Do you want to become a chess grandmaster? Let's be honest, to achieve your goal you will need to know a little more than the facts below. However, chess is one of the most famous strategic games on our planet; its history goes back several centuries and is extremely interesting in itself.
25. The birthplace of chess is considered to be India, the era of the Gupta state (about 1400 years ago). From there the game moved to Eranshahr (the territory of modern Iran and Iraq), then to the Middle East, Europe and Russia.
24. The first pawn move to move two squares instead of one was invented in Spain in 1280.
23. Chinese Emperor Sui Wen-di once executed two overseas chess players after hearing them call one of the pieces the emperor. Sui Wen-di's rage was caused by the mention of the high title of the ruler of the Celestial Empire in a simple game.
22. The first mention of chess in America dates back to 1641 and is associated with the city of Esther Singleton, where Dutch settlers lived at that time. The first chess tournament in the United States took place in New York in 1857.
21. The longest move in terms of time belongs to the Brazilian Francisco Trois: the chess player spent two hours and twenty minutes thinking about it.
20. The first game “Space - Earth” took place on June 9, 1970. She was played by the crew of the Soyuz-9 spacecraft and representatives of the cosmonaut training center on Earth. The game ended in a draw.
19. Initially, the queen could only move one square diagonally, then two. This continued until Queen Isabella of Spain ordered that the queen (and in Europe she is called the queen) be made the most powerful piece on the board.
18. The oldest recorded chess game dates back to 900 - it was a game between the Baghdad chronicler and his student.
17. Legendary scientist Alan Turing wrote the world's first computer program for playing chess in 1951. Since at that time there was no machine capable of processing this program, for the test game Turing had to perform algorithmic calculations himself, making one move in a few minutes.
16. "Deep Blue" became the first program to lose to a grandmaster in November 1988. However, nine years later, it also won two games in a match with Garry Kasparov in 1997 and also became the first machine to beat a human.
15. The oldest surviving chess set was found on the Isle of Lewis in Northern Scotland. It dates back to the 12th century AD, and is believed to have been created in Iceland or Norway. Its original design served as the model for the magical chess pieces in the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
14. Emmanuel Lasker remained the longest-serving world chess champion in history: 26 years and 337 days, from 1894 to 1921.
13. The second book published in English after the stories about the Trojan War was a work on chess.
12. In 1561, the Spanish priest Ruy Lopez de Segura wrote the book “On the Ingenuity and Art of Chess,” which became the first serious study of this game. The name of Ruy Lopez is associated with the creation of the Spanish opening, since Lopez paid most attention in his work to the beginning of the game.
11. Chess is often cited by doctors as an example of an effective means of improving memory. This game also trains the mind by solving complex logic problems, so it is recommended for combating Alzheimer's disease.
10. The name "chess" comes from the Persian words "check" and "checkmate", which are often translated as "the king is dead", although a more accurate equivalent would be "the king is trapped" or "the king cannot escape."
9. In 1972, during the Fischer-Spassky match in Reykjavik, the Soviet delegation suspected challenger Fischer of using various electronic and chemical devices to throw the world champion off balance. Spassky's chair was guarded around the clock, and after the games it was sent to the laboratory, but nothing unusual was found in it.
8. Filipino boy Alekhine Nuri became the youngest FIDE Master in the world. Now he is 9 years old.
7. In English, the word rooky, denoting an outstanding chess player, comes from “rook” - rook. As a rule, rooks come into play closer to the endgame and, together with the queen, are the most powerful pieces.
6. The folding chessboard was invented in 1125 by a chess priest. The church forbade priests from playing chess, so the inventive pastor simply folded the board in half to make it look like books stacked on top of each other.
5. The chess clock was invented by Thomas Wilson in 1883, before that time the hourglass was used. Chess clocks acquired their modern appearance by 1900, when the switching mechanism was invented.
4. In 1985, Garry Kasparov became the youngest world chess champion at the age of 22 years and 210 days. Until now, the thirteenth world champion is recognized by many experts as the greatest chess player in history.
3. The longest match in terms of the number of moves was played between chess players Nikolic and Arsovic in Belgrade in 1989. The game lasted 20 hours and 15 minutes and ended in a draw. 269 moves were made during the game. After this match, FIDE introduced the 50-move rule: if not a single piece is captured in 100 moves, the players have no right to delay the game any longer and a draw is declared.
2. However, theoretically, the longest chess game can have 5,949 moves.
1. The number of possible unique chess games is greater than the number of electrons in the entire universe. The number of smallest particles of matter is about 10 to the 79th power, while the number of non-repeating chess combinations is more than 10 to the 120th power.
Many scientists do not doubt that chess has an extremely positive effect on a person: it develops memory, trains the mind, and it is not for nothing that it is even considered a sport, and therefore there is no doubt that this unique game will not go down in history for a long time.
Incredible facts
1. Where did the name come from?
Chess originated from an ancient Indian game of the 6th century chaturanga, whose name is translated from Sanskrit as "four divisions of army", which includes infantry, cavalry, bishops and chariots, which are represented in chess by the pawn, knight, bishop and rook.
In the 7th century the game came to Persia and was renamed shatranj. The name chess comes from the Persian language. Players would say "Check" (from the Persian for "king") when attacking the opponent's king, and "Checkmate" (from Persian "the king is dead").
2. The chess machine that fooled everyone
In 1770, a Hungarian inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen created a chess machine. The machine was a human-sized figure of a “Turk” who sat behind a huge wooden cabinet whose doors opened, showing the public complex mechanisms.
The mechanical arm moved pieces around the field and beat such famous opponents as Napoleon Bonaparte and Benjamin Franklin.
As it turned out many years later, the chess machine was not a machine. There was a chess player inside the machine, which moved inside and hid when the complex mechanisms of the smart “machine” were shown to the public.
3. The shortest and longest chess game
The shortest chess game is called stupid swearing, consisting of two moves: 1. f3 e5 and 2. g4 Qh4++. A draw or loss can also occur before players begin making moves, either due to a certain scenario in the standings or as a result of a player not showing up to play.
The longest chess game was played between Ivan Nikolic And Goran Arsovic in Belgrade in 1989. She lasted 20 hours 15 minutes, 269 moves were made during the game, and it ended in a draw. Theoretically, the game could last even longer, but after the introduction of the 50-move rule, this number can be somehow limited.
4. Checkbox
Garry Kasparov once said that “chess is a torment of the mind.” Apparently that's why someone decided to combine chess with physical tests by creating chessboxing. Dutch artist Ipe Rubing became the founder of chessboxing after he saw the idea of combining chess and boxing in one comic book.
Chessboxing alternates rounds of chess and boxing and its motto is "Battles take place in the ring, but wars are fought on the board".
Chessboxing is becoming increasingly popular and is governed by the World Chessboxing Organization.
5. Dynamic queen
The Queen or Queen chess piece has undergone many changes throughout the history of chess. It all started with the fact that she could only move along one square diagonally, later she moved two squares, and then further and further, like a knight.
Now this figure can move both diagonally, horizontally, and vertically. At first she was the king's advisor or prime minister.
But later she became the most powerful piece in chess.
6. Is it possible to play chess blindfolded?
Blind chess is a variant of the game in which the player makes all the moves without looking at the chessboard. As a rule, there is an intermediary in the game who moves the pieces.
Blindfold chess is an impressive ability that many of the top chess players possess. A Hungarian chess player became one of the record holders in blindfold chess Janos Flesch, who played 52 opponents simultaneously while blindfolded and won 32 games.
7. Endless possibilities
After three moves, there are more than nine million possible positions on each side. An American mathematician calculated the minimum number of non-repeating chess games and derived Shannon's number.
According to this number the number of possible unique batches exceeds the number of atoms in the visible universe. The number of atoms is estimated to be 10^79, and the number of unique chess games is 10^120.
8. The power of chess computers
Chess computers are now an important part of chess. World champion Garry Kasparov, considered the strongest player in the history of chess, lost to the computer Deep Blue in 1997, and it came as a real shock to the entire chess world.
In 2006, world champion Vladimir Kramnik was defeated by a computer Deep Fritz, which once again emphasized the power of chess computers. Today, chess programs are often used by players to analyze and improve their games, and their often ranked on par with grandmasters.
9. Chess clock - to avoid falling asleep
At first, chess games were played without a clock. At the same time, players could play for many hours, or even days in a row, driving each other to exhaustion. In 1851, during a chess tournament, the assistant referee recorded that " the game was not completed due to the players eventually falling asleep".
After this, a year later, time control in the form of an hourglass was introduced at an international tournament, and in 1883 the first mechanical chess clock appeared, created by the British Thomas Wilson.
10. Chess and our brain
Psychologists often mention chess as an effective way to improve your memory. It also allows you to solve complex problems and think through ideas. It is not surprising that chess has become recommended in the fight against Alzheimer's disease.
Many people believe that chess is a game for those who are naturally highly intelligent. This is partly true, but you can also significantly increase your intelligence by playing chess. Moreover, studies have shown that chess activates both hemispheres of the brain, Improves creativity, concentration, critical thinking and reading skills.
1. Chess originates from the ancient Indian game of the 6th century chaturanga, whose name is translated from Sanskrit as “four divisions of the army,” which includes infantry, cavalry, bishops and chariots, which are represented in chess by the pawn, knight, bishop and rook. In the 7th century the game came to Persia and was renamed Shatranj. The name chess comes from the Persian language. Players said "Check" (from the Persian for "king") when attacking the opponent's king, and "Checkmate" (from the Persian for "the king is dead").
2. In 1770, the Hungarian inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen created a chess machine. The machine was a human-sized figure of a “Turk” who sat behind a huge wooden cabinet whose doors opened, showing the public complex mechanisms. The mechanical arm moved pieces around the field and beat such famous opponents as Napoleon Bonaparte and Benjamin Franklin. As it turned out many years later, the chess machine was not a machine. Inside the machine was a chess player who moved around inside and hid while the complex mechanisms of the smart “machine” were shown to the public.
3. The shortest chess game is called stupid mate, consisting of two moves: 1. f3 e5 and 2. g4 Qh4++. A draw or loss can also occur before players begin making moves, either due to a certain scenario in the standings or as a result of a player not showing up to play.
The longest chess game was played between Ivan Nikolic and Goran Arsovic in Belgrade in 1989. It lasted 20 hours and 15 minutes, 269 moves were made during the game, and it ended in a draw. Theoretically, the game could last even longer, but after the introduction of the 50-move rule, this number can be somehow limited.
4. Garry Kasparov once said that “chess is a torture of the mind.” Apparently that's why someone decided to combine chess with physical tests by creating chessboxing. Dutch artist Ipe Rubing became the founder of chessboxing after he saw the idea of combining chess and boxing in one comic book. Chessboxing alternates rounds of chess and boxing and its motto is “Battles are fought in the ring, but wars are fought on the board.” Chessboxing is becoming increasingly popular and is governed by the World Chessboxing Organization.
5. The queen or queen chess piece has undergone many changes throughout the history of chess. It all started with the fact that she could only move along one square diagonally, later she moved two squares, and then further and further, like a knight. Now this figure can move both diagonally, horizontally, and vertically. The queen holds the record for “eating” enemy pieces: during one game, the queen took 11 pieces.
6. Blindfold chess is a variant of the game in which the player makes all his moves without looking at the chessboard. As a rule, there is an intermediary in the game who moves the pieces. Blindfold chess is an impressive ability that many of the top chess players possess. One of the record holders in blindfold chess was the Hungarian chess player Janos Flesch, who played 52 opponents simultaneously blindfolded and won 32 games.
7. After three moves, there are more than nine million possible positions on each side. An American mathematician calculated the minimum number of non-repeating chess games and derived Shannon's number. According to this number, the number of possible unique batches exceeds the number of atoms in the visible Universe. The number of atoms is estimated to be 10^79, and the number of unique chess games is 10^120.
8. Chess computers are now an important part of chess. World champion Garry Kasparov, considered the strongest player in the history of chess, lost to the computer Deep Blue in 1997, and this was a real shock to the entire chess world. In 2006, world champion Vladimir Kramnik was defeated by the computer Deep Fritz, once again highlighting the power of chess computers. Today, chess programs are often used by players to analyze and improve their games.
9. At first, chess games were played without a clock. At the same time, players could play for many hours, or even days in a row, driving each other to exhaustion. In 1851, during a chess tournament, the assistant referee recorded that "the game was not completed due to the players eventually falling asleep." After that, a year later, time control in the form of an hourglass was introduced at an international tournament, and in 1883 the first mechanical chess clock appeared, created by the British Thomas Wilson.
10. One of the Turkish sultans had the habit, while playing chess, of thoughtfully rubbing his bare foot on the cushion of the sofa. He did this in vain: he was poisoned by soaking a sofa cushion in poison.
11. Indian Raja Akbar, who lived in the 19th century, loved to invite several dozen dancers to his garden, and he himself climbed a high marble tower. So he played chess, where the pieces were dancers. Gradually, the Raja released the girls as the pieces were removed from the field.
12. In ancient and medieval chess there were many exotic modifications of pieces: dragons, centaurs, bishops, horsemen, etc. With the development of civilization, their set was replenished, including grenadiers, sappers and other military specialists, and the 20th century enriched chess with tanks, airplanes, and even an atomic bomb, into which a pawn turns when it reaches the last rank.
13. In ancient India, chess was played with fingers. The loser's finger was cut off.
14. On the personal instructions of Juan Antonio Samaranch, in 1997, one of the Belgian institutes conducted a study from which it followed that playing chess is the most difficult activity in terms of stress. A person doing this must be physically resilient and have a strong nervous system. They say that it was while playing chess that Ivan the Terrible and Queen of Belgium Marie Henriette Anne died.
15. It was this terribly indecent game that the wife of Thomas Paine, a French citizen sentenced to the guillotine for suggesting that Louis XVI should not be executed, but simply expelled from the country, was offered to play by Robespierre. Payne's wife won her husband's life at chess. Paine went to America and became one of the fathers of American democracy.
16. Late 19th-century writer Rose Maireder was a feminist theorist who constantly outraged her contemporaries with her shocking behavior. Not only did she defiantly not wear a corset, she also did not hesitate to declare that she liked to play chess. In those days, playing chess was considered completely indecent for a woman.
17. The position of players in society often influenced their style of play. For example, both Napoleon and Charles XII believed that it was shameful for the king to hide, and therefore they never castled in chess. At the same time, Karl was shamelessly losing.
18. Many great people loved chess: Charlemagne, Spinoza, Cardinal Richelieu, Pushkin, Stefan Zweig, Tolstoy, Turgenev and Tamerlane. According to one legend, Guinevere seduced Lancelot during a chess game.
19. The seven arts that future knights learned were called the “Seven Knightly Virtues.” These are fencing, swimming, falconry, composing poems in honor of the lady of the heart, wielding a spear, horse riding and playing chess.
20. Al-Biruni in his book “India” tells a legend that attributes the creation of chess to a certain Brahmin. Thousands of years before our era, there lived a king named Maharaja Ranveer, who ruled in the ancient city of Magadha, on the banks of the sacred Ganga River. He loved battles so much that he was always either preparing for war or returning from a campaign. But not everyone in his kingdom shared this passion, and the ministers were tired of his continuous military campaigns. It was necessary to come up with something to rid the king of his obsession. And so, the first minister called Anantha, a reclusive Brahmin, famous astrologer and mathematician, and asked him to help. A week later, Anantha announced that he had found a medicine, which he would demonstrate at court the next morning. The next morning Anantha appeared with a black and white checkered board and 64 pieces and taught Maharaja Ranveer how to play chess. In those days, when going to war, the ruler took with him elephants, camels, horses and foot warriors. The army was led by the first minister. So the game felt like a real battle. Maharaja Ranveer liked her so much that he promised to give Anantha whatever he wanted. Anantha's request seemed very modest: one grain of rice placed on the first square, two on the second, four on the third, and so on until all the squares of the chessboard were filled. The king at first thought that Anantha had fallen into insanity, until he realized that with each cell the number of grains doubled and by the end of the third row it took 17 million grains (and 27 weeks to count them). If all the cells were filled, it would take a very long time to count 18,446,744,073,709,551,615 grains of rice per last cell... It is estimated that the total weight of rice would be more than 460 billion tons. It ended with the Maharaja appointing Anantha as Minister of Finance and never going to war again, enjoying the game of chess.
21. The composition of the US team (!) at the XXX Chess Olympiad in Manila: Irina Levitina, Elena Akhmylovskaya, Anna Akhsharumova, Esther Epstein. Coach - Alexander Ivanov.
22. Checkers is older than chess.
The game of chess is a fusion of sports, science and art, in addition, it has various connections with other types of human activity - history, psychology and pedagogy, computer science and, of course, mathematics.
The theory of chess is deeply developed, and the long history of practice is taken into account. Chess has strategy and tactics (positional and combinational play), and the game itself consists of:
— Debut (beginning)
— Middlegame (middle)
— Endgame (ending)
Many great people were fond of chess. For example: Newton, Pushkin, L. Tolstoy, Peter I, Suvorov, Balzac, Napoleon, Lomonosov, Spinoza, Galileo, Turgenev, Lenin, etc.
Since ancient times, chess has been written about in poetry, prose, and also depicted in painting, filmed, and composed music. Chess is such a popular sport that literary giants such as Vladimir Nabokov and Stefan Zweig have written about it. The chess game was used in their works by famous Soviet writers A. Kuprin, L. Leonov, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, Y. Olesha, V. Aksenov and others.
There are many records set in chess. In the early 70s, Mikhail Tal established a unique achievement. For 10 months from 1972 to 1973. he played in 86 games and did not lose a single one. At the same time, Mikhail won five major tournaments. It was believed that Jose Raul Capablanca is an invincible chess player, since he was able to win 63 matches over 8 years and did not suffer a single defeat.
The record of the great Cuban stood for almost half a century, which makes it all the more surprising that Tal was able to surpass Capablanca by more than twenty unbeaten games.
Tal and Raul won their victories with alternating draws, and the record for a winning streak belongs to the first chess king, Wilhelm Steinitz.
He achieved this achievement even before he became world champion. For almost 10 years, none of Wilhelm's opponents could play a draw with him. During this period of time, Steinitz won twenty-five victories in a row.
An outstanding record belongs to Alexander Alekhine. He was from 1927 to 1933. took part in 15 competitions and at the same time he never gave up the championship. Nine times in a row Alexander took clear first place.
Many records belong to such eminent players as Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov. Between 1984 and 1990 they played five world championship matches among themselves, and played 144 games. The first match between eminent chess players lasted for five whole months (48 games) and it never ended, as the FIDE President interrupted it with a score of 5-3 in favor of Karpov.
A great chess player like Vladimir Kramnik can boast of an outstanding achievement. He was unbeaten in 89 tournaments and at the same time scored 20 clear victories. It is worth noting the fact that Vladimir has been able to lose only 2 times in his entire history, and then in tournaments that are classified as fast and super-fast. Vladimir Kramnik is also famous for the fact that he did not allow Kasparov to win a single victory at the tournament in London.
The longest game in the world is considered to be a game between graduates of the Scottish University. The game lasted 20 years between 1926 and 1946. For the first 5 years, the party was conducted by correspondence. Subsequently, the players decided to speed up and used the telegraph. One of the conditions of this game was that the loser must pay all shipping costs. Therefore, this game can be called one of the most expensive games in the history of chess.
In 2005, Mexico set a new world record for massive simultaneous chess play. The tournament was able to attract 12,388 people who took part in the tournament, with 80% of those participating being children. This achievement was included in the Guinness Book of Records. The previous record was set in Havana, and the tournament was attended by 11,320 people.
Chess is an ancient game that is popular all over the world. The greatest players don't become stars and they don't have huge fan bases. Their distinctive feature is their unusual brain structure, which allows them to calculate their opponent’s moves and process various variations of their moves. Sometimes you can hear the expression - it works like a computer, and this is true.
An interesting fact once happened to one of the famous grandmasters at a tournament. Having defeated 20 opponents in a blind game, the grandmaster forgot his bag in the wardrobe. After a certain time, returning for her, he said a phrase that became famous throughout the world: “Sorry, I have a terrible memory!”
Records inspire us all to strive for greatness. There are many records in the chess heritage that remain unsurpassed for decades and even hundreds of years.
Let us mention seven of the most amazing records that have gone down in history forever.
Longest winning streak: world champion Bobby Fischer - 20 (or 19?) games
Bobby Fischer, world record holder for most consecutive victories in professional tournaments. | Photo from Wikipedia.
In the qualifying round, which ended with a victory over Boris Spassky, Bobby Fischer won an incredible 20 games in a row against the strongest opponents. The streak began in 1970 at the interzonal tournament in Palma de Mallorca, where he won seven games in a row at the finish of the tournament. Oscar Panno resigned without playing in the last round, so some chess historians do not take this game into account.
In the 1971 Candidates matches, Fischer crushed Mark Taimanov and Bent Larsen by the same score of 6-0 to start the final Candidates match against Tigran Petrosian with a victory. The series ended with a defeat in the second game of the match with Petrosyan.
After that, Fischer confidently defeated both Tigran Petrosyan and Boris Spassky and became the world champion.
Worth mentioning:
- World Champion Bobby Fischer - 11/11 in the US Championship 1963/4
- GM Fabiano Caruana - seven Sinquefield Cup wins in 2014
Longest undefeated streak: World Champion Mikhail Tal - 95 games
Mikhail Tal, world record holder for the longest undefeated streak in masters tournaments. | Photo from Wikipedia.
Mikhail Tal was known for his creative attacking style, which brought him success in the world championship match against Mikhail Botvinnik in 1960. Victory in the match made 23-year-old Tal the youngest world champion. This record was only broken by Garry Kasparov, who defeated Anatoly Karpov in 1985 at the age of 22.
Tal's career was marred by health problems and fluctuations in form, so many do not know that from October 23, 1973 to October 16, 1974, he played 95 games without defeat: an incredible achievement that other chess players did not even come close to.
Worth mentioning:
- Mikhail Tal (again!) - 85 games from July 1972 to April 1973
- World champion Jose Raul Capablanca - 63 games from February 10, 1916 to March 21, 1924
Longest holder of the world chess crown: Emanuel Lasker - 27 years
Emanuel Laskerstayed the longestworld champion. | Photo from Wikipedia.
Emanuel Lasker became the second world champion, defeating Wilhelm Steinitz in 1894. He retained his title until he was defeated by Jose Raul Capablanca in 1921. He continued to compete successfully in grandmaster tournaments until the mid-1930s. It is believed that Lasker's championship was delayed because the outbreak of World War I disrupted planned matches with Rubinstein and Capablanca. Even taking into account the years when there were no world championship matches, Lasker remained champion much longer than any other chess player.
Worth mentioning:
- World champion Garry Kasparov - 15 years from 1985 to 2000
- World champion Mikhail Botvinnik - 13 years with breaks from 1948 to 1963
World champion Magnus Carlsen, holder of the highest rating in the history of chess. | Photo by Maria Emelyanova.
Magnus Carlsen reached this mark in the FIDE rating list for May 2014. Unofficially, he even reached 2889 in the dynamic rating . Some believe ratings inflation makes this record meaningless, but .
Until now, only 12 chess players have ever surpassed the 2800 point mark. Carlsen is the only one who comes close to 2900.
Worth mentioning:
- World champion Garry Kasparov - 2851 in July 1999
- GM Fabiano Caruana - 2844 in October 2014
The youngest grandmaster: GM Sergey Karyakin - 12 years and seven months
GM Sergei Karyakin, the youngest grandmaster in history. | Photo by Maria Emelyanova.
To date, Karjakin is the only chess player to have earned the title of grandmaster at the age of 12. He gained his first experience of match wrestling at the highest level when he was barely old, helping Ruslan Ponomarev as a second during the FIDE World Championship match with Vasily Ivanchuk.
In 2016, Karjakin himself took part in the fight for the world championship, challenging Magnus Carlsen. The grandmasters exchanged victories, and 12 classical games ended in a draw with a score of 6-6. The outcome of the match was decided in quick games in a tiebreaker won by Magnus Carlsen.
Worth mentioning:
- World Champion Bobby Fischer - 15 years, 6 months and 1 day in 1958
- GM Judit Polgar - 15 years, 4 months and 28 days in 1991
Largest simultaneous game: GM Ehsan Ghem Magami - 604 games
GM Ehsan Ghem Magami, world record holder for the most opponents in one session. | Photo from Wikipedia.
The player plays several games simultaneously against opponents arranged in a row or in a circle, walking around the boards and making a move in each game before moving on to the next.
Ehsan Ghem Magami, nine-time Iranian champion, had an incredible session against 604 simultaneous opponents, winning 580 games with 16 draws and 8 losses. This event took place from February 8 to 9, 2011 in Tehran, the capital of Iran, at the Shahid Beheshti University Sports Stadium.
Worth mentioning:
- Susan Polgar - 326 opponents, 309 wins, 14 draws, 3 losses in 2005
- Jose Raul Capablanca - 103 opponents, 102 wins, 1 draw in 1922
Largest simultaneous blindfold game: GM Timur Gareev - 48 games
Timur Gareev, world record holder for blindfold play. | Photo by Mike Klein.
Playing blindfold is one of the most interesting types of chess. Players are not allowed to look at the board, but must keep the placement of the pieces in their heads and communicate the moves using chess notation. In a simultaneous blind play session, remembering all positions is an incredible test of chess skill and concentration.
Worth mentioning:
- MF Mark Lang - 46 opponents in 2011
- GM Miguel Najdorf - 45 opponents in 1947
Have you found inspiration and want to set records yourself?!
