Miguel Najdorf
Encyclopedia
Miguel Najdorf was a Polish-born Argentine
chess grandmaster of Jewish origin, famous for his Najdorf Variation.
, then by Savielly Tartakower
, the latter of whom he always referred to as "my teacher".
At the beginning of his chess career, in 1929, Najdorf defeated Glücksberg in a famous game known as "The Polish Immortal
." In 1930, he tied for 6th–7th at the Warsaw Championship, an event won by Paulino Frydman
. In 1931, he took second in Warsaw, behind Frydman. In 1932, he tied for 9th–10th in Warsaw. In 1933, he won in Warsaw (Quadrangular). In January 1934, he finished second to Rudolf Spielmann
, in Warsaw. In summer 1934, he lost a match against Ored Karlin (+1 –2 =1). In 1934, he won the Warsaw championship. In 1935, he tied for 2nd–4th with Frydman and Henryk Friedman
, behind Tartakower, in the 3rd Polish Chess Championship
, held in Warsaw. Afterward, Najdorf won a match against Tartakower in Toruń
(+2 –1 =2). In 1936, he tied for first with Lajos Steiner
in the Hungarian
Championship. In 1937, he took third at the 4th Championship of Poland in Jurata
. In 1937, he won in Rogaška Slatina
(Rohitsch-Sauerbrunn). In 1938, he tied for 10th–12th in Łódź. In 1939, he took sixth in Margate
, and won in Warsaw
.
Najdorf represented Poland in four pre-war Chess Olympiads. In August 1935, he played third board in the 6th Chess Olympiad
in Warsaw (+9 –2 =6). In August 1936, he was second board in 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad
organised by the German Chess Federation in Munich
(+14 –2 =4). In June/July 1937, he played at second board in the 7th Chess Olympiad
in Stockholm
(+5 –3 =7).
, where he was playing the 8th Chess Olympiad
, representing Poland at second board. Najdorf was of Jewish origin, as were two of his teammates, Tartakower and Frydman. He decided to stay in Argentina
(as did many players, both Jew and Gentile
), suffering considerable personal and familial loss as a result, but escaping the Holocaust. He achieved a score of (+12 −2 =4).
In September 1939, after the 8th Olympiad, Najdorf tied for first with Paul Keres
at Buenos Aires (Circulo); the two scored 8.5/11. In 1941, he took second, after Gideon Ståhlberg
at Mar del Plata, with 12.5/17. Later in 1941, he finished equal first with Stahlberg at Buenos Aires, the two scoring 11/14. In 1942, he won at Mar del Plata, with 13.5/17, ahead of Ståhlberg. In 1943, he was second at Mar del Plata, behind Stålhberg, scoring 10/13. In 1943, he won at Rosario
. In 1944, he won at La Plata
, with 13/16, ahead of Ståhlberg. In 1944, he tied for first with Herman Pilnik
at Mar del Plata, with each scoring 12/15. In 1945, he won at Buenos Aires (Roberto Grau
Memorial), with 10/12, ahead of Ståhlberg and Carlos Guimard
. He took second place at Viña del Mar
1945, with 10.5/13, behind Guimard, then won Mar del Plata 1945 with 11/15, ahead of Ståhlberg, and repeated at Mar del Plata 1946 with 16/18, ahead of Guimard and Ståhlberg. He also won at Rio de Janeiro
1946.
After World War II ended, organized chess resumed in the international arena, particularly in war-stricken Europe. In 1946, Najdorf tied for 4th–5th with László Szabó
at Groningen
, with 11.5/19; the event was won by Mikhail Botvinnik
. He then won at Prague
, with (+9 −1 =3), ahead of Petar Trifunović
, Gosta Stoltz
, Svetozar Gligorić
, and Jan Foltys
. He also won at Barcelona
1946, with 11.5/13, ahead of Daniel Yanofsky
. In 1947, he took second place at Buenos Aires/La Plata (Sextangular), with 6.5/10, behind Ståhlberg, but ahead of Max Euwe
. In 1947, he won at Mar del Plata. In 1947, he finished second, after Erich Eliskases
, at São Paulo
.
In 1948, Najdorf placed second at New York
with 6/9, two points behind Reuben Fine
. He tied for 4th–5th with Hector Rossetto
at Mar del Plata, with 10/17, behind Eliskases, Ståhlberg, and Medina Garcia. Najdorf won at Mar del Plata 1948 with 14/17, ahead of Ståhlberg (13.5), Eliskases (12), and Euwe (10.5). He was second at Buenos Aires 1948, with 8/10, behind Ståhlberg. Najdorf won at Venice
1948, with 11.5/13, ahead of Gideon Barcza, Esteban Canal, and Euwe. In 1949, he tied for first with Ståhlberg at Buenos Aires. In 1950, he won at Amsterdam
, with 15/19, ahead of Samuel Reshevsky
(14), Ståhlberg (13.5), Gligorić (12), Vasja Pirc
(12), and Euwe (11.5). He also won at Bled in 1950.
at Dubrovnik 1950 (+8 –0 =6), as well as at Helsinki 1952
(+11 –2 =3), Amsterdam 1954
, Moscow 1956
, Leipzig 1960
, Varna 1962
, Havana 1966
, Lugano 1968
, Siegen 1970
, and Haifa 1976
. Only during the Olympiad at Nice 1974
, he played on third board.
Najdorf took eleven Olympic medals (seven for teams Poland and Argentina – four silver, three bronze, and four individuals – gold in 1939, 1950, and 1952, as well as one silver in 1962).
, he was ranked second in the world from mid 1947 to mid 1949. Despite his strong results, Najdorf was not invited to the 1948 World Championship tournament
as a replacement for Reuben Fine
.
Although not a full-time chess professional (for many years he worked in the insurance
business), he was one of the world's leading chess players in the 1950s and 1960s and he excelled in playing blindfold chess
: he broke the world record twice, by playing blindfold 40 games in Rosario, 1943, and 45 in Sao Paulo, 1947, becoming the world blindfold chess champion. In 1950, FIDE made him one of the inaugural International Grandmaster
s. In the same year he played at Budapest
in the Candidates Tournament
to select a challenger for the world chess championship
, and finished fifth. Three years later, in the Zürich
Candidates Tournament in 1953, he finished sixth, and never succeeded in qualifying for the Candidates again. The closest he would come in the remainder of his career was in the following cycle, when he narrowly failed to qualify from the 1955 Interzonal
, held at Gothenburg
, Sweden.
(1962 and 1964). He also played in both Piatigorsky Cup
tournaments, held in 1963 and 1966. Just before his 60th birthday, he participated in the 1970 USSR vs. Rest of the World
match, achieving an even score against the former world champion Mikhail Tal
.
Najdorf's lively personality made him a great favorite among chess fans, as he displayed an aptitude for witty sayings, in the manner of his mentor Tartakower. An example: commenting on his opponent at the 1970 USSR-vs-World match, he remarked, "When [then-world-champion Boris] Spassky
offers you a piece, you might as well resign then and there. But when Tal offers you a piece, you would do well to keep playing, because then he might offer you another, and then another, and then ... who knows?"
Najdorf remained active in chess to the end of his life. At age 69, he tied for second place in a very strong field at Buenos Aires
1979, with 8/13, behind winner Bent Larsen
(11/13), though ahead of former world champions Tigran Petrosian
and Boris Spassky
. At Buenos Aires 1988, he made a score of 8.5/15 for fourth place at age 78. The next year in the 1989 Argentine Championship
, with several other GMs in the field, he tied for 4th–6th places, with 10/17. His last national championship was in 1991 at age 81, where he finished with a minus score. Najdorf was an exceptional blitz (five-minute) player, remaining a strong player into his eighties.
in the Sicilian Defense
, one of the most popular openings in modern chess, is named after him. Najdorf also made contributions to the theory and praxis of other openings
such as the King's Indian Defense
. Najdorf was also a well-respected chess journalist, who had a popular column in the Buenos Aires Clarín
newspaper.
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
chess grandmaster of Jewish origin, famous for his Najdorf Variation.
Early life in Poland
Mieczysław Najdorf was tutored first by Dawid PrzepiórkaDawid Przepiórka
Dawid Przepiórka was a prominent Polish chess player of the early twentieth century.Dawid Przepiórka was born 22 December 1880 in Warsaw, Poland , to a family of wealthy landowners and entrepreneurs of Jewish extraction...
, then by 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...
, the latter of whom he always referred to as "my teacher".
At the beginning of his chess career, in 1929, Najdorf defeated Glücksberg in a famous game known as "The Polish Immortal
Polish Immortal
Polish Immortal is the name given to a chess game between Glinksberg and Miguel Najdorf played in Warsaw. The game is celebrated because of Black's sacrifice of all four of his minor pieces....
." In 1930, he tied for 6th–7th at the Warsaw Championship, an event won by Paulino Frydman
Paulino Frydman
Paulino Frydman was a Polish chess master.-Biography:...
. In 1931, he took second in Warsaw, behind Frydman. In 1932, he tied for 9th–10th in Warsaw. In 1933, he won in Warsaw (Quadrangular). In January 1934, he finished second to Rudolf Spielmann
Rudolf Spielmann
Rudolf Spielmann was an Austrian-Jewish chess player of the romantic school, and chess writer.-Career:He was a lawyer but never worked as one....
, in Warsaw. In summer 1934, he lost a match against Ored Karlin (+1 –2 =1). In 1934, he won the Warsaw championship. In 1935, he tied for 2nd–4th with Frydman and Henryk Friedman
Henryk Friedman
Henryk Friedman was a Polish chess master.He lived in Lvov . In 1926–1934, Friedman won seven times in succession the Championship of Lvov but 1930, when he took 2nd place behind Stepan Popel. Friedman played in four Polish championships. In 1926, he took 14th in Warsaw . The event was won by...
, behind Tartakower, in the 3rd Polish Chess Championship
Polish Chess Championship
Individual Polish Chess Championship is the most important Polish chess tournament, aiming at selecting the best chess players in Poland. Based on the results of the tournament , the Polish Chess Federation selects the national and subsequently the olympiad team.The first men's championship took...
, held in Warsaw. Afterward, Najdorf won a match against Tartakower in Toruń
Torun
Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus....
(+2 –1 =2). In 1936, he tied for first with Lajos Steiner
Lajos Steiner
Lajos Steiner was a Hungarian–born Australian chess master.Steiner was one of four children of Bernat Steiner, a mathematics teacher, and his wife Cecilia,, and a younger brother of Endre Steiner...
in the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
Championship. In 1937, he took third at the 4th Championship of Poland in Jurata
Jurata
Jurata - popular Polish sea side resort, part of the town of Jastarnia. Located on the Hel Peninsula in forested area between Jastarnia and Hel, on the Baltic Sea, Puck County, Pomeranian Voivodeship.-History:...
. In 1937, he won in Rogaška Slatina
Rogaška Slatina
Rogaška Slatina is a settlement and a municipality in Slovenia. It is famous for its curative mineral water, spa and crystal glass.Rogaška Slatina is a synonym for health resort tourism in Slovenia. For centuries the curative mineral water rich in magnesium , the picturesque countryside and other...
(Rohitsch-Sauerbrunn). In 1938, he tied for 10th–12th in Łódź. In 1939, he took sixth in Margate
Margate
-Demography:As of the 2001 UK census, Margate had a population of 40,386.The ethnicity of the town was 97.1% white, 1.0% mixed race, 0.5% black, 0.8% Asian, 0.6% Chinese or other ethnicity....
, and won in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
.
Najdorf represented Poland in four pre-war Chess Olympiads. In August 1935, he played third board in the 6th Chess Olympiad
6th Chess Olympiad
The 6th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 16 and August 31, 1935, in Warsaw, Poland...
in Warsaw (+9 –2 =6). In August 1936, he was second board in 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad
3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad
The 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad was held by German Chess Federation as a counterpart of the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin with reference to 1924 and 1928 events....
organised by the German Chess Federation in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
(+14 –2 =4). In June/July 1937, he played at second board in the 7th Chess Olympiad
7th Chess Olympiad
The 7th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 31 and August 14, 1937, in Stockholm, Sweden]....
in 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...
(+5 –3 =7).
Move to Argentina
In August/September 1939, the outbreak of World War II found him in Buenos AiresBuenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, where he was playing the 8th Chess Olympiad
8th Chess Olympiad
The 8th Chess Olympiad, organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs , comprised an 'open' tournament, as well as a Women's World Championship contest...
, representing Poland at second board. Najdorf was of Jewish origin, as were two of his teammates, Tartakower and Frydman. He decided to stay in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
(as did many players, both Jew and Gentile
Gentile
The term Gentile refers to non-Israelite peoples or nations in English translations of the Bible....
), suffering considerable personal and familial loss as a result, but escaping the Holocaust. He achieved a score of (+12 −2 =4).
In September 1939, after the 8th Olympiad, Najdorf tied for first with 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....
at Buenos Aires (Circulo); the two scored 8.5/11. In 1941, he took second, after Gideon Ståhlberg
Gideon Ståhlberg
Anders Gideon Tom Ståhlberg was a Swedish chess grandmaster.He won the Swedish Chess Championship of 1927, became Nordic champion in 1929, and held it until 1939....
at Mar del Plata, with 12.5/17. Later in 1941, he finished equal first with Stahlberg at Buenos Aires, the two scoring 11/14. In 1942, he won at Mar del Plata, with 13.5/17, ahead of Ståhlberg. In 1943, he was second at Mar del Plata, behind Stålhberg, scoring 10/13. In 1943, he won at Rosario
Rosario
Rosario is the largest city in the province of Santa Fe, Argentina. It is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the western shore of the Paraná River and has 1,159,004 residents as of the ....
. In 1944, he won at La Plata
La Plata
La Plata is the capital city of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and of La Plata partido. According to the , the city proper has a population of 574,369 and its metropolitan area has 694,253 inhabitants....
, with 13/16, ahead of Ståhlberg. In 1944, he tied for first with Herman Pilnik
Herman Pilnik
Herman Pilnik was an Argentine chess Grandmaster.-Career:...
at Mar del Plata, with each scoring 12/15. In 1945, he won at Buenos Aires (Roberto Grau
Roberto Grau
Roberto Gabriel Grau was an Argentine chess master.Grau played in many Argentine championships. In 1921/22, he tied for 3rd-4th . In 1922, he tied for 2nd-3rd . In 1923/24, he tied for 2nd-4th...
Memorial), with 10/12, ahead of Ståhlberg and Carlos Guimard
Carlos Guimard
Carlos Enrique Guimard was an Argentine chess Grandmaster. He was born in Santiago del Estero.-Biography:Guimard was thrice Argentine Champion. In 1936, he won the ARG-ch 15 Mayor, and in 1937 a match for the title against Roberto Grau . In 1937/38, he won a match against Luis Piazzini...
. He took second place at Viña del Mar
Viña del Mar
Viña del Mar , is a city and commune on central Chile's Pacific coast. Its long stretches of white sandy beaches are a major attraction for national and international tourists. The city is Chile's main tourist attraction. Known as "La Ciudad Jardín" , Viña del Mar is a Chilean Municipality located...
1945, with 10.5/13, behind Guimard, then won Mar del Plata 1945 with 11/15, ahead of Ståhlberg, and repeated at Mar del Plata 1946 with 16/18, ahead of Guimard and Ståhlberg. He also won at Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
1946.
After World War II ended, organized chess resumed in the international arena, particularly in war-stricken Europe. In 1946, Najdorf tied for 4th–5th 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...
at Groningen
Groningen 1946 chess tournament
Groningen 1946 was the first major international chess tournament to be held after World War II.Held at Groningen in August and September 1946, it was considered a miracle that the Netherlands could stage such an event just fifteen months after the end of the war.Mikhail Botvinnik won the...
, with 11.5/19; the event was won by Mikhail Botvinnik
Mikhail Botvinnik
Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik, Ph.D. was a Soviet and Russian International Grandmaster and three-time World Chess Champion. Working as an electrical engineer and computer scientist at the same time, he was one of the very few famous chess players who achieved distinction in another career while...
. He then won at Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, with (+9 −1 =3), ahead of Petar Trifunović
Petar Trifunovic
Dr. Petar Trifunović was an International Grandmaster and Serbian Champion of chess...
, Gosta 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 ...
, Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
, and Jan Foltys
Jan Foltys
Jan Foltys , was a Czech chess International Master.-Biography:...
. He also won at Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
1946, with 11.5/13, ahead of Daniel Yanofsky
Daniel Yanofsky
Daniel Abraham Yanofsky, OC, QC was Canada's first chess grandmaster, an eight-time Canadian Chess Champion, a chess writer, a chess arbiter, and a lawyer.-Life in chess:...
. In 1947, he took second place at Buenos Aires/La Plata (Sextangular), with 6.5/10, behind Ståhlberg, but ahead of 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...
. In 1947, he won at Mar del Plata. In 1947, he finished second, after Erich Eliskases
Erich Eliskases
Erich Gottlieb Eliskases was a chess Grandmaster of the 1930s and 1940s, who represented Austria, Germany and Argentina in international competition....
, at São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
.
In 1948, Najdorf placed second at New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
with 6/9, two points behind Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine was one of the strongest chess players in the world from the early 1930s through the 1940s, an International Grandmaster, psychologist, university professor, and author of many books on both chess and psychology.Fine won five medals in three chess Olympiads. Fine won the U.S...
. He tied for 4th–5th with Hector Rossetto
Héctor Rossetto
Héctor Decio Rossetto was one of the best chess players in Argentine history.He earned the title of International Master in 1950 and the Grandmaster title in 1960....
at Mar del Plata, with 10/17, behind Eliskases, Ståhlberg, and Medina Garcia. Najdorf won at Mar del Plata 1948 with 14/17, ahead of Ståhlberg (13.5), Eliskases (12), and Euwe (10.5). He was second at Buenos Aires 1948, with 8/10, behind Ståhlberg. Najdorf won at Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
1948, with 11.5/13, ahead of Gideon Barcza, Esteban Canal, and Euwe. In 1949, he tied for first with Ståhlberg at Buenos Aires. In 1950, he won at Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, with 15/19, ahead of Samuel Reshevsky
Samuel Reshevsky
Samuel "Sammy" Herman Reshevsky was a famous chess prodigy and later a leading American chess Grandmaster...
(14), Ståhlberg (13.5), Gligorić (12), Vasja Pirc
Vasja Pirc
Vasja Pirc was a leading Slovenian chess player. His name is most familiar to contemporary players as the originator of the hypermodern Pirc Defense...
(12), and Euwe (11.5). He also won at Bled in 1950.
Olympiad performances
He played eleven times for Argentina in Chess Olympiads from 1950 to 1976. He played first board in the 9th Chess Olympiad9th Chess Olympiad
The 9th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 20 and September 11, 1950, in Dubrovnik, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia .The final results were as follows:-Final :The...
at Dubrovnik 1950 (+8 –0 =6), as well as at Helsinki 1952
10th Chess Olympiad
The 10th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 9 and August 31, 1952, in Helsinki, Finland.-References:* OlimpBase...
(+11 –2 =3), Amsterdam 1954
11th Chess Olympiad
The 11th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between September 4 and September 25, 1954, in Amsterdam, Netherlands...
, Moscow 1956
12th Chess Olympiad
The 12th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 31 and September 25, 1956, in Moscow, Soviet Union.-References:...
, Leipzig 1960
14th Chess Olympiad
The 14th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 26 and November 9, 1960, in Leipzig, East Germany.-References:...
, Varna 1962
15th Chess Olympiad
The 15th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between September 15 and October 10, 1962, in Varna, Bulgaria.-References:* OlimpBase...
, Havana 1966
17th Chess Olympiad
The 17th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 23 and November 20, 1966, in Havana, Cuba.-References:* OlimpBase...
, Lugano 1968
18th Chess Olympiad
The 18th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 17 and November 7, 1968, in Lugano, Switzerland.-References:* OlimpBase...
, Siegen 1970
19th Chess 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, West Germany.-Tournament report:...
, and Haifa 1976
22nd Chess Olympiad
The 22nd Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between October 26 and November 10, 1976, in Haifa, Israel.-References:* OlimpBase...
. Only during the Olympiad at Nice 1974
21st Chess Olympiad
The 21st Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between June 6 and June 30, 1974, in Nice, France.-References:* OlimpBase...
, he played on third board.
Najdorf took eleven Olympic medals (seven for teams Poland and Argentina – four silver, three bronze, and four individuals – gold in 1939, 1950, and 1952, as well as one silver in 1962).
World Championship contender
Najdorf's string of successes from 1939 to 1947 had raised him into the ranks of the world's top players. According to ChessmetricsChessmetrics
Chessmetrics is a system for rating chess players devised by Jeff Sonas. It is intended as an improvement over the Elo rating system.-Implementation:...
, he was ranked second in the world from mid 1947 to mid 1949. Despite his strong results, Najdorf was not invited to the 1948 World Championship tournament
World Chess Championship 1948
The 1948 World Chess Championship was a tournament played to determine a new World Chess Champion following the death of the previous champion Alexander Alekhine in 1946. The tournament marked the passing of control of the championship title to FIDE, the International Chess Federation which had...
as a replacement for Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine was one of the strongest chess players in the world from the early 1930s through the 1940s, an International Grandmaster, psychologist, university professor, and author of many books on both chess and psychology.Fine won five medals in three chess Olympiads. Fine won the U.S...
.
Although not a full-time chess professional (for many years he worked in the insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
business), he was one of the world's leading chess players in the 1950s and 1960s and he excelled in playing blindfold chess
Blindfold chess
Blindfold chess is a form of chess play wherein the players do not see the positions of the pieces or touch them. This forces players to maintain a mental model of the positions of the pieces...
: he broke the world record twice, by playing blindfold 40 games in Rosario, 1943, and 45 in Sao Paulo, 1947, becoming the world blindfold chess champion. In 1950, FIDE made him one of the inaugural International Grandmaster
International Grandmaster
The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
s. In the same year he played at Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
in the Candidates Tournament
Candidates Tournament
The Candidates Tournament is a chess tournament organized by the world chess federation FIDE since 1950, as the final contest to determine the challenger for the World Chess Championship...
to select a challenger for the world chess championship
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....
, and finished fifth. Three years later, in the Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
Candidates Tournament in 1953, he finished sixth, and never succeeded in qualifying for the Candidates again. The closest he would come in the remainder of his career was in the following cycle, when he narrowly failed to qualify from the 1955 Interzonal
Interzonal
Interzonal chess tournaments were tournaments organized by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, and were a stage in the triennial World Chess Championship cycle.- Zonal tournaments :...
, held at Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden.
Later career
Najdorf won important tournaments such as Mar del Plata (1961) and HavanaHavana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
(1962 and 1964). He also played in both Piatigorsky Cup
Piatigorsky Cup
The Piatigorsky Cup was a triennial series of double round-robin grandmaster chess tournaments held in the United States in the 1960s. Sponsored by the Piatigorsky Foundation, only two events were held, in 1963 and 1966. The Piatigorsky Cups were the strongest U.S. chess tournaments since New...
tournaments, held in 1963 and 1966. Just before his 60th birthday, he participated in the 1970 USSR vs. Rest of the World
Russia (USSR) vs Rest of the World
There have been two chess matches featuring USSR vs. Rest of the World and 1 match Russia vs. Rest of the World. The first two matches were between a team from the USSR and a team of players from the "rest of the world"...
match, achieving an even score against the former world champion Mikhail Tal
Mikhail Tal
Mikhail Tal was a Soviet–Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion.Widely regarded as a creative genius, and the best attacking player of all time, he played a daring, combinatorial style. His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability....
.
Najdorf's lively personality made him a great favorite among chess fans, as he displayed an aptitude for witty sayings, in the manner of his mentor Tartakower. An example: commenting on his opponent at the 1970 USSR-vs-World match, he remarked, "When [then-world-champion Boris] Spassky
Boris Spassky
Boris Vasilievich Spassky is a Soviet-French chess grandmaster. He was the tenth World Chess Champion, holding the title from late 1969 to 1972...
offers you a piece, you might as well resign then and there. But when Tal offers you a piece, you would do well to keep playing, because then he might offer you another, and then another, and then ... who knows?"
Najdorf remained active in chess to the end of his life. At age 69, he tied for second place in a very strong field at Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
1979, with 8/13, behind winner Bent Larsen
Bent Larsen
Jørgen Bent Larsen was a Danish chess Grandmaster and author. Larsen was known for his imaginative and unorthodox style of play and he was the first western player to pose a serious challenge to the Soviet Union's dominance of chess...
(11/13), though ahead of former world champions Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian grandmaster, and World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969. He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his playing style because of his almost impenetrable defence, which emphasised safety above all else...
and Boris Spassky
Boris Spassky
Boris Vasilievich Spassky is a Soviet-French chess grandmaster. He was the tenth World Chess Champion, holding the title from late 1969 to 1972...
. At Buenos Aires 1988, he made a score of 8.5/15 for fourth place at age 78. The next year in the 1989 Argentine Championship
Argentine Chess Championship
The first Argentine Chess Championship was held in 1921. The Champion's title was granted after victorious or drawn match between previous champion and challenger, a winner of Torneo Mayor...
, with several other GMs in the field, he tied for 4th–6th places, with 10/17. His last national championship was in 1991 at age 81, where he finished with a minus score. Najdorf was an exceptional blitz (five-minute) player, remaining a strong player into his eighties.
Contributions
The Najdorf VariationSicilian Defence, Najdorf Variation
The Najdorf Variation of the Sicilian Defence is one of the most respected and deeply studied of all chess openings. Modern Chess Openings calls it the Cadillac or Rolls Royce of chess openings. The opening is named after the Polish-Argentinian Grandmaster Miguel Najdorf...
in the Sicilian Defense
Sicilian Defence
The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the moves:The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4...
, one of the most popular openings in modern chess, is named after him. Najdorf also made contributions to the theory and praxis of other openings
Chess opening
A chess opening is the group of initial moves of a chess game. Recognized sequences of opening moves are referred to as openings as initiated by White or defenses, as created in reply by Black. There are many dozens of different openings, and hundreds of named variants. The Oxford Companion to...
such as the King's Indian Defense
King's Indian Defence
The King's Indian Defence is a common chess opening. It arises after the moves:Black intends to follow up with 3...Bg7 and 4...d6.The Grünfeld Defence arises when Black plays 3...d5 instead, and is considered a separate opening...
. Najdorf was also a well-respected chess journalist, who had a popular column in the Buenos Aires Clarín
Clarín (newspaper)
Clarín is the largest newspaper in Argentina, published by the Grupo Clarín media group. It was founded by Roberto Noble on 28 August 1945. It is politically centrist but popularly understood to oppose the Kirchner government...
newspaper.
Notable games
- Glucksberg vs Miguel Najdorf, Warsaw 1929, Dutch Defence (A85), 0–1 "The Polish ImmortalPolish ImmortalPolish Immortal is the name given to a chess game between Glinksberg and Miguel Najdorf played in Warsaw. The game is celebrated because of Black's sacrifice of all four of his minor pieces....
" or "Najdorf's Immortal" – one of the most brilliant games of the twentieth century. - Miguel Najdorf vs Gideon Stahlberg, Lodz 1938, Queen's Gambit Declined, Semi-Tarrasch Defence (D40), 1–0 These two players were destined to settle in Argentina in 1939, where they had great battles in many events.
- Miguel Najdorf vs Paul Keres, Buenos Aires Circulo 1939, Queen's Gambit Declined, Slav Defence (D11), 1–0 Keres opens the centre prematurely, and Najdorf forms a pawn roller and arranges a quick victory.
- Carlos Guimard vs Miguel Najdorf, Buenos Aires Circulo 1941, Queen's Gambit Declined, Slav Defence (D11), 0–1 Najdorf shows how to play this line from the Black side, by comparison with the Keres game given above.
- Miguel Najdorf vs Mikhail Botvinnik, Groningen 1946, Nimzo–Indian Defence, Classical Variation (E35), 1–0 In their first meeting, Najdorf catches the future World Champion in a maze of tactics.
- Miguel Najdorf vs Isaac Boleslavsky, Groningen 1946, Old Indian Defence (A54), 1–0 Najdorf avoids a tactical battle with an early exchange of queens in Boleslavsky's pet variation, then grinds him down.
- Miguel Najdorf vs Erich Eliskases, Mar del Plata 1947, Queen's Gambit Declined, Orthodox Defence (D63), 1–0 Eliskases was another European GM who stayed in South America during World War II, and he also had a great rivalry with Najdorf.
- Miguel Najdorf vs Reuben Fine, New York 1951, Queen's Gambit Accepted (D28), 1–0 Fine was getting ready to retire from chess, with this being his last serious event at age 37.
- Mark Taimanov vs Miguel Najdorf, Zurich 1953, King's Indian, Orthodox, Aronin–Taimanov, 9.Ne1 (E98), 0–1 A brilliancy-prize game from the 1953 Candidates event versus the Soviet grandmaster Mark TaimanovMark TaimanovMark Evgenievich Taimanov is a leading Soviet and Russian chess player and concert pianist.-Chess:He was awarded the International Grandmaster title in 1952 and played in the Candidates Tournament in Zurich in 1953, where he tied for eighth place. From 1946 to 1956, he was among the world's top...
. Najdorf's enthusiasm for, and virtuosity in conducting, the attack against the enemy king is well shown here, in a game praised by David BronsteinDavid BronsteinDavid Ionovich Bronstein was a Soviet chess grandmaster, who narrowly missed becoming World Chess Champion in 1951. Bronstein was described by his peers as a creative genius and master of tactics...
in his famous book on the tournament. It is also a good example of learning from one's defeats. Earlier that year, Gligorić had beaten Najdorf with the same system. (Miguel Najdorf vs Svetozar Gligoric, Mar del Plata 1953). After the game, Don Miguel delivered his famous line: "Taimanov had better go and play his piano"! - Miguel Najdorf once played a game of chess with communist revolutionary Che GuevaraChe GuevaraErnesto "Che" Guevara , commonly known as el Che or simply Che, was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, intellectual, guerrilla leader, diplomat and military theorist...
; they drew.
External links
- 'Najdorf's Polish Immortal' Multimedia Annotated Game
- Edward WinterEdward Winter (chess historian)Edward Winter is an English journalist, archivist, historian, collector and author about the game of chess. He writes a regular column on that subject, Chess Notes, and is also a regular columnist for ChessBase.-Chess Notes:...
, The Polish Immortal