Folke Ekström
Encyclopedia
Folke Ekström was a Swedish
International Master (IM) of chess
and of Correspondence chess
(IMC).
1942, tied with Stig Lundholm
, ahead of both Gösta Stoltz
and Erik Lundin
, both of whom became Grandmasters later on. Then at Stockholm 1943/44, he won ahead of Lundholm. Ekström lost a 1944 match to the world-class Grandmaster Paul Keres
by 5–1, following Keres' 'hors concours' appearance at the 1944 Swedish Championship
, where he had placed second.
Ekström then finished second himself at the strong Hastings
1945/46 tournament, just half a point behind Grandmaster Savielly Tartakower
, with a score of 9/11. This was ahead of former World Champion
Max Euwe
, American champion
Arnold Denker
, and American Olympian Herman Steiner
, who all trailed well behind with 7 points. At Zaandam
1946, Ekström shared second with László Szabó
, an eventual nine-time Hungarian champion
and three time Candidate, with 8.5/11. The winner was Euwe, who made 9.5/11. Swedish Olympian Stoltz was next with 8. Then, at Stockholm
1946/47, Ekström tied for first with Lundin. They scored 7/9, ahead of (among others) Swedish Olympian Gösta Danielsson
and Finnish champion
Eero Böök
, who shared third with 6.
Other than a couple of minor Swedish team events, this seems to be the recorded extent of Ekström's competitive chess career in over-the-board play. He never represented Sweden in Chess Olympiad
competition, although he very well could have, based upon his successes, as he was finishing ahead of team members in tournaments.
The website chessmetrics
.com, which endeavours to rate historical chess performances and players from the times before International chess ratings
were established in 1970, puts Ekström at #9 in the world, with a rating of 2714, in January 1947. This is in the super-grandmaster range. The chessmetrics data does not incorporate his two Stockholm successes of 1942 and 1943/44. This estimate, which is based upon less data than the chessmetrics ratings of other top players of that time, may be a bit on the generous side, considering his one-sided 1944 loss to Keres, who was an undoubted top five player.
Ekström was awarded the International Master title by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, in 1950. He played correspondence chess with success as well, earning the IMC title in 1971.
The Ekström Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined
is named for him. It runs 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 c6 5.Bg5 dxc4 6.e4 b5 7.e5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.exf6 gxh4 10.Ne5.
A selection of 65 of Ekström's games can be found at ChessBase
.com.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
International Master (IM) of chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
and of Correspondence chess
Correspondence chess
Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, usually through a correspondence chess server, through email or by the postal system; less common methods which have been employed include fax and homing pigeon...
(IMC).
Biography
Ekström was active in high-level national Swedish and international chess during a short period of about five years in the mid-1940s, with some very impressive successes. He won at StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
1942, tied with Stig Lundholm
Stig Lundholm
Stig Lundholm was a Swedish chess master.He won at Stockholm 1942, tied with Folke Ekström, ahead of both Gösta Stoltz and Erik Lundin, took second place behind Ekström at Stockholm 1943/44, and won at Lidköping 1944 ahead of Paul Keres...
, ahead of both Gösta Stoltz
Gösta Stoltz
-Biography:Stoltz played a few matches with strong chess masters. In 1926, he lost to Mikhail Botvinnik at a team match Stockholm – Leningrad in Stockholm. In 1927, he drew with Allan Nilsson in Göteborg . In 1930, he won against Isaac Kashdan in Stockholm. In 1930, he lost to Rudolf Spielmann ...
and Erik Lundin
Erik Lundin
Erik Lundin a Swedish chess master.In 1928, he won in Oslo, took 5th in Helsingborg, tied for 2nd-3rd in Stockholm . In 1929, he took 2nd in Göteborg , and took 3rd in Västerås...
, both of whom became Grandmasters later on. Then at Stockholm 1943/44, he won ahead of Lundholm. Ekström lost a 1944 match to the world-class Grandmaster Paul Keres
Paul Keres
Paul Keres , was an Estonian chess grandmaster, and a renowned chess writer. He was among the world's top players from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s....
by 5–1, following Keres' 'hors concours' appearance at the 1944 Swedish Championship
Swedish Chess Championship
The first Swedish Champion was Gustaf Nyholm who won two matches against winners of national tournaments: Berndtsson in Göteborg and Löwenborg in Stockholm in 1917. Until 1931 Swedish Chess Championships decided by match play. In the 1930s, Gideon Ståhlberg held the title in spite of results of the...
, where he had placed second.
Ekström then finished second himself at the strong Hastings
Hastings International Chess Congress
The Hastings International Chess Congress is an annual chess congress which takes place in Hastings, England, around the turn of the year. The main event is the Hastings Premier tournament, which was traditionally a 10 to 16 player round-robin tournament. In 2004/05 the tournament was played in the...
1945/46 tournament, just half a point behind Grandmaster Savielly Tartakower
Savielly Tartakower
Ksawery Tartakower was a leading Polish and French chess Grandmaster. He was also a leading chess journalist of the 1920s and 30s...
, with a score of 9/11. This was ahead of former World Champion
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
Max Euwe
Max Euwe
Machgielis Euwe was a Dutch chess Grandmaster, mathematician, and author. He was the fifth player to become World Chess Champion . Euwe also served as President of FIDE, the World Chess Federation, from 1970 to 1978.- Early years :Euwe was born in Watergraafsmeer, near Amsterdam...
, American champion
U.S. Chess Championship
The U.S. Chess Championship is an invitational tournament held to determine the national chess champion of the United States. Since 1936, it has been held under the auspices of the U.S. Chess Federation. Until 1999, the event consisted of a round-robin tournament of varying size...
Arnold Denker
Arnold Denker
Arnold Sheldon Denker was an American chess player, Grandmaster, and chess author. He was U.S. Chess Champion in 1945 and 1946....
, and American Olympian Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner was a United States chess player, organizer, and columnist.He won the U.S. Chess Championship in 1948 and became International Master in 1950....
, who all trailed well behind with 7 points. At Zaandam
Zaandam
Zaandam is a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the main city of the municipality of Zaanstad, and received city rights in 1811...
1946, Ekström shared second with László Szabó
László Szabó (chess player)
László Szabó was a prominent Hungarian Grandmaster of chess.Born in Budapest, he burst onto the international chess scene in 1935, at the unusually young age of 18...
, an eventual nine-time Hungarian champion
Hungarian Chess Championship
The inaugural Hungarian Chess Championship was held in the city of Győr in 1906. Initially, there was no governing body responsible for its organisation, until the formation of the Hungarian Chess Federation. The HCF first appeared in 1911, but failed to establish itself properly until 1923...
and three time Candidate, with 8.5/11. The winner was Euwe, who made 9.5/11. Swedish Olympian Stoltz was next with 8. Then, at Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
1946/47, Ekström tied for first with Lundin. They scored 7/9, ahead of (among others) Swedish Olympian Gösta Danielsson
Gösta Danielsson
Gösta Erik Vilhelm Danielsson was a Swedish chess master.He took 4th at Stockholm 1934 , tied for 3rd-4th at Falun 1934 , tied for 3rd-4th, behind Paul Felix Schmidt and Paul Keres, at Tallinn 1935, and won at Göteborg 1935 .In September 1935, he...
and Finnish champion
Finnish Chess Championship
-References: *-External links: *...
Eero Böök
Eero Böök
Eero Einar Böök was a Finnish chess player and engineer.A six-time Finnish champion who represented his country six times in the Chess Olympiad, he was awarded the International Master title in 1950 and became an honorary Grandmaster in 1984...
, who shared third with 6.
Other than a couple of minor Swedish team events, this seems to be the recorded extent of Ekström's competitive chess career in over-the-board play. He never represented Sweden in Chess Olympiad
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
competition, although he very well could have, based upon his successes, as he was finishing ahead of team members in tournaments.
The website chessmetrics
Chessmetrics
Chessmetrics is a system for rating chess players devised by Jeff Sonas. It is intended as an improvement over the Elo rating system.-Implementation:...
.com, which endeavours to rate historical chess performances and players from the times before International chess ratings
Elo rating system
The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-born American physics professor....
were established in 1970, puts Ekström at #9 in the world, with a rating of 2714, in January 1947. This is in the super-grandmaster range. The chessmetrics data does not incorporate his two Stockholm successes of 1942 and 1943/44. This estimate, which is based upon less data than the chessmetrics ratings of other top players of that time, may be a bit on the generous side, considering his one-sided 1944 loss to Keres, who was an undoubted top five player.
Ekström was awarded the International Master title by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, in 1950. He played correspondence chess with success as well, earning the IMC title in 1971.
The Ekström Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined
Queen's Gambit Declined
The Queen's Gambit Declined is a chess opening in which Black declines a pawn offered by White in the Queen's Gambit:This is known as the Orthodox Line of the Queen's Gambit Declined...
is named for him. It runs 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 c6 5.Bg5 dxc4 6.e4 b5 7.e5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.exf6 gxh4 10.Ne5.
A selection of 65 of Ekström's games can be found at ChessBase
ChessBase
ChessBase GmbH is a German company that markets chess software, maintains a chess news site, and operates a server for online chess. Set up in 1998, it maintains and sells massive databases, containing most historic games, that permit analysis that had not been possible prior to computing...
.com.
External links
- Chessmetrics.com: Folke Ekström