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Efim Geller
image:Efim_Geller.jpg
Efim Geller
Full nameEfim Petrovich Geller
CountryFlag of the Soviet Union Soviet Union
BornMarch 8, 1925(1925-03-08)
Odessa, USSR
DiedNovember 17, 1998 (aged 73)
Peak rating2620 (1976)
This article uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion. Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ODESSA which stands for the German phrase O rganisation d er e hemaligen SS - A ngehörigen which in turn translates The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Events 284 - Diocletian is proclaimed emperor by his soldiers Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as Chess and Go. Algebraic chess notation is used to record and describe the moves in a game of Chess.

Efim Petrovich Geller (Ефим Петрович Геллер; March 8, 1925 – November 17, 1998) was a Soviet chess player, a Grandmaster of world class at his peak. Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion. Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 284 - Diocletian is proclaimed emperor by his soldiers Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. The title Grandmaster is awarded to extremely strong Chess masters by the world chess organization FIDE. He won the Soviet Championship twice, in 1955 and 1979. Geller was a Candidate for the World Championship on six occasions (1953, 1956, 1962, 1965, 1968, and 1971). The Candidates Tournament was a triennial Chess tournament organized by the world chess federation FIDE as the final contest to determine the challenger for the A world championship(s is the top achievement for any sport or Contest. He won four Ukrainian Championship titles, in 1950, 1957, 1958, and 1959. This is a list of all the winners of the Ukrainian Chess Championship, including those held when Ukraine was a Soviet republic and those held after Ukraine became He shared first in the 1991 World Seniors' Championship, and won that title outright in 1992. Geller was also a coach to World Champions Boris Spassky and Anatoly Karpov, and an author. Boris Vasilievich Spassky (also Spasskij (Бори́с Васи́льевич Спа́сский (born January 30, 1937) is a Russian French Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov (Анатолий Евгеньевич Карпов born May 23, 1951) is a Russian Chess grandmaster

Contents

Early life

He was Jewish and grew up in Odessa, USSR. ODESSA which stands for the German phrase O rganisation d er e hemaligen SS - A ngehörigen which in turn translates The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 He was a fine basketball player, and earned his Doctorate in Physical Education, before specializing in chess. A doctorate is an Academic degree that indicates the highest level of academic achievement His development as a top chess player was delayed by the timing of World War II, which hit the Soviet Union exceptionally hard. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Geller's first notable result was 6th place in the 1947 Ukrainian Championship at Kiev with 9. History See also Soviet Top League See also Ukrainian Soviet competitions The league emerged and was established after the collapse of the Union Kiev, also known as Kyiv ( Ukrainian:, Kyiv, ˈkɪjiw Russian:, Kiyev; see also Cities' alternative names) is the 5/15; the winner was Alexei Sokolsky. He tied 3rd-5th places at Baku 1948 with 9/15; the winner was Y. Baku (Bakı sometimes known as Baqy, Baky, Baki or Bakü, is the capital the largest city and the largest port of Azerbaijan Randviir. Geller scored 11/18 in the 1948 Ukrainian Championship at Kiev for a shared 5th-8th place; the winners were Sokolsky and Poliak.

Grandmaster

He began to make his mark in the late 1940s. He won the USSR Championship semi-final qualifier at Tbilisi 1949 with 11. Tbilisi (ˌtbiˈliːsi in Georgian: თბილისი is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari 5/16, advancing to the final later that year. His finals debut was sensational at URS-ch17 at Moscow 1949, since as a virtual unknown he tied 3rd-4th places with 12. Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of 5/19, behind only winners David Bronstein and Vasily Smyslov. David Ionovich Bronstein (Дави́д Ио́нович Бронште́йн February 19 1924 &ndash December 5 2006) was renowned as a leading Vasily Vasiliyevich Smyslov (Васи́лий Васильевич Смысло́в (born March 24, 1921, in Moscow) is a Russian Chess Geller defeated such established stars as Semyon Furman, Isaac Boleslavsky, Alexander Kotov, Salo Flohr, Tigran Petrosian, Viacheslav Ragozin, and Grigory Levenfish. Semyon Abramovich Furman ( December 1 1920 – March 17 1978) was a Soviet chess International Grandmaster and trainer Isaac Yefremovich Boleslavsky ( Russian: Исаак Ефремович Болеславский) ( June 9, 1919 Zolotonosha, Ukraine Alexander Alexandrovich Kotov (Александр Александрович Котов ( &ndash January 8, 1981) was a Russian Chess grandmaster Salomon Mikhailovich Flohr ( November 21, 1908 &ndash July 18, 1983) was a leading Czech and later Soviet Chess Tigran Petrosian (Տիգրան Պետրոսյան ( June 17, 1929 &ndash August 13, 1984) was World Chess Champion from 1963 Viacheslav Vasilyevich Ragozin ( October 8, 1908 – March 11, 1962) was a Soviet Chess Grandmaster, an International Grigory Yakovlevich Levenfish ( March 9, 1889, Piotrków - February 9, 1961, Moscow) was a leading Jewish[http Despite this strong showing, he had to return to the semi-final level the next year, but advanced successfully with a 3rd place in the 1950 qualifier at Kiev with 9/15. At URS-ch18 at Moscow 1950, Geller made 9/17 for a shared 7th-10th place; the winner was Paul Keres. Paul Keres ( January 7, 1916 – June 5, 1975) was an Estonian Chess grandmaster. Also in 1950, Geller won the Ukrainian Championship at Kiev, the first of his four titles in that event; he repeated from 1957 to 1959, with all three events at Kiev. Geller in 1950 made a successful international debut at the Przepiorka Memorial at Iwonicz Zdroj with 11. Iwonicz Zdrój (Iwonitz - Bad is a town in Poland, in Subcarpathian Voivodship, in Krosno County. 5/19 for 7th place in a powerful field; Keres won again.

Geller is reckoned to have been among the best ten players in the world for around twenty years. He was awarded the International Master title in 1951, and the International Grandmaster title the following year. The title International Master is awarded to outstanding Chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. The title Grandmaster is awarded to extremely strong Chess masters by the world chess organization FIDE.

Geller played in 23 USSR Chess Championships, a record equalled by Mark Taimanov, achieving good results in many. This is a list of all the winners of the USSR Chess Championship. Mark Evgenievich Taimanov (Марк Евгеньевич Тайманов (born February 7, 1926, Kharkov) is a leading Russian Chess He won in 1955 at Moscow (URS-ch22) when, despite losing five games, he finished with 12/19 and then defeated Vasily Smyslov in a playoff match. Vasily Vasiliyevich Smyslov (Васи́лий Васильевич Смысло́в (born March 24, 1921, in Moscow) is a Russian Chess He won his second title in 1979 at Minsk (URS-ch47) in his 54th year, making him the oldest Soviet champion. Minsk (Мінск mʲinsk Минск mʲinsk is the Capital and largest city in Belarus, situated on the Svislach and Niamiha rivers

Among his best results in other important tournaments were: clear first at Iwonicz Zdroj 1957, equal first with Mark Taimanov at Dresden 1959, equal first with Lajos Portisch at Beverwijk 1965, clear first at Kislovodsk 1966, clear first at Gothenburg 1967, clear first at Kislovodsk 1968, equal first with Mikhail Botvinnik at Wijk aan Zee 1969 (ahead of Paul Keres), equal first at Havana 1971 with Vlastimil Hort, equal first at Hilversum 1973 with Laszlo Szabo, clear first at Budapest 1973 ahead of Anatoly Karpov, clear first at Teesside 1975, clear first at Moscow 1975 (ahead of Boris Spassky, Viktor Korchnoi, and Tigran Petrosian), clear first at Las Palmas 1976, equal first with Gennadi Sosonko at Wijk aan Zee 1977, clear first at Bogotá 1978, equal first at Bern 1987 with Daniel Campora, clear first at Dortmund 'A' 1989, and equal first at New York Manhattan 1990 with Gregory Kaidanov, at age 65. Mark Evgenievich Taimanov (Марк Евгеньевич Тайманов (born February 7, 1926, Kharkov) is a leading Russian Chess Dresden (etymologically from Old Sorbian Drežďany, meaning people of the riverside forest, Drježdźany is the Capital city of the German Lajos Portisch (born April 4, 1937 in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary) is a Hungarian chess Grandmaster, whose positional style earned The Corus chess tournament takes place every year usually in January in a small town called Wijk aan Zee, part of the larger Beverwijk in the province of North Kislovodsk (Кислово́дск is a city in Stavropol Krai, Russia. Gothenburg ( Swedish:) /jœte'bɔrj/ is a city, a municipality, and an urban area on the west-coast of Sweden. Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik (mʲixaˈiɫ̺ mʌiˈs̺ʲɛjɛvʲiʧʲ bʌt̺ˈvʲin̺n̻ʲik Михаи́л Моисе́евич Ботви́нник) ( &ndash May The Corus chess tournament takes place every year usually in January in a small town called Wijk aan Zee, part of the larger Beverwijk in the province of North Paul Keres ( January 7, 1916 – June 5, 1975) was an Estonian Chess grandmaster. Havana ( IPA: aˈβana officially Ciudad de La Habana, is the Capital city, major port and leading Vlastimil Hort (born 12 January 1944) is a Chess grandmaster of Czech nationality is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Budapest ( also /ˈbʊ-/) is the capital city of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary it serves as the country's principal Political, Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov (Анатолий Евгеньевич Карпов born May 23, 1951) is a Russian Chess grandmaster Teesside is the name given to the Conurbation in the North East of England made up of the towns of Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of Boris Vasilievich Spassky (also Spasskij (Бори́с Васи́льевич Спа́сский (born January 30, 1937) is a Russian French Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi (also Korchnoy Kortchnoy Kortschnoi etc Tigran Petrosian (Տիգրան Պետրոսյան ( June 17, 1929 &ndash August 13, 1984) was World Chess Champion from 1963 Gennadi (Gennady Genna Borisovich Sosonko (Геннадий Борисович Сосонко born 18 May 1943, Troitsk, Russia) is a Bogotá —officially named Bogotá DC (DC for " Distrito Capital " which means "Capital District" formerly called Santa Fe de Bogotá The city of Berne or Bern (, Berne, Berna, Romansh: Berna, Bernese German: Bärn) is the Bundesstadt ( Federal Daniel Hugo Cámpora (born 30 June 1957 San Nicolás) an Argentine chess Grandmaster. Dortmund (ˈdɔʁtmʊnt is a City in Germany, located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Gregory Kaidanov (Григорий Кайданов born October 11, 1959) is an International Grandmaster of Chess.

In Seniors' competition, Geller further distinguished himself in the early 1990s. At the World Seniors' Championship, Bad Woerishofen 1991, he tied for first with Smyslov at 8. Bad Wörishofen vørɪshofən is a Spa town in the district Unterallgäu, Bavaria Germany. 5/11. Then, in the next year's Championship at the same site, Geller claimed clear first with the same score. Geller remained active in high-level competitive chess until age 70; his last event was the 1995 Russian Championship at Elista. Elista (Элиста́ Kalmyk: Элст Elst) is the capital of the Republic of Kalmykia, a federal subject of the Russian Federation.

World title Candidate

Geller reached the later stages of the World Championship several times. See also Development of the World Chess Championship The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the Board game Chess He was a Candidate at Zurich 1953 and Amsterdam 1956. A candidate is the prospective recipient of an Award or honor or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position for example to be elected Zürich (, Zürich German: Züri, Zurich, Zurigo; in English generally Zurich) is the largest city in Switzerland and capital of the Amsterdam (pronounced) is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west His best result was in the 1962 cycle. He finished second to Bobby Fischer at the Stockholm Interzonal. Robert James "Bobby" Fischer ( March 9 1943 – January 17 2008) was an American -born Chess Grandmaster ('stɔkhɔlm is Sweden 's Capital and its largest City. It is the site of the national Swedish government, the parliament, and the Interzonal chess tournaments were tournaments organized by FIDE, the World Chess Federation Then in the Candidates', he ended up just half a point short of playing for the title by scoring 17/27 at Curaçao, tieing for second place with Keres. Curaçao (ˈkjuːrəsaʊ in English Dutch: Curaçao, Papiamento: Kòrsou) is an Island in the southern Caribbean Sea, That tournament was won by Tigran Petrosian who went on to win the title the next year. Tigran Petrosian (Տիգրան Պետրոսյան ( June 17, 1929 &ndash August 13, 1984) was World Chess Champion from 1963 Geller lost a playoff match to Keres at Moscow 1962 by 4. 5/3. 5, but was able to enter the 1965 Candidates' matches when Botvinnik (defeated World Champion) declined to take part. He defeated Smyslov by 5. 5-2. 5 at Moscow in the first round, but lost to Spassky by 5. 5-2. 5 at Riga in the semi-finals. Riga (Rīga riːga) the Capital of Latvia, is situated on the Baltic Sea coast on the mouth of the river Daugava. In a 1966 Copenhagen playoff match against Bent Larsen, the two players split eight games with two wins each, and Larsen won the first tiebreak game to secure Candidates' exemption in case of a withdrawal by a qualified player in the next cycle. Copenhagen (ˌkəʊpənˈheɪgən ˌkəʊpənˈhɑːgən ˈkəʊpənˌheɪgən ˈkəʊpənˌhɑːgən kʰøb̥ənˈhɑʊ̯ˀn kʰøb̥m̩ˈhɑʊ̯ˀn is the capital and largest city Jørgen Bent Larsen (born March 4 1935, Thisted) is a Danish Chess Grandmaster. (Eventually, this turned out not to matter, since none withdrew. ) In the 1968 cycle, Geller again lost to Spassky, at Sukhumi by 5. Sukhumi, also spelled as Sukhum ( Abkhaz: Аҟəа Aqwa; სოხუმი Sokhumi, Сухуми/Сухум is the capital 5-2. 5, in a Candidates' first-round match. He had to go back to the Interzonal stage in 1970 at Palma de Mallorca, but qualified as a Candidate again, losing his first match to Korchnoi at Moscow by 5. Interzonal chess tournaments were tournaments organized by FIDE, the World Chess Federation Palma is the major City and port on the island of Majorca and capital city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain 5-2. 5. Then in 1973 he tied with Lajos Portisch and Lev Polugaevsky for second place at the Petropolis Interzonal, but lost out in the three-way playoff match tournament at Portorož, so did not advance. Lajos Portisch (born April 4, 1937 in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary) is a Hungarian chess Grandmaster, whose positional style earned Lev Abramovich Polugaevsky ( Russian: Лев Абрамович Полугаевский) (sometimes transliterated as Lyev Polugayevsky) ( Petrópolis, also known as The Imperial City of Brazil, is a town in the state of Rio de Janeiro, about 65 km from Rio de Janeiro. Portorož ( Portorose in Italian, literally "Port of Roses" also known in English and French under the name Portorose pronounced Portorosse

Beating the best

Geller represented the USSR seven times in chess Olympiads, over a very impressive 28-year span from 1952 to 1980, and contributed well each time to overall team gold medal victories. An Olympiad is a period of four years associated with the Olympic Games of Classical Greece. He won three gold medals and three silver medals on his board. According to olimpbase. org, his overall score in Olympiad play is: (+46 =23 -7), for 75. 7 per cent.

Geller was also selected on six occasions for the USSR team to the European Team Championships. His team won gold each time, and he won four gold medals on his board. According to olimpbase. org, his overall score in Euroteams events is: (+17 =19 -1), for 71. 6 per cent.

According to Jeff Sonas' Chessmetrics rating system, Geller was ranked #3 in the world from 1962-3, and was in the world's top 10 for much of the 50s and 60s, and broke back into the top 10 in 1973, 1975–7 and 1979–80. Chessmetrics is a system for rating Chess players devised by Jeff Sonas. [1] Geller also had an overall plus score against world champions, +40 -32 =123, comprising Max Euwe +1 -1 =0, Mikhail Botvinnik +4 -1 =5, Vasily Smyslov +11 -7 =31, Mikhail Tal +6 -6 =22, Tigran Petrosian +6 -2 =33, Boris Spassky +6 -9 =22, Bobby Fischer +5 -3 =2, Anatoly Karpov +1 -2 =5, and Garry Kasparov +0 -1 =3. Machgielis (Max Euwe (last name is pronounced /øwə/ ( May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch Chess Grandmaster Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov (Анатолий Евгеньевич Карпов born May 23, 1951) is a Russian Chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov (Га́рри Ки́мович Каспа́ров) (born as Garry Kimovich Weinstein on April 13 1963 in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, Soviet

Legacy

Geller is best remembered today for the tactical ability and original attacking style which characterised the earlier part of his career. In later years he became a more rounded player. He was noted as an openings expert, and was one of the pioneers in developing the King's Indian Defence to prominence, along with fellow Ukrainians Isaac Boleslavsky and David Bronstein. In Chess the word " opening " has two common meanings both of which are discussed in this article The King's Indian Defence is a common Chess opening. It arises after the moves 1 Isaac Yefremovich Boleslavsky ( Russian: Исаак Ефремович Болеславский) ( June 9, 1919 Zolotonosha, Ukraine David Ionovich Bronstein (Дави́д Ио́нович Бронште́йн February 19 1924 &ndash December 5 2006) was renowned as a leading Geller also greatly advanced the knowledge in several variations of the Sicilian Defence, such as the quiet line with 6. The Sicilian Defence is a Chess opening that begins with the moves 1 Be2 against the Najdorf Variation 1. Miguel Najdorf (born Mendel (Mieczysław Najdorf in Grodzisk Mazowiecki near Warsaw, Poland, April 15, 1910 &ndash e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6, which he used to defeat Bobby Fischer. Robert James "Bobby" Fischer ( March 9 1943 – January 17 2008) was an American -born Chess Grandmaster He introduced the sharp Geller Gambit against the Slav Defence. The Slav Defense is a Chess opening that begins with the moves 1 He acted as second (assistant) to World Champion Boris Spassky in the World Championship match of 1972 against Bobby Fischer, and later seconded World Champion Anatoly Karpov as well as his lifelong close friend Tigran Petrosian. The World Chess Championship 1972 match between challenger Bobby Fischer and defending champion Boris Spassky in Laugardalshöll, Reykjavík Robert James "Bobby" Fischer ( March 9 1943 – January 17 2008) was an American -born Chess Grandmaster Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov (Анатолий Евгеньевич Карпов born May 23, 1951) is a Russian Chess grandmaster Tigran Petrosian (Տիգրան Պետրոսյան ( June 17, 1929 &ndash August 13, 1984) was World Chess Champion from 1963 His books included an autobiography, translated by Bernard Cafferty as Grandmaster Geller at the Chessboard (1969). This was later updated and reissued in 1983 under the title The Application of Chess Theory, and contains 100 well-annotated games. With impressive scores against so many top players, Geller was perhaps a bit unlucky not to become World Champion. Former champion Botvinnik stated that, in his opinion, Geller was the best player in the world in the late 1960s. Geller seemed to be stronger in tournament play than in matches.

Notable chess games

External links

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