Official Logo of the Siegen Olympiad

The 19th Chess Olympiad, comprising an open team tournament and the Annual Congress of the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, took place between September 5 and September 27, 1970, in the small town of Siegen, Germany. The Chess Olympiad is a chess event which has been officially organised by FIDE since 1927 and takes place in even years. ... The Fédération Internationale des Échecs or World Chess Federation is an international organization that connects the various national chess federations around the world. ... September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... See also: 1969 in sports, other events of 1970, 1971 in sports and the list of years in sports. // Auto Racing Stock car racing: Pete Hamilton won the Daytona 500 NASCAR Championship - Bobby Isaac Indianapolis 500 - Al Unser, Sr. ... Siegen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ...

Tournament report

Held at the Siegerland Hall venue, a total of 64 nations applied to enter the tournament. Unfortunately, space constraints and FIDE 's intended model format meant that only 60 could be accommodated. Rather too conveniently it was then found that 4 teams were to have their applications rejected on the grounds that they had missed the deadline or some such technicality.

The tournament was run as a 2-stage round-robin. Six preliminary Groups determined the composition of five Finals Groups, denoted A to E, the strongest qualifiers ending up as Group A and so on. There were several unsatisfactory aspects of this system however and they manifested themselves in a variety of ways.

Firstly, the pressure was raised to fever pitch at a very early stage in the proceedings. A poor result in the prelims would condemn a team to a low Group. All this proved too much for England's top player, Jonathan Penrose, who in his crucial final prelims match, blundered a piece and fainted from the shock. A nervous player at the best of times, he was retired from the rest of the contest on medical grounds and England ended up adrift in Group C, which they won by a hefty margin. Jonathan Penrose (born October 7th 1933, in Colchester) is an English chess player (International Master (1961) and International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster (1983) who won the British Chess Championship ten times from 1958 to 1969. ...

The Sunday Times reported instances of cheating. For example, in the Indonesia vs. Switzerland prelims match, a player moved his queen next to the opponent's king with check. KxQ was forced and so the player made the move for his opponent, declaring stalemate and shaking hands all in one movement. His dazed opponent ended up signing the scoresheet, before recovering his wits and realising (too late) that it wasn't stalemate at all. The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper distributed in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International which is in turn owned by News Corporation. ...

It was possible for strong teams, sitting comfortably in favourable qualification spots, to not try as hard as they might have in other circumstances. Such actions undoubtedly influenced the qualification process below them and as a deliberate ploy, could have assisted in relegating a strong rival to a lower Group.

Then there was the whole question of apartheid. Albania decided to forfeit their game against South Africa as a protest against racial segregation and so lost 4-0. Naturally, this meant that the whole group dynamic was lost and the resulting placings, somewhat distorted. There were some teams and a small number of strong players who did not compete at all. A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982. ...

The teams competed for the Hamilton-Russell Cup. Matches were scored by game points, with match points being used in the event of a tie-break. The Chief Referee was International Arbiter (IA) Harry de Graaf. 360 players took part, including 35 grandmasters and 66 international masters. International Arbiter is a title awarded by the world governing body of chess, FIDE, to individuals deemed capable of acting as arbiter in important events (the arbiters are responsible for ensuring the rules and laws of chess are adhered to). ... The title Grandmaster is awarded to world-class chess masters by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain. ... The title International Master is awarded to outstanding chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. The title is open to both men and women. ...

As was customary, A FIDE congress was held during the Olympiad and the major news concerned the retirement of President Folke Rogard after 21 years of service. He was to be replaced by former World Champion Max Euwe and this appeared to be a universally popular decision. Another important issue was the presentation of a proposed new system for the award of FIDE Grandmaster and International Master titles; the congress adopted in full the report submitted by a committee comprising Svetozar Gligoric, Professor Arpad Elo and the Vice President, Mr Dorazil. Bror Axel Folke Per Rogard (July 6, 1899 - 1973) was a Swedish lawyer and chess official. ... Current World Champion, Vladimir Kramnik. ... Machgielis (Max) Euwe (last name is pronounced /ø:wÉ™/) (May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch chess player. ... Svetozar Gligorić (born February 2, 1923) is a chess grandmaster. ... . Árpád Élő (1903-1992) is the creator of the ELO rating system. ...

The tournament was very well attended by the public, particularly on the day that Boris Spassky played Bobby Fischer, with an estimated 3000 spectators turning up ( - Spassky won). Boris Spassky Boris Vasilievich Spassky (also Spasski) (Бори́с Васи́льевич Спа́сский) (born January 30, 1937) is a Russian chess player and former world champion. ... Robert James Bobby Fischer (born March 9, 1943) is a United States-born Icelandic chess grandmaster and in 1972 became the only US-born chessplayer ever to win the World Chess Championship. ...

Individual performances

World Champion Boris Spassky took the best score on board one (79.17%) and won a suit as a prize. Bobby Fischer finished a close second with 76.9% and Bent Larsen a close third with 76.5%. Bent Larsen Bent Larsen (born March 4, 1935) is a Danish chess player. ...

Tigran Petrosian extended his amazing run of unbeaten Olympiad games to 90 (won 58, drawn 32). Tigran Petrosian. ...

Viktor Korchnoi lost only one game - as a result of oversleeping he defaulted to the Spaniard, Diez del Corral. There was no satisfactory explanation as to why team captain Paul Keres or one of Korchnoi's team-mates could not have telephoned his room when noticing he was a few minutes late. Viktor Korchnoi (also Korchnoy, Kortchnoy, Kortschnoj, etc) (Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й) (born March 23, 1931) is a professional chess player. ... Paul Keres Paul Keres (born January 7, 1916, in Narva, Estonia; died June 5, 1975, in Helsinki, Finland) was an Estonian chess grandmaster and one of the strongest chess players of all time, apart from the World chess champions. ...

Oscar Panno drew a record 15 games; however this may be partially explained by his accommodation. Siegen is a small place and many competitors were housed in the surrounding area. When Korchnoi asked Panno where he was living, his reply was "in a pure field". Oscar R. Panno (born 1935) was an Argentine chess grandmaster. ...

Final Group A, top 10 finishers

Place of finish	Team	Players	Matches won	Matches drawn	Matches lost	Total score [1]
First	U.S.S.R.	Boris Spassky, Tigran Petrosian, Viktor Korchnoi, Lev Polugaevsky, Vasily Smyslov, Efim Geller	7	4	0	27.5
Second	Hungary	Lajos Portisch, Levente Lengyel, Istvan Bilek, Gyozo Forintos, Istvan Csom, Zoltan Ribli	8	2	1	26.5
Third	Yugoslavia	Svetozar Gligoric, Borislav Ivkov, Milan Matulovic, Aleksandar Matanovic, Bruno Parma, Dragoljub Minic	8	3	0	26.0
Fourth	United States of America	Robert Fischer, Samuel Reshevsky, Larry Evans, Pal Benko, William Lombardy, Edmar Mednis	5	3	3	24.5
Fifth	Czechoslovakia	Vlastimil Hort, Miroslav Filip, Vlastimil Jansa, Jan Smejkal, Josef Pribyl, Frantisek Blatny	3	6	2	23.5
Sixth	West Germany	Wolfgang Unzicker, Lothar Schmid, Klaus Darga, Hans-Joachim Hecht, Dieter Mohrlok, Klaus Klundt	4	2	5	22.0
Seventh	Bulgaria	Milko Bobotsov, Georgi Tringov, Nikola Padevsky, Luben Popov, Ivan Radulov, Atanas Kolarov	3	4	4	21.5
Eighth	Argentina	Miguel Najdorf, Oscar Panno, Julio Bolbochan, Miguel Quinteros, Jorge Rubinetti, Carlos Eleodoro Juarez	4	2	5	21.5
Ninth	East Germany	Wolfgang Uhlmann, Burkhard Malich, Heinz Liebert, Artur Hennings, Lothar Zinn, Friedrich Baumbach	1	5	5	19.0
Tenth	Romania	Florin Gheorghiu, Victor Ciocaltea, Theodor Ghitescu, Emil Ungureanu, Gheorghe Mititelu, Emanoil Reicher	1	3	7	18.5

Group A was completed by Canada (17.5 points) and Spain (16 points). Gold Medal is an album by American band The Donnas, released in 2004. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union. ... Soviet redirects here. ... Boris Spassky Boris Vasilievich Spassky (also Spasski) (Бори́с Васи́льевич Спа́сский) (born January 30, 1937) is a Russian chess player and former world champion. ... Tigran Petrosian. ... Viktor Korchnoi (also Korchnoy, Kortchnoy, Kortschnoj, etc) (Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й) (born March 23, 1931) is a professional chess player. ... Lev Polugaevsky (sometimes transliterated Polugayevsky; (20 November 1934-30 August 1995) was an International Grandmaster of chess and frequent contender for the world chess championship, although he never achieved that title. ... Vasily Vasiliyevich Smyslov (Васи́лий Смысло́в) (born March 24, 1921) is a Russian chess grandmaster. ... Efim Petrovich Geller (March 2, 1925 – November 17, 1998) was a Soviet chess player. ... A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests (typically athletics competitions) such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Hungary. ... Lajos Portisch is a Hungarian chess player, born in 1937, whose positional style earned him the nickname of the Hungarian Botvinnik. One of the strongest non-Soviet grandmasters in the 1960s and 1970s, he participated in 12 straight interzonals and qualified for the candidates cycle 5 times. ... Istvan Bilek (born 11 August 1932 in Budapest) is a Hungarian chess player and since 1962 International Grandmaster. ... Istvan Csom (born June 2, 1940, Satoraljaujhely, Hungary) is a Hungarian chess grandmaster. ... Zoltán Ribli (born September 6, 1951 in Mohács) is a Hungarian chess grandmaster and three times national champion. ... A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests (typically athletics competitions) such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_SFR_Yugoslavia. ... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in Latin, Југославија in Cyrillic, English: Land of the South Slavs) describes four political entities that existed one at a time on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century. ... Svetozar Gligorić (born February 2, 1923) is a chess grandmaster. ... Borislav Ivkov (born November 12, 1933 in Belgrade) is a Serbian chess player. ... Milan Matulovic (b. ... Bruno Parma (born December 30, 1941) is a Slovene chess player and grandmaster. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_States. ... Robert James Bobby Fischer (born March 9, 1943) is a former world chess champion, and the only American to win the FIDE world chess championship. ... Samuel Herman (Sammy) Reshevsky (born November 26, 1911, Ozorkow, Poland - died April 4, 1992, New York, USA) was a leading American chess Grandmaster. ... Larry Melvyn Evans (born March 23, 1932) is an American chess player and journalist. ... Pál BenkÅ‘ (born July 15, 1928 in Amiens) is a chess grandmaster, author, and composer of endgame studies and chess problems. ... William James Lombardy (born December 4, 1937) is an American Grandmaster of chess. ... Edmar J Mednis (1937–February 13, 2002) was a chess International Grandmaster (1980). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Czechoslovakia_(bordered). ... Vlastimil Hort (b. ... Jan Smejkal (born March 22, 1946 in LanÅ¡kroun) is a Czech chess player and since 1972 an International Grandmaster. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Wolfgang Unzicker (26 June 1925 in Pirmasens – 20 April 2006 in Albufeira) was one of the strongest German chess grandmasters from 1945 to about 1970. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Bulgaria_(bordered). ... Milko Bobotsov (b. ... Georgi Tringov (b. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Argentina. ... Miguel Najdorf (born as Mieczysław Najdorf; 1910 - 1997) was a Polish-Argentine chess player. ... Oscar R. Panno (born 1935) was an Argentine chess grandmaster. ... Julio Bolbachan (10 March 1920–28 June 1996) was the Argentine chess champion in 1946 and 1948. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_East_Germany. ... GDR redirects here. ... Wolfgang Uhlmann (born March 29, 1935) is a prominent German International Grandmaster of chess. ... Dr Friedrich (Fritz) Baumbach (born September 8, 1935 in Weimar, Germany) is a German chess grandmaster of correspondence chess, most famous for being the eleventh ICCF World Champion in correspondence chess between 1983 and 1989. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Romania. ... FLORIN GHEORGHIU (born April 6, 1944) is a Romanian chess master and university lecturer in foreign languages. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Canada. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ...

Final Groups B-E

Of the remaining Final Groups, the top 3 finishers were as follows;

Group B ... 1st Israel 2nd Poland 3rd Australia. Image File history File links Flag_of_Israel_(bordered). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Poland_(bordered). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ...

Group C ... 1st England 2nd Philippines 3rd Iceland. Image File history File links Flag_of_England_(bordered). ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Philippines. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Iceland. ...

Group D ... 1st Switzerland 2nd Albania 3rd Peru. Image File history File links Flag_of_Switzerland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Albania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Peru. ...

Group E ... 1st New Zealand 2nd Rhodesia 3rd Turkey. Image File history File links Flag_of_New_Zealand. ... Image File history File links Flag of Rhodesia, 1965–1968. ... National motto: Sit Nomine Digna (Latin: May she be worthy of the name) Official language English Capital Salisbury Political system Parliamentary system Form of government Constitutional monarchy (until 1970) Republic (March 2, 1970) - Last President John Wrathall - Prime Minister Ian Smith Area  - Total  - % water 390 580 km² 1% Population  - 1978... Image File history File links Flag_of_Turkey. ...

Best Game

The 'Best Game' prize went to Lothar Schmid (West Germany) - Anton Kinzel (Austria) from the preliminaries.

References

• Siegen Chess Olympiad by Raymond Keene and David Levy - pub. Chess Ltd., Sutton Coldfield, England, 1970

• The Sunday Times - October 25, 1970; comments from England team captain C. H. O'D. Alexander.

• Olimpbase report, list of interesting games with viewer, individual prize winners etc.