ARTICLES ON CHESS PLAYERS

As Indians, the first name that strikes our mind when we think about chess is Vishwanathan Anand. He is an inspiration to many upcoming Indian players as he was India's first chess grandmaster. His mother's encouragement and inspiration helped him become one of the top chess players in the world. In multiple interviews, he talks about how his passion for chess developed because of the personal connection he had with the game as it was taught by his mother who he idolized.

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Anand's chess career began when he was 15 years old when he became the world's youngest International Master (IM). Soon, his fast tactical calculations earned him the moniker "Lightning Kid" in India, where he won multiple "speed chess" tournaments. Vishy Anand: My Best Games of Chess, which he published in 1998 and expanded with new games in 2001, was a collection of his games.. He won the championship in 1986 and continued to win until 1988. Anand earned India's first Grandmaster in 1988. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him and the entire country. He became the first Indian to win the FIDE World Chess Championship. The loss of the title in 2001 had a significant influence on Anand. In an interview with The Telegraph, he expressed how empty he felt. `Because within a year, I had lost my title. But I learned a lot from that period.` shows that he did not let losses affect how he treated the game and continued to persevere.

With his perseverance and passion for the sport, Viswanathan reclaimed the World Championship in 2007 and began his reign of terror. In 2008, Anand successfully defended his championship against Vladimir Kramnik. He defeated Veselin Topalov and retained his World Chess Championship title in 2010. In 2012, he resumed his dominance by defeating Boris Gelfand. In 2013 and 2014, he was defeated by Magnus Carlsen. Anand finally discovered an opponent who could match up to him after years of dominating the game. It marked the end of the Anand era of chess in some ways. The champion, on the other hand, has become practically synonymous with the game. Anand ushered in a new era in sports by becoming India's first Grandmaster.

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He began playing at a time when pursuing a career in athletics was not considered a sure guarantee. On top of that, he chose an unusual sport to participate in. And now, he was proven correct in his assertion that the brain is our most powerful weapon and strength! His greatest personal achievements include: winning the world championship over 5 times, being the first Indian sportsman to receive the Padma Vibhushan. He did a lot for the game by being the Director for the foundation Olympic Gold Quest, which helped a lot of Indian chess players improve in the game and play it on a professional level by spreading awareness about the game in rural areas by setting up chess clubs and academies in multiple villages around the country. Furthermore, he brought light to the Sicilian, Najdorf because he played this opening in 99 professional chess games and made it a permanent staple in many chess player's minds.

THE BAD BOY OF CHESS

Bobby Fischer and his sister Joan, both six years old, began to play chess following instructions from a candy store set in March 1949. When Joan lost interest in chess and his mother Regina couldn't play, Fischer was forced to play a lot of his initial games versus himself. Bobby became the world chess champion at an early age because of his unique ways of progressively getting better at the game. By the time he was in his 20's, he was far different from any chess player before or after him.

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Fischer won a 'brilliance' at the age of 13 that became renowned as "The Game of the Century." Since the age of 14, he competed in eight US Championships, winning each by at least one point. He became the youngest grandmaster and the youngest candidate for the World Championship at the age of 15 years, 6 months, and 1 day. With 11/11, he won the 1963–64 US Championship, the only perfect score in the tournament's history. He was 20 years old at the time. This was the beginning of his illustrious chess career. He became one of the most dominant players in history in the early 1970s, winning the 1970 Interzonal by a record 3.5 points and won 20 straight games, including two remarkable 6–0 whitewash in the Candidates Matches. In July 1971, he became the first official World Chess Federation (FIDE) number one ranked player, and he remained at the top for 54 months. In 1972, he defeated Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union to win the World Championship.

Despite being the world champion in a sport people think demands the highest levels of mental health and wellbeing, Fischer was immature and had mental issues. He was conceited and believed he could prescribe what he thought was appropriate for WC awards and match conditions. Fischer declined to defend his championship in 1975 after failing to reach an agreement with FIDE over one of the match's conditions. Fischer thereafter became a recluse, remaining out of the public eye until 1992, when he defeated Spassky in an unofficial rematch. The competition took place in Yugoslavia, which was embargoed by the United Nations at the time. This resulted in a dispute with the US government, which demanded income tax on his match wins as well. Fischer was a fugitive since he never returned to his nation. This got him his nickname as ‘The bad boy of chess' that many grandmasters still refer to him as to date.

Even after the end of his professional chess career in 1975, he continued to contribute to the game till the early 90s. His book My 60 Memorable Games, first published in 1969, is considered essential chess reading. He developed a modified chess timing system in the 1990s that included a time increment after each move, which is currently customary in top tournament and match play.

TAL IN A SKIRT