author aptly describes Carlsen as “hav[ing] just a little bit extra in every skill in the game: calmly confident, self-possessed, boundlessly creative, thoroughly prepared, razor-sharp in calculation, and utterly accurate in judgment.” Compared to Capablanca, Carlsen’s chess style is intuitive and natural, paired with the ability to succeed in all time controls as in 2014 and 2019 he held all three World Rapid, Blitz, and Classical titles.

He retained his Classical title a few more times – against Sergey Karjakin in 2016, Fabiano Caruana in 2018, and Ian Nepomniachtchi in 2021. The chess world can only wonder whether he could have broken Lasker’s 27-year World Championship record or not as he relinquished his title in 2023, much like his predecessor Bobby Fischer. Even though he does not hold the title anymore, Magnus is still considered to be the best chess player of all time and we most definitely have not seen the end of his career yet.

Ding Liren

2023 – present

Carlsen’s abdication of the title came as quite a shock to the chess world, as the throne was now open for the taking again. The winner and runner-up from the Candidates, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren respectively, were decided as next in line to challenge for the title. Nepo had World Championship experience from his match against Carlsen in 2021 and was considered a favorite by many. Ding, on the other hand, lacked the experience and activity but ultimately held the better nerves to win their match in the tiebreaks.

With many decisive results, unlike the surplus of draws we have seen in World Championship matches before, the Nepo-Ding match was an exciting one. Ultimately, their final rapid game decided the match:

Ding’s career has been a very colorful one, with multiple Olympiad medals under his belt, and other accolades such as winning the Chinese Championship at the mere age of 16, to holding a 100-game winning streak from 2017-2018. His ability to calculate deeply and his endgame play stand out in his style, along with his skills in faster time controls which even earned him the blitz rating of 2875, the highest in the world at the time. His influence will most likely also be remarkable, as he paves the way for a new generation of Chinese players by being the first Chinese World Champion.

We have embarked on a new era in chess, with a new World Champion, it will be interesting to see what the future holds for the Chess World Championship.

Featured Books

Endgame Virtuoso Anatoly Karpov

Tibor Karolyi and Nick Aplin

View Free Book Sample

Garry Kasparov on Garry Kasparov, Part 1: 1973-1985

Garry Kasparov

View Free Book Sample

My Great Predecessors Series

Garry Kasparov

Garry Kasparov on Modern Chess Series

Garry Kasparov

Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century

Craig Pritchett

View Free Book Sample

Have any thoughts or questions? Let us know in the comments below!

1. Mikhail Botvinnik
2. Vasily Smyslov
3. Mikhail Tal
4. Tigran V. Petrosian
5. Boris Spassky
6. Bobby Fischer

Mikhail Botvinnik

1948-1957

1958-1960

1961-1963

Botvinnik is considered to be one of the best players and influencers in chess, not only due to his long reign as World Champion, but also his mentorship and training of top players including the likes of Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, and Vladimir Kramnik. It is for this reason, and the fact that he paved the way for Soviet dominance in chess, that he was (and still is) known as the father of the Soviet Chess School.

His style can be categorized as scientific and meticulous, with a big emphasis on theoretical research which gave him an edge in the opening phase. Most probably his own harshest critic, Botvinnik would deeply study his own games and therefore understood the weaknesses and strengths in his play. Interestingly, he considered himself to be a universal player who could fine-tune his style according to who he was playing against.

By the late 1930s, it was clear that Botvinnik was ready to challenge Alekhine (the then World Champion) for the throne. However, due to multiple factors such as Alekhine’s refusal to play, and the outbreak of World War II, it would take many more years for this challenge to be realized. Finally, after the war, an agreement was made and an Alekhine-Botvinnik match was scheduled to take place. However, matters were only further complicated due to Alekhine’s unexpected death in 1946. As chaos and uncertainty unraveled, the chess world needed a champion.

Then, in 1948, a World Championship Match Tournament was set up between 5 of the top players at the time – Botvinnik, Euwe, Keres, Reshevsky, and Smyslov. Botvinnik triumphed in the tournament, winning all four matches against his esteemed opponents. He would go on to keep the title until 1963, losing it only briefly to Smyslov and Tal.

Here is a game annotated in Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century between Botvinnik and the former World Champion, Max Euwe:

Vasily Smyslov

1957-1958

Smyslov had a long and illustrious career – from becoming the youngest Soviet Grandmaster, to setting a record for winning 17 Olympiad medals, to still playing world-class chess well into his 60s! Moreover, he dedicated 10 long years (1948-1958) to his quest to become the World Champion. His success as a player and eventual World Champion can be traced back to his upbringing in the Soviet era, under the Party’s regime, when chess had become widespread and integral in education. By the time of the 1948 World Championship Match Tournament, Smyslov was considered only second behind Botvinnik.

Often compared to Capablanca, Smyslov also had an intuitive feeling for chess. His approach was artistic in nature, which, along with solid endgame technique, saw him beat Botvinnik in their 1957 Match, therefore becoming the 7th World Champion.

In his book, The Life and Games of Vasily Smyslov, Andrey Terekhov presents this position from the Botvinnik-Smyslov World Championship match:

Can you find the key defensive idea here for Black?

Mikhail Tal

1960-1961

Now enters the “Magician from Riga”! Previous World Champions have so far been classified as “natural” “systematic” and “attacking”. However, the latter description took on a whole new meaning by Mikhail Tal, who pushed the boundaries of attacking chess so much so that arguably his name is considered synonymous with sacrificing in chess.

Although his time as World Champion was short-lived, he cemented his place as one of the greatest players of all time by winning multiple Soviet Championships, and Olympiad medals, and competing in multiple Candidates tournaments. At only 23 years old, Tal became the youngest World Champion (at the time), by beating the more strategic and sound Botvinnik 12.5-8.5. In Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century, author Craig Pritchett writes that Tal “generally headed for highly complex positions that played to his rapid-fire calculating strengths”. Riddled with attack and sacrifices, many of which were not always sound, Tal’s play most definitely had a psychological impact on his opponents.

Tal wrote arguably one of the best accounts of a World Championship match in his book Tal Botvinnik 1960, which shares a detailed analysis of not only the games but the psychology of the match and everything in between.

Here is game 6 from the Tal-Botvinnik Match, considered to be one of the most exciting:

After 46…Kd4 Tal writes, “In this position, the game was adjourned and White sealed his move. Arriving home, my trainer and I set up the position and were quickly convinced that Black’s passed pawn was irresistible. Therefore (I am telling you secretly) on the next day we didn’t even eat breakfast, and we waited for the sound of the referee’s bell with information about White’s resignation. At noon, the long awaited bell sounded…White’s sealed move had been 47.Rd7+. But it made no difference – White had resigned.”

Tigran V. Petrosian

1963-1969

Tigran Petrosian, the “Iron Tigran”, was the ninth World Champion and brought a whole new element to World Championship chess – defense. If Tal is considered an attacking genius, then Petrosian can be considered a defensive one. His play was incredibly solid, guided by logic, and he would not allow his opponents to attack. Instead, his own attack would slowly but surely creep up on his opponents often including some kind of exchange sacrifice. His defensive prowess is evident in the fact that in 1962, he did not lose a single tournament game. It can be critiqued that this was only the result of many (short) draws, but it still remains that in the time of the dominating Botvinnik, Spassky, and aggressive Tal, Petrosian was able to bring a new style of playing to the table.

Even after losing the first game in the match, Petrosian handled his nerves and settled back on his feet. With positional openings and solid, defensive structures, he eventually beat Botvinnik in their 1963 match to become World Champion. Petrosian retained his title against Spassky in 1966 and held the throne until 1969.

Boris Spassky

1969-1972

Boris Spassky was a player who was universally grounded – he understood sound strategy but also had a flair for the attack which made him dangerous (and comfortable) in almost any position. He played with risk, but when the time was right.

Chess was no longer an old gentleman’s game at this point, evident in the up-and-coming youth of the time, including Spassky who at the mere age of 18 years old played his first Candidates tournament in 1956 which would be the first of many. He would go on to triumph on the international chess field, eventually winning the 1965 Candidates tournament. Although he lost the 1966 title match to Petrosian, this did not dissuade his title hopes as he won the (somewhat controversial) 1968 Candidates match series, earning the right to challenge Petrosian once again which he did victoriously in 1969.

Here is a memorable win from Spassky over Fischer in their game at the Second Piatigorsky Cup in 1966:

Bobby Fischer

1972-1975

One cannot contest that the USSR dominated chess and the World title from Botvinnik in 1948 to Spassky in 1972 – a reign that was broken by the talented American Bobby Fischer. We could discuss the cultural and political significance of this in great detail, but that would require a whole new blog post.

As was becoming popular at the time, his talent was prevalent at a young age as he won multiple US chess championships – even attaining a perfect score in the 1963 edition. His rise to the top was a monumental one, as he crashed onto the international chess scene and dominated World Championship qualifying events. This is all the more impressive considering that Fischer lacked the resources and training that was readily available to the best Soviet players at the time.

His skills were apparent in all phases of the game – from opening preparation (influencing ideas still used today), brilliant middlegame combinations, to endgame technique. Fischer, who remains the best player in history to some, is known for many things. One of which is the game of the century:

Annotations from chessgames.com

His victory over Spassky in 1972 is considered to be one of the most famous World Championship matches, even referenced in popular culture through films and plays. It was not a straightforward organized event as problems persisted before and throughout for the young American. However, there was evidently mutual respect between the two greats, and after a rollercoaster event, against all odds, Fischer became the first (and only) World Champion from the US breaking a seemingly impenetrable Soviet dominance.

Featured Books

Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century

Craig Pritchett

View Free Book Sample

The Life and Games of Vasily Smyslov, Volume I

Andrey Terekhov

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The Exchange Sacrifice according to Tigran Petrosian

Vassilios Kotronias

View Free Book Sample

Tal Botvinnik 1960

Mikhail Tal

View Free Book Sample

Fischer – Spassky 1972

Tibor Karolyi

View Free Book Sample

Have any thoughts or questions? Let us know in the comments below!

Part 1 Solutions:

Lasker

After 12…Rd8, White cannot play 13.Bxh7 because of 13…Kh8 14.Qe4 and Black has 14…Qh5! trapping the Bishop.

Capablanca

The stunning combination that results in a Capablanca mate: 22.Rh8+ Ke7 23.Re8+! Rxe8 24.Rxd7+ Kf8 25.Rxf7#

1. Wilhelm Steinitz
2. Emanuel Lasker
3. José Raúl Capablanca
4. Alexander Alekhine
5. Max Euwe

The Beginning: Wilhelm Steinitz

1886 to 1894

By the time Steinitz entered the chess scene, professional play and international tournaments were already popular, dominated by chess giants such as Adolf Anderssen and Paul Morphy. The chess style at this time can be characterized as aggressive and attacking, where plans were formulated along the lines of a kingside attack (this is very prevalent in Morphy’s games). Steinitz committed his life fully to chess, unlike Morphy who stopped playing at the mere age of 21 to pursue law. This meant that these two greats never got to face off at the chess board.

Steinitz’s approach was somewhat more technical, scientific, and strategic, which, paired with a strong work ethic, paved the way for a new style of chess. He believed that play should be directed to the Queenside and Center rather than just Morphy-style Kingside assaults, and developed the theory that players should collect small strategic advantages to prepare a winning attack. Furthermore, and what players are still influenced by today, was Steinitz’s belief that the King is a powerful piece and should be used for attack and defense.

A lesser-known fact is that Steinitz actually took a break from international tournament play for 6 years in 1876! During this time, still devoted to the game, he was a chess writer and analyst, providing in-depth analysis for world-class chess columns. He returned to international top-level play in 1882, a time when J Zuketort had been dominating tournaments. With the assistance of financial backers and an eagerness to settle who holds the seat to the throne, the first formal World Chess Championship match was held in the US in 1886 between these two chess giants.

With his superior understanding of openings, creativity, and strategic play, Steinitz won the match (decided by the first player to get 10 wins) and became the first official World Chess Champion. He went on to defend his title three more times against the Russian Mikhail Chigorin (1889 & 1892) and Hungarian Isidor Gunsberg (1890-1891) until he was dethroned in 1894 by the German Emanuel Lasker.

Here is an exemplary game between Steinitz and his challenger, Chigorin during their 1982 World Championship match as shown in Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century:

Emanuel Lasker

1894–1921

Only 25 years old when he first won the title against the much older Steinitz in 1894, Lasker acknowledged and respected Steinitz’s scientific approach and rules to chess, and went on to build on them by theorizing new principles in a much less stringent way. Steinitz believed that players should strive to find the best move in any position, whereas Lasker understood that humans are not always capable of such perfection and that mistakes are inevitable. He saw chess as a battle between two minds, both of which are capable of making mistakes. The better player, according to him, is the one who understands and can comfortably play the position which can be attributed to understanding basic chess principles guided by logic and common sense.

Still today, Lasker is widely considered as one of the best players of all time mostly due to his record of having the longest reign of any World Champion in history – 27 years!

Let’s take a look at a game between Lasker and Steinitz at their 1894 World Championship match:

Lasker was also one of the best tacticians and calculators in chess. Step inside his shoes: here is a tactic taken from a game played in 1890 against Jacques Mieses:

Black to play. Can he play 12…Rd8 or does he have to defend the h7-pawn?

José Raúl Capablanca

1921–1927

The Cuban World Champion Capablanca is known for many aspects of his chess style, but arguably most of all for his positional understanding and endgame play. He did not necessarily adhere to any previously established rules, but rather followed his own and would find the correct way to play in most positions, adopting the nickname the “Human Chess Machine”. Capablanca was considered to be an intuitive genius – he understood chess so naturally and in ways that cannot be defined. This machine-like depiction can also be attributed to his incredible speed of accurately assessing positions and subsequently playing the most accurate moves.

His gift for chess was already prevalent at the mere age of 16, and interestingly enough, it was his predecessor Emanuel Lasker who had talent-spotted the young prodigy at the Manhatten Chess Club in 1905. Soon enough the young Cuban was ready to take the throne himself.

Unfortunately, the war years 1914-1918 halted the World Championship cycle, but Capablanca continued to live up to his greatness by playing and winning multiple strong tournaments. After being previously denied to challenge Lasker, eventually in 1921 a match was set up between the two players and Capablanca triumphed as Champion when Lasker resigned from the match after 14 games (which was supposed to be 24 games).

Capablanca was also a notable author, writing one of the best chess books, Chess Fundamentals – a timeless work that covers strategic fundamental principles that every chess player should know. Have a look at the free e-book version here on Forward Chess!

Have a look at his game victorious game 11 against Lasker in their 1921 World Championship match: (annotated by Capablanca himself)

Play like Capablanca! In his book “Capablanca: A Primer of Checkmate“, author Frisco Del Rosario shines light on checkmates inspired, played, and created by Capablanca. Take a look at this mate coined after him, Capablanca Mate where “the Rook gives check and covers the seventh rank, while the Knight covers the potential flight squares on the eighth. After that, it is a matter of guarding the checking piece from capture”

Can you find this 4-move mate tactic played by Capablanca in a game against A. Souza Campos in 1927?

Alexander Alekhine

1927–1935 and 1937–1946

Alekhine’s life is an interesting one to reflect on. Born into a wealthy Russian family, he was fortunate to have many opportunities to play chess competitively on an international level and very soon placed himself on the podium with other great players. However, his life was not only one of comfort as he would go on to spend a brief period of time in a German prison, and even ended up in a hospital as a result of serving in the Russian ranks. Eventually, he won the first Soviet Chess Championship in 1921.

Imaginative and attacking play would be the best way to describe Alekhine’s chess style. This, along with his determination to be the best, saw him successfully battle for the title against Capablanca in 1927. His style of playing directly opposed the intuitive Capablanca’s as his success was attributed to hard work, study, and theoretical research. He wrote many chess books and contributed immensely to opening theory, still played today.

Alekhine successfully defended his title twice against Efim Bogoljubow, but in a shock to the chess world, lost against the weaker Max Euwe in 1935. However, not long after in 1937, a rematch saw Alekhine regain the title. Impressively, Alekhine was the only World Champion to die a champion. Of course, his final years were full of controversy and speculation, but the fact still remains that he holds this feat!

In his book, Alekhine: Move by Move, author Steve Giddens showcases Alekhine’s competitive nature and tactical ability by studying Alekhine’s games, enabling the reader to learn from the masterpieces. Here is an example of a simul game shown in the book:

Max Euwe

1935-1937

Max Euwe is by no means the greatest chess player of all time, but he was talented and so much so that he was able to briefly dethrone Alexander Alekhine as World Champion, even though he was considered to be an amateur. His success can largely be attributed to his research skills (unsurprising as he was a math teacher with a doctorate), which he used to prepare opening blows to the unprepared Alekhine.

Furthermore, Euwe cemented his role in chess as the FIDE president from 1970-1978, as well as an author with multiple books, most notably “Judgement and Planning in Chess”.

Take a look at game 26 (out of 30!) illustrated in the book Modern Chess: From Steinitz to the 21st Century:

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Here’s an old game between the Polish-born Dawid Janowski (1868-1927) and the Englishman known as “The Black Death,” Joseph Blackburne (1841-1924). At the time of the game, the pair were among the world’s top twenty chess players. Here they take part in a typical tournament tussle involving changing fortunes and missed wins.

1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. d4 Nxd5 4. c4 Nf6 This was the favored continuation at the time. The “hypermodern” but now standard 4… Nb6 typically accompanied by a kingside fianchetto was a later invention.

5. Nc3 e6

5… e5 All because on his 5th move White played a knight to c3 rather than to f3. 6. dxe5 Qxd1+ 7. Nxd1 Ne4.

6. Nf3

A position also reached by 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5!? 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.c4 Qd8 6.Nc3.

6… Nbd7

6… Be7 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O b6 is a more usual line.

7. Bd3 c5 8. d5 Nb6

Uncastled Black must be careful about opening the position: 8… exd5 9. O-O d4 10. Nb5 a6 11. Qe2+ Be7 12. Nd6+ Kf8 13. Nxf7 Kxf7 14. Ng5+ Ke8 15. Ne6.

9. dxe6 Bxe6 10. b3 The c-pawn doesn’t need protecting.

10. O-O Bxc4 (10… Nxc4 11. Re1 Na5 12. Ng5+-) 11. Qe2+ Be6 12. Bb5+ followed by Nf3-g5 is very bad for Black.

10… Bd6

Black, who isn’t equal yet, has several options, including 10… Qd7 perhaps with queenside castling.

11. O-O O-O 12. Bg5 Be7

It seems wasteful to move the bishop again but White was threatening 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 (13… gxf6 14. Qc2 ) 14. Ne4! Qe7 15. Nxd6 Qxd6? 16. Bxh7+ gaining the queen.

13. Qc2 h6 14. Bh4 Nh5?! Black is struggling to impose his own will on the game, so he tries something fanciful. 15. Rad1

55…Nd7 Others are worse because the black queen will be bullied by the white pieces:

15… Qc7 16. Nb5!

15… Bd7 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Bh7+ Kh8 18. Rfe1 Qf6 19. Ne4 Qf4 20. Nxc5 +-

16. Bg3? A massive relief for Black who can now redeem his wayward knight by dissolving White’s bishop pair.

White doesn’t appreciate the fine position he had achieved through his assertive opening play, which he should continue with 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Bh7+ Kh8 18. Rfe1 threatening Bh7-f5 and/or Nc3-d5, alternatively Bh7-e4-d5. And note the further possibility Qf6 19. Rxe6 Qxe6 20. Bf5+-

16… Nxg3 17. hxg3 Qc8 18. Rfe1 Nf6 White is still better but this relatively “normalized” situation is slightly less dangerous for Black than it had been. 19. Nh4 Re8 20. Bf5 Bf8

21. Nd5 Nxd5! 22. Bh7+

22. Rxe6! is White’s last little trick in this phase of the game. Fortunately, it isn’t nasty for Black as long as he saves his knight rather than takes the rook. Nb4! (22… fxe6 23. Bh7+ Kh8 24. cxd5 Qc7 25. Be4) 23. Rxe8 Qxe8 24. Qb1 Nc6=

22… Kh8 23. cxd5 White regains his piece although by now Black has more or less equalized. Bg4 24. f3 Bd7 25. Be4 Bd6 26. f4 Bg4 27. Rc1 Qc7 28. Bf5 Bxf5 29. Nxf5 Bf8 30. Qc3 Qd7 31. Qd3 g6 32. Ne3 Rad8

33. a3 b6 34. f5? White is going wrong. It can’t be due to the clock because he’s only just passed the first time control (30 moves in 2 hours). Bg7 35. fxg6 Bd4!

Even if Black follows White’s plan with 35… fxg6 what is White’s follow-up supposed to be? 36. Qxg6?? loses to 36…Bd4! 37. Qxh6+ Qh7 (37… Kg8? 38. Rcd1) 38. Qg5 Rg8 39. Qf4 Rdf8.

36. Kh2 Re5 37. g4 Qd6 This looks attractive because of a discovered check, but White easily guards against that possibility.

Best is 37… fxg6! 38. Nc4 (38. Qxg6 Rxe3 39. Qxh6+ Qh7-+) 38… Rxe1 39. Rxe1 Qxg4-+

38. g3 Qxg6 39. Qxg6 fxg6 40. Nc4 Rexd5

41. Re6 (41. a4 stops Black’s next move.) 41… b5 42. Na5 Bb2

42… R5d6! 43. Rce1 R8d7 looks like a better way to play for a win.

43.Rf1 R5d6 44. Re7 R6d7 45. Re6 Rd6 Repeats the position (once). Yes, there were already some sort of “draw by multiple repetition” rules back in the nineteenth century. So Black, a pawn up, doesn’t want to fall foul of them.

45… Rc8! transposes to the next note (featuring 47…Rc8!).

46. Re7

46… Rd1? The win is gone.

It was still possible with 46… R6d7 47. Re6 and now (not 47…Rd6 which is a third occurrence but) Rc8! with the idea of forcing the c-pawn (or another) toward a queening square. The knight can’t stop that, for example, 48. a4 (48. Nc6 c4 49. bxc4 bxc4 50. Nb4 Bxa3-+) 48… bxa4 49. Nc4 axb3! when White can take the bishop but is faced with three passed pawns, which he cannot overcome.

It isn’t possible to detail everything, but another line after 46… R6d7 is 47. Rf8+ Rxf8 48. Rxd7 Rc8 49. Rb7 Bc3 50. Rxb5 a6 51. Rb6 Bxa5 52. Rxa6 Bd2 53. Rxg6 Bc1, which is also a forced win for Black — eventually.

47. Rxd1 Rxd1 48. Rxa7 Rd2+ 49. Kh1 Bxa3 50. Rb7

50…Bb4 (50… b4 51. Rc7 =!)

51. Nc6 Rb2 52. Rxb5 Rxb3 53. Kg2 Kg7 54. Kh3 Re3 55. Nxb4 cxb4 56. Rxb4 Kf6 1/2-1/2

Play through the whole game here:

If you liked this little trip down history, be sure to check out the author’s book on another chess giant, Sam Reshevsky:

Marek Soszynski is a master twice over: a Master of Philosophy and a Correspondence Chess Master.

He is the author or co-author of several chess books, including “The Great Reshevsky”, “The Polish Defense”, and “Sabotaging the Sicilian French & Caro-Kann with 2.b3” which you can find on Forward Chess.

He lives in the city where he was born, Birmingham, England.

Vasily Smyslov, the 7^th World Chess Champion, was born on this day, 102 years ago. He played in four chess World Championships from 1948 to 1958 and became the 7th World Champion by defeating Mikhail Botvinnik in 1957. He would lose the title in the return match in 1958, but a quarter of the century later, he made a stunning comeback, making it all the way to the Candidates Final match. Only the unlimited energy of the young Garry Kasparov could stop Smyslov from qualifying for another world championship match at the ripe-old age of 63. 

Yet, of all the world champions that the chess world has had to this date, Smyslov remains one of the least known. His style was not as flashy as Alekhine or Tal, and the more recent champions, such as Karpov or Carlsen, are better known today when it comes to strategic play. 

I was first introduced to Smyslov’s games when I was a small kid. My coach at the time was big on chess fundamentals and thus I saw a lot of games by Capablanca, Botvinnik, Karpov – and yes, Smyslov. His play was magnificent and had that Mozart-like lightness about it, which is why Vladimir Kramnik once described Smyslov as “the truth in chess”.

A few years after Smyslov passed away I bought a collection of his best games. It was Smyslov’s “magnum opus”, a book that contained 326 of his games played from 1935 and almost all the way to the end of his career as a player (well, not quite, as the book was published in 1995, while Smyslov continued to play until his eyesight failed, and that was already in the 21^st century!) All games were annotated by Smyslov himself and replaying them felt like a reunion with a long-lost friend. I was once again in awe of the beauty of the games and the clarity of the annotations. 

I started looking for other books on Smyslov… but could not find anything! There were literally no biographies of Smyslov – only the books that the 7^th World Champion wrote himself. I kept on waiting, hoping that one day a renowned grandmaster or a famous chess historian would cover this gap in the chess literature, but then I realized that this day may never come, and so I decided to write it myself.

Fast-forwarding a few years, I spent analyzing Smyslov’s games, studying in the libraries, and reading old newspapers, chess journals, and tournament bulletins. Finally, I was able to get in touch with Smyslov’s heirs and spent a week sorting out his personal archives in the house where the world champion spent the last years of his life. 

At the end of 2020, this work culminated in the publication of the first volume of what is hopefully going to be a long series on Smyslov, “The Life and Games of Vasily Smyslov. The Early Years: 1921-1948”, which is available on ForwardChess. This book describes Smyslov’s ascent from an unknown and unranked chess amateur to the youngest participant in the World Championship match tournament that was organized in 1948 after the death of Alexander Alekhine.

The world that we live in today is vastly different from the one that Smyslov grew up in the late 1930s. Suffice it to say that Smyslov played his first tournament game only a few months after turning 14; today there are over dozen players who managed to achieve a grandmaster title by that age! (curiously enough, Smyslov even played a match against one of these prodigies, losing 1:5 to 13-years-old Etienne Bacrot in 1996)

However, in his time Smyslov was a prodigy in his own right, and in this book, I am tracing his meteoric rise in the late 1930s-early 1940s. After a relatively late start to his “official” chess career, he progressed at a breakneck pace, winning almost every tournament that he played in (some of them with 100% scores!), becoming a junior champion of the Soviet Union in 1938, then scoring a newly introduced Candidate Master title by winning an all-Soviet adult competition of First Category players in August 1938, before finally scoring a Master title by winning the Moscow championship in October. At the age of 17, Smyslov became the youngest master in the Soviet Union (which should probably tell you how difficult that title was to achieve).

This string of successes was followed by a breakthrough performance in Smyslov’s first Soviet Union championship in 1940, where he finished with a bronze medal – but ahead of Keres, Botvinnik, and Boleslavsky! (Bondarevsky and Lilienthal were the surprise winners)

In 1941, after another bronze in the Absolute championship of the Soviet Union (this time behind Botvinnik and Keres) Smyslov became the youngest grandmaster in the Soviet Union and, arguably, in the world. 

Yes, there were times when a 20-year-old grandmaster was considered very young. For the next half a century teenage grandmasters would continue to be an exception, rather than a rule (the next youngest grandmaster would be Spassky, who became a GM at 18, then Fischer would famously push the record to 15½).

Let’s take a look at a game that was typical for the energetic style of the young Smyslov:

By 1940-41 Smyslov became one of the strongest chess players in the world. According to Chessmetrics, Smyslov broke into the Top 10 by October 1940 and would remain there for 30 years straight, until 1970! 

However, in the 1940s Smyslov still struggled in head-to-head encounters with the best of the best. Smyslov’s score at the time against Botvinnik, Keres, and Reshevsky was negative – although it should be pointed out that all of these challengers for the throne were 5-10 years older than Smyslov and thus much more experienced. In the 1930s all of them had the opportunities to cross swords with the likes of Lasker and Capablanca – the demi-gods that Smyslov saw only as a spectator at the 1935-36 Moscow International Tournaments, but never got to face at the board. 

It took 10-15 years before Smyslov managed to overtake Keres and Reshevsky. In the end, he did it in the most convincing fashion – by winning two Candidates’ tournaments in a row. It took longer still – two decades and two more World Championship matches! – before Smyslov finally managed to defeat Botvinnik. 

However, it was in the 1940s that Smyslov managed to score his first victories against his chief competitors. One of the last games that I analyze in detail in my book is Smyslov’s victory over Reshevsky in the 1948 World Championship match tournament. It is one of the best-known games by Smyslov and provides a great illustration of the refined and logical style that he developed and that would become his trademark until the last days of his long and illustrious career. 

Here it is with abridged notes (in the book I dive deeper into the theoretical debate that raged at the match tournament, and compare the annotations of this game by Smyslov, Keres, Kasparov, and other famous commentators):

If you would like to learn more about Smyslov’s incredible rise to the top, you can check “The Life and Games of Vasily Smyslov. The Early Years: 1921-1948” on ForwardChess. The book contains 48 deeply annotated games, as well as his detailed biography, including previously unpublished photos and letters from Smyslov’s personal archive.

Andrey Terekhov

Andrey Terekhov is a FIDE Master and an ICCF International Master (correspondence chess). He is the author of “The Life and Games of Vasily Smyslov. Volume 1: The Early Years. 1921-1948” and currently resides in France.

In the years 2003-2007 I was teaching chess at the University of Tarapacá in Arica, Chile. Its director Emilio Rodríguez was (still is!) a big chess enthusiast and at some moment he asked me what material I was using in my lessons. I told him that I liked to elaborate my own material instead of just using available books and other publications. That process started back in 2002 – collecting instructive material from different sources and organizing it in different chess databases.

I showed Emilio some printouts, and he reacted spontaneously with “Johan, you should write a book!”. I think that was in 2005, and I started working on a book, to be published by the university thanks to Emilio’s interest. I thought it would take just a month, but it took about half a year in the end, or even more! It got the name “Ajedrez Conceptual” and was published in May 2006.

Later that year I went to the Chess Olympiad in Turin, Italy, and on the way back Catalan GM Jordi Magem happened to be in the same airport line. I showed him the book, and he told me that he had an editorial in Andorra. One thing led to the other, and next year an improved version of the same book, under the name “Descubriendo los Conceptos en Ajedrez” was published by Esfera Editorial.

At around the same time English GM John Emms had suggested me to write a book about the Sicilian Kan for Everyman Chess. That happened in 2008, and since the Kan book did rather well on the market, he went on to ask me whether I had some other book project. I told him about the other book, and if I remember correctly, it was his idea to focus just on middlegame strategy, leaving out the opening and endgame content, adding more examples to the existing structure etc. The result of this work turned into Mastering Chess Strategy, published by Everyman in 2010.

Also this book apparently sold well, got positive reviews etc, so John suggested that now I’d write a similar book but on opening strategy. His point was that there were already many endgame books on the market, so it would be better to leave the endgame part to the very end and first see how the other books went. Mastering Opening Strategy was published in 2012 and it got a positive reception as well.

Soon John told me to “finish off” the trilogy by writing the endgame book. Mastering Endgame Strategy was published in 2013, and with it, a heavy weight was off my shoulders! Over the coming years, the printed versions of the three works became rather popular, and were even translated to some other languages. Electronic versions were published both by Forward Chess and Everyman itself, while Chessable versions were published in 2021.

I’d say the books have clear similarities as for the structure, format and origin. Chapters are numerous but rather small, and they all have an exercises part linked to them. The game comments are rather word-based – no Chess Informant symbols, endless variations trees etc. On occasion I wished I had added some more words and variations, on the other hand physical space was an issue at the time they were printed. I still remembered the case of my Kan book where I had to leave out the last chapter because the book got “too” big!

The examples are mostly taken from high level games played between 1980 and 2010 approximately, but some older classics were also included. I used a lot of my own games and also some students’ games. One merit of these books is that most of the material was “tested” on students, whose reactions and suggestions would often be reflected in the contents.

Of the three, I’d say Mastering Chess Strategy feels like the heaviest one – it is really filled with important ideas, but packaged in a (hopefully!) rather practical way, easily digested etc. Mastering Opening Strategy is probably the most entertaining one of the three. Mastering Endgame Strategy gave me a special kind of satisfaction since I felt that I had managed to present endgame material in a way that would not bore the student.

Interestingly, a decade has passed since these books were published, but I am still keeping the same structure in my databases, adding new examples each week etc. I think it was famous Russian trainer and writer IM Mark Dvoretsky who first suggested organizing chess material according to certain labels or classifiers, an idea that I definitely approve of! Hope you will enjoy the books, happy to see the Forward Chess version being available for the convenience of its students.

Johan Hellsten

Have any thoughts or questions? Let us know in the comments below!

Born in 1975 in Malmo, Sweden. Learnt chess at 6 from his father. Swedish U13 Champion in 1988, Swedish U20 Champion in 1991. IM in 1995, GM in 2004. Best achievements include 1st place at Copa Entel (Santiago, Chile) in 2005 and Swedish Champion in 2006, alongside a gold medal in the European Team Championship (Pula, Croatia) in 1997 and a bronze medal in the same event (Gothenburg, Sweden) in 2005. Represented Sweden in 3 Olympiads. Worked as a coach at Universidad de Tarapacá (Arica, Chile) in the years 2003-2007 and at Federación Deportiva de Chimborazo (Riobamba, Ecuador) in the years 2008-2022. A number of books published, collaborator at the US Chess School and at Magnus Chess Academy. Involved in training projects with the Swedish Chess Federation.