Boris Spassky From Russia With Love

Spassky won the world chess championship in 1969 by winning his match against Tigran Petrosian. Unfortunately, he is best known for losing his title to American Bobby Fisher in 1972. That match dubbed “Match of the Century” was played at the height of the cold war in Reykjavik, Iceland.

Spassky showed his promise as a chess player from an early age. He won the World Junior Championship in 1955 and qualified for the 1957 world championship cycle. He then beat David Bronstein In the 1960 Soviet Championship with a sacrificial onslaught. The James Bond movie “From Russia With Love” features the position at move 26.

Spassky was a universal player who played a few brilliancies and excelled in the middlegame and tactics. Never a true opening expert, he also had notable victories with the King’s Gambit. One in his game against Bronstein and another one against Fisher. In 2010 Spassky became the oldest surviving world chess champion after the death of Vasily Smislov.

That’s all for today. Stay on top of COVID-19 by following the WHO Guidelines and keep playing cold war thrillers on the chessboard like Boris Spassky.