Famous Grandmasters

World Chess Champions & Greatest Grandmasters

Jose Raul Capablanca Capablanca, born in Havana, already won a match at age 12 from the best player in Cuba. As a grown man, he was extremely charismatic, always dressed immaculately and had strong sense of honor. His understanding of chess was innate; the first major tournament he attempted was one of the strongest in the world and he came in first place (a distinction shared only with Pillsbury). After the first World War he was considered so invincible that his nickname became 'the chess machine.' In 1921 he captured the world championship from Lasker, but then surprisingly lost it to Alekhine in 1927. His intuition was phenomenal, his speed incredible. 'What others could not discover in a month, he saw at a glance,' noted Fine. He played prolifically and in his time, no other master sustained as few losses as he.

Emanuel Lasker
Emanuel Lasker, born in Berlinchen, Germany, held the World Championship longer than anyone in history, from 1894-1921. He was a well-rounded man who also wrote about mathematics and philosophy. He did not wish to devote his life to chess, but financial pressure always forced him back. His classic book 'Lasker`s Manual Of Chess' describes his approach to the game and pays tribute to the revolutionary theories of Steinitz, the champion he deposed.

Alexander Alekhine Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was born to aristocracy in Moscow, Russia, and was taught chess at age 11 by his mother. Alekhine`s personality left a lot to be desired; he was devious, nervous, restless, and a heavy smoker and drinker. Though a chess genius in his own right, he held his contemporary and rival, Capablanca, in very high regards. Surprisingly, in 1927, he toppled Capablanca to gain the world championship and then studiously avoided any subsequent rematch. Alekhine`s penchant for drink caught up with him with his loss to Euwe in 1935. He then gave up drinking and smoking to regain it in 1937. During World War II he played in many tournaments in Germany and German-occupied countries. After the war he was criticized as an anti-Semite, a charge he firmly denied. He spent the last years of his life in Spain as he was endeavoring the British Chess Federation to organize a match between him and Botvinnik.

Aaron Nimzowitsch Aaron Nimzowitsch, born in Riga, Latvia, was the greatest player of the hypermodern school. In 1922 he emigrated to Denmark and from a small rented room in Copenhagen penned 'My System' and other classics that deeply influenced future generations. His finest result was winning Carlsbad 1929 ahead of Capablanca but a compulsion to prove his 'unorthodox' theories and 'mysterious' moves sometimes proved costly in tournaments. He made decisive contributions to opening theory; he revived the Winawer Variation of the French Defense, the Queen`s Indian and Nimzo-Indian Defense. He also coined many memorable phrases such as 'the pawn has a lust to expand,' 'prophylaxis' and 'the bishop bites on granite.' Two of his most famous disciples are Petrosian and Karpov.

Wilhelm Steinitz Wilhelm Steinitz was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia. He learned chess at the age of 12; unable to afford a board and men, he made his own. He went to Vienna as a young man and first attempted to earn a living as a journalist before dedicating his vocation to chess. He held the first official world championship from 1886-94, it was the 25 year old Lasker who eventually de-throned him. He earned a living as a chess pro in London, then the Mecca of the chess world, before emigrating to America where he died in poverty.

Robert J. Fisher Robert James 'Bobby' Fischer was born in Chicago, raised in Brooklyn, New York. He won the USA Championship at the unheard-of age of 14 in 1958. He was a dominant player throughout the 1960s but developed a reputation for being difficult by insisting on very specific playing conditions. Fischer`s ambition was firmly set on the world championship and in 1972 he got his chance. He was set to play Boris Spassky for the title. No match in the history of the game received more publicity. Fischer soundly defeated Spassky and became the first American to win the world championship. He then withdrew from serious play and in 1975 forfeited his title to Karpov. He became a recluse and did not compete again until 1992 when a Yugoslav entrepreneur organized a rematch with Spassky for $5 million ($3.35 million to the winner and $1.65 million to the loser). Once again Fischer defeated his old rival and once again vanished from the public eye, only to turn up in Japan in 2001. He now resides in Iceland.

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