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. Many claim him to be the strongest modern player (since the line of official World Champions started with Steinitz in 1886) never to play in a world championship match. He was dubbed "The Crown Prince of Chess". Image File history File links Paul_keres. ... Image File history File links Paul_keres. ... January 7 is the seventh day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The reconstructed fortress of Narva (to the left) overlooking the Russian fortress of Ivangorod (to the right). ... June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... Province Southern Finland Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki City manager Jussi Pajunen Official languages Finnish, Swedish Area  - total  - land ranked 342nd 185. ... Chess is an abstract strategy board game for two players. ... The title International 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 1984 World Chess Championship was between Anatoly Karpov (left) and Garry Kasparov (right). ... Wilhelm Steinitz Wilhelm (later William) Steinitz (May 17, 1836, Prague–August 12, 1900, New York) was an Austrian-American chess player and the first official world chess champion. ... 1886 (MDCCCLXXXVI) is a common year starting on Friday (click on link to calendar) // Events January 18 - Modern field hockey is born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England. ...

Biography

Paul Keres first learned about chess through solving chess puzzles in a newspaper column. It wasn't until later that he found out the puzzles came from an actual game. In his early days, he was known for a brilliant attacking style. His playing matured after playing correspondence chess extensively. The longstanding popularity of chess has paved the way for a rich tradition of chess-related puzzles and composed problems. ...

Keres became an Estonian chess champion for the first time in 1935. He played for Team Estonia at the board one in the 6th Chess Olympiad at Warsaw 1935, unofficial Olympiad at Munich 1936, the 7th Olympiad at Stockholm 1937, and the 8th Olympiad at Buenos Aires 1939. 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Warsaw (Polish: , (?), in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto Stołeczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ... Munich (German: München, (pronounced listen) is the capital of the German Federal State of Bavaria. ... Stockholm panorama from the City Hall is the capital of Sweden, located on the south east coast of Sweden. ... Buenos Aires (English: Fair Winds; originally Ciudad de la Santísima Trinidad y Puerto de Santa María de los Buenos Aires, City of the Holy Trinity and Port of Saint Mary of the Fair Winds) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port, and one of...

From 1937 to 1941 he studied mathematics at the University of Tartu. 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... For the movie, see 1941 (film) 1941 (MCMXLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1941 calendar). ... Euclid, detail from The School of Athens by Raphael. ... The University of Tartu (Estonian: Tartu Ülikool, German: Universität Dorpat) is the national university of Estonia, and the one classical university in Estonia, located in the city of Tartu. ...

In 1938 he won the all-star AVRO tournament tied with Reuben Fine (with equal total score, but beating Fine 1½-½ in their individual two games), ahead of chess legends Mikhail Botvinnik, Max Euwe, Samuel Reshevsky, Alexander Alekhine, José Raúl Capablanca and Salo Flohr. It was supposed that the winner of this tournament would be the challenger for the World champion title, but the outbreak of the Second World War, especially because of the first occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union in 1940-1941, brought negotiations with the current champion, Alekhine, to an end. In 1942-1943 Keres and Alekhine have played themselves in four tournaments organized by the German Chess Union. Alekhine won at Salzburg (Six Grandmasters Tournament) in June 1942, at Munich (1st European Championship) in September 1942, at Prague (International Tournament) in April 1943, allways ahead of Keres, and he tied for 1st with Keres at Salzburg (Six Grandmasters Tournament) in June 1943. 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The AVRO tournament was a chess tournament held in 1938. ... Reuben Fine (October 11, 1914 - March 26, 1993) was one of the best chess players in the world during the 1930s. ... Mikhail Moiseevich Botvinnik (Михаи́л Моисе́евич Ботви́нник) (August 17, 1911 - May 5, 1995) was a Russian International Grandmaster and long-time World Champion of chess. ... Machgielis (Max) Euwe (last name is pronounced /ø:wÉ™/) (May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch chess player. ... Samuel Herman (Sammy) Reshevsky (born November 26, 1911, Ozorkow, Poland - died April 4, 1992, New York, USA) was a leading American chess Grandmaster. ... Alexander Alekhine Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine (sometimes spelled Aljechin) (in Russian, Александр Александрович Алéхин), (October 31 or November 1, 1892 – March 24, 1946) was a chess master and a former World Chess Champion. ... Time Magazine, December 7, 1925 José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera (November 19, 1888 – March 8, 1942) was a Cuban world-class chess player in the early to mid-twentieth century. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... This article is about the year. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ...

During World War II Keres played in strong chess tournaments (1939 Buenos Aires, 1940 Moscow, 1941 Leningrad and Moscow, 1942 Tallinn, Salzburg, Munich, 1943 Prague, Posen, Salzburg, Tallinn, Madrid, 1944 Lidköping, 1944/45 Riga, 1945 Tallinn). Keres won in matches against Max Euwe in the Netherlands in 1939/40, and Ekström at Stockholm in 1944. Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total dead: 12 million World War II... Machgielis (Max) Euwe (last name is pronounced /ø:wÉ™/) (May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch chess player. ...

In the 1948 World Championship tournament, arranged to find a champion following Alekhine's death in 1946, Keres finished joint third, with 10.5 out of 20 points. This, probably his main disappointment, must be seen in the context of his difficult personal situation after the end of WWII. His native Estonia had been successively occupied by the Soviets, Germany and then in 1944 the Soviets again, and he had participated in several tournaments in Europe during the German occupation. Upon the Soviet invasion of Estonia in 1944 his attempt to flee the country failed, and as a consequence he was harassed by the Soviet authorities and feared for his life. Newly opened KGB files show that the Soviets made him throw games in international events, in favour of more "politically correct" Soviet players ^{[citation needed]}. His chess career may have been hampered, but Keres did manage to avoid deportation to Siberia or any worse fate during the Soviet occupation (e.g., that of Vladimirs Petrovs). 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1948 calendar). ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1944 calendar). ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1944 calendar). ... Soviet redirects here. ... Gulag ( , Russian: ) is an acronym for Главное Управление Исправительно—Трудовых Лагерей и колоний, Glavnoye Upravleniye Ispravitelno-trudovykh Lagerey i kolonii, The Chief Directorate [or Administration] of Corrective Labour Camps and Colonies of the NKVD. Anne Applebaum, in her book Gulag: A History, explains: Literally, the word GULAG is an acronym, meaning Glavnoe Upravlenie Lagerei, or Main Camp... Vladimirs Petrovs or Vladimir Petrov (1908 – 1943) was a Latvian chess player. ...

Keres won the strong USSR Chess Championship three times (1947, 1950 and 1951), and finished as first runner-up in the Candidates Tournament four times (Zurich 1953, Amsterdam 1956, Yugoslavia 1959 and Curacao 1962), never qualifying for a world championship match. He never became world champion but defeated nine world champions in his career. Winner list: 1991 (58th,Moscow) Minasian, Artashes 1990 (57th,Leningrad) Beliavsky, Alexander / Yudasin, Leonid / Bareev, Evgeny / Vyzmanavin, Alexey ex aequo 1989 (56th,Odessa) Vaganian, Rafael 1988 (55th,Moscow) Karpov, Anatoly / Kasparov, Garry ex aequo 1987 (54th,Minsk) Beliavsky, Alexander 1986 (53rd,Kiev) Tseshkovsky, Vitaly 1985 (52nd,Riga) Gavrikov, Viktor / Gurevich... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... The Candidates Tournament was an annual chess tournament in which various chess players play against each other. ...

He died of heart attack in Helsinki, Finland in 1975, at the age of 59, although it is commonly reported that he died on the same date in Vancouver, Canada. He did in fact die in Finland, but while en route to Estonia from Vancouver. The Paul Keres Memorial Chess Tournament has been held in Vancouver ever since in his honour. Over 100,000 were in attendance at his state funeral in Tallinn, Estonia. Province Southern Finland Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki City manager Jussi Pajunen Official languages Finnish, Swedish Area  - total  - land ranked 342nd 185. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... Vancouver (pronounced ) is a Canadian city in the province of British Columbia. ... Vancouver (pronounced ) is a Canadian city in the province of British Columbia. ... Vancouver (pronounced ) is a Canadian city in the province of British Columbia. ... County Harju County Mayor Jüri Ratas Area 159. ...

Chess output

Paul Keres was ranked among the top 10 players in the world for close to 30 years, between approximately 1936 and 1965, and overall he had one of the highest winning percentages of all grandmasters in history. Chessmetrics, which specializes in calculating historic ELO ratings and accounting for the inflation, has placed his 20-year peak rating as the seventh highest ever. 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... Chessmetrics is a very popular system for rating chess players devised by Jeff Sonas. ... The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess and Go. ...

He was one of very few players who had a plus record against Capablanca. He also had plus records against World Champions Euwe and Mikhail Tal, and equal records against Vasily Smyslov, Tigran Petrosian and Anatoly Karpov. Through his long career, he played against no less than ten world champions, beating nine (his games with Karpov were drawn). Other notable grandmasters which he had plus records against include Fine, Flohr, Viktor Korchnoi, Efim Geller, Savielly Tartakower, Mark Taimanov, Milan Vidmar, Svetozar Gligoric, Isaac Boleslavsky, Efim Bogoljubov and Bent Larsen. Mikhail Tal Mikhail Nekhemievich Tal (Latvian: Mihails Tāls, Russian: Михаил Нехемьевич Таль) (November 9, 1936 - June 28, 1992), born in Riga, Latvia, was the eighth World Chess Champion. ... Vasily Vasiliyevich Smyslov (Васи́лий Смысло́в) (born March 24, 1921) is a Russian chess grandmaster. ... Tigran Petrosian. ... Anatoli Yevgenyevich Karpov (Анато́лий Евге́ньевич Ка́рпов) (born May 23, 1951) is a Russian chess grandmaster and former World Champion. ... Viktor Korchnoi (also Korchnoy, Kortchnoy, Kortschnoj, etc) (Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й) (born March 23, 1931) is a professional chess player. ... Efim Petrovich Geller (March 2, 1925 – November 17, 1998) was a Soviet chess player. ... Ksawery Tartakower (generally known as Saviely or Savielly in English, from Polish Sawielly meaning little Saul, less often Xavier Tartacover or Xavier Tartakover; 1887–1956) was a leading Polish and French chess Grandmaster. ... Mark Evgenievich Taimanov (Марк Евгеньевич Тайманов) (born February 7, 1926) is a leading Russian chess player and concert pianist. ... Milan Vidmar (June 22, 1885 – October 9, 1962) was a Slovene electrical engineer, chess player, chess theorist, philosopher and writer, born in Ljubljana, Austria-Hungary (now Slovenia). ... Svetozar Gligorić (born February 2, 1923) is a chess grandmaster. ... Isaac Yefremovich Boleslavsky (1919 – February 15, 1977) was a Ukrainian-Jewish chess grandmaster. ... Efim Dmitriyevich Bogoljubov, alternatively Yefim Bogolyubov, (1889 – 1952) was a leading Russian chess master. ... Bent Larsen Bent Larsen (born March 4, 1935) is a Danish chess player. ...

He wrote a number of chess books, including well-regarded collection of his games, several tournament books, The Art of the Middle Game (with Alexander Kotov) ISBN 0486261549 and Practical Chess Endings ISBN 0713442107. The latter two are still considered among the best of their kind for aspiring masters and experts. Alexander Kotov (August 12, 1913 - January 8, 1981) was a chess player and author. ...

Acknowledgements

The five kroons (5 krooni) Estonian banknote bears his portrait. He is the only chess player whose portrait is on a banknote. The Kroon is the official currency of Estonia. ...

A statue honouring him can be found on Tõnismägi in Tallinn. County Harju County Mayor Jüri Ratas Area 159. ...

An annual international chess tournament has been held in Tallinn every year since 1969. Keres won this tournament in 1971 and 1975. Starting in 1976 after Keres' death, it has been called the Paul Keres Memorial. There are also a number of chess clubs and festivals named after him. In 2000, he was elected the Estonian Sportsman of the Century. County Harju County Mayor Jüri Ratas Area 159. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1976 calendar). ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

Notable games

• Paul Keres vs José Raúl Capablanca, AVRO Amsterdam 1938, French, Tarrasch, Open Variation, Main line (C09), 1-0 Almost unpredictable jumps of the White Knight slowly destroy Black's position. A beautiful tactical game.
• Paul Keres vs Alexander Alekhine, Margate SN 1937, Ruy Lopez (C71), 1-0 Here Keres outplayed Alekhine already in the first 15 moves. The game is crowned by two small combinations.
• Paul Keres vs Reuben Fine, Moscow 1946, USSR - USA match, English, Symmetrical, A34, 1-0 A small but very pleasing combination
• Paul Keres vs Edgar Walther, Tel Aviv 1964, King's Indian, Petrosian System (E93), 1-0 The game where Keres introduced a new plan against the King's Indian opening: Bg5, h4, Nh2 and a sacrifice on g4.

Quotes

"At Amsterdam in 1954 he scored 96.4% on fourth board and won another game so brilliant against Šajtar of Czechoslovakia that the Soviet non-playing captain, Kotov, told to me that it was 'a true Soviet game.' I told this to Keres who, with the nearest approach to acerbity I ever saw him show, said: 'No, it was a true Estonian game.'" - Grandmaster Harry Golombek (The game Keres-Šajtar; a typical Sicilian sacrifice on e6) Jaroslav Å ajtar (1921 – February 4, 2003) was a Czech chess master and a honorary grandmaster. ... Alexander Kotov (August 12, 1913 - January 8, 1981) was a chess player and author. ... Harry Golombek (March 1, 1911–January 7, 1995), was a British chess player and honorary grandmaster. ...

"At the Warsaw team tournament in 1935, the most surprising discovery was a gangling, shy, 19-year-old Estonian. Some had never heard of his country before, nobody had ever heard of Keres. But his play at top board was a wonder to behold. Not merely because he performed creditably in his first serious encounters with the world's greatest; others have done that too. It was his originality, verve, and brilliance which astounded and delighted the chess world." - Grandmaster Reuben Fine Reuben Fine (October 11, 1914 - March 26, 1993) was one of the best chess players in the world during the 1930s. ...

"I loved Paul Petrovitch with a kind of special, filial feeling. Honesty, correctness, discipline, diligence, astonishing modesty – these were the characteristics that caught the eye of the people who came into contact with Keres during his lifetime. But there was also something mysterious about him. I had an acute feeling that Keres was carrying some kind of a heavy burden all through his life. Now I understand that this burden was the infinite love for the land of his ancestors, an attempt to endure all the ordeals, to have full responsibility for his every step. I have never met a person with an equal sense of responsibility. This man with internally free and independent character was at the same time a very well disciplined person. Back then I did not realise that it is discipline that largely determines internal freedom. For me, Paul Keres was the last Mohican, the carrier of the best traditions of classical chess and – if I could put it this way – the Pope of chess. Why did he not become the champion? I know it from personal experience that in order to reach the top, a person is thinking solely of the goal, he has to forget everything else in this world, toss aside everything unnecessary – or else you are doomed. How could Keres forget everything else?" - Former World Champion Boris Spassky The Last of the Mohicans is an epic novel by James Fenimore Cooper, first published in January 1826. ... The Pope (from Greek: pappas, father; from Latin: papa, Papa, father) is the head of the Roman Catholic Church. ... Boris Spassky Boris Vasilievich Spassky (also Spasski) (Бори́с Васи́льевич Спа́сский) (born January 30, 1937) is a Russian chess player and former world champion. ...

"I was unlucky, like my country." - Paul Keres, on why he never became world champion

External links

• Paul Keres at ChessGames.com

• Remembering Paul Keres
• Biography
• Critical Positions from His Games
• [1] and [2] - "The Keres-Botvinnik case" by Taylor Kingston
• View 2324 GM Paul Keres Games
• Estonian banknotes