List of world records in chess

This is a list of world records in the game of chess as achieved in organized tournament, match, or simultaneous exhibition play.

Longest game

The longest tournament chess game ever to be played under modern time rules was Nikolić-Arsović, Belgrade 1989, which lasted for 20 hours and 15 minutes, ending in a 269-move draw. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1268705 Ivan Nikolic vs Goran Arsovic, Belgrade 1989] ] [http://www.xs4all.nl/~timkr/records/records.htm Chess records by Tim Krabbé] ] At the time this game was played, FIDE had modified the fifty move rule to allow 100 moves to be played without a piece being captured in a rook and bishop versus rook endgame, the situation in Nikolić - Arsović. FIDE has since rescinded that modification to the rule.

The longest decisive tournament game is Fressinet-Kosteniuk, Villandry 2007, which Kosteniuk won in 237 moves. The last 116 moves were a rook and bishop versus rook ending, as in Nikolić - Arsović. Fressinet could have claimed a draw under the fifty-move rule, but didn't do so since neither player was keeping score, it being a rapid chess game. Earlier in the tournament, Korchnoi had successfully invoked the rule to claim a draw against Fressinet; the arbiters overruled Fressinet's argument that Korchnoi couldn't do so without keeping score. Fressinet, apparently wanting to be consistent, didn't try to claim a draw against Kosteniuk in the same situation. [ [http://www.chessbase.com/newsprint.asp?newsid=4210 A chess feast in Château de Villandry] ]

hortest game

The shortest decisive game ever played in master play that was decided because of the position on the board (i.e. not because of a forfeit or protest) is Đorđević - Kovačević, Bela Crkva 1984. It lasted only three moves (1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 c6 3.e3 Qa5+ winning the bishop), and White resigned. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1268705 Z Djordjevic vs M Kovacevic, Bela Crkva 1984] ] This was repeated in Vassallo-Gamundi, Salamanca 1998. Even shorter decisive games have occurred in amateur play, including two-move games ending in Fool's Mate (1.g4? e5 2.f3?? Qh4# and variants thereof).

There have been many forfeited games (which could technically be regarded as losses in zero moves), the most notable examples being Game 2 of the 1972 world championship match between Boris Spassky and Bobby Fischer, which Fischer defaulted Harv|Brady|1973|pp=244-45, and Game 5 of the 2006 world championship match between Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov, which Kramnik defaulted. ["Chess Informant", Volume 98, Šahovski Informator, 2007, p. 295.] A game between Fischer and Oscar Panno, played at the Palma de Mallorca Interzonal 1970, went 1. c4 resigns. Panno refused to play to protest the organizers' rescheduling of the game to accommodate Fischer's desire not to play on his religion's sabbath. Panno was not present when the game was to begin. Fischer waited ten minutes before making his move and went to get Panno to convince him to play. Fifty-two minutes had elapsed on Panno's clock before he came to the board and resigned Harv|Brady|1973|p=179 Harv|Wade and O'Connell|1973|pp=344, 410. (An absence of sixty minutes results in a forfeit Harv|Brady|1973|p=245.)

The German grandmaster Robert Hübner also lost a game without playing any moves. In a World Student Team Championship game played in Graz in 1972, Hübner played one move and offered a draw to Kenneth Rogoff. Rogoff accepted. However, the arbiters insisted that some moves be played, so the players played the following ridiculous game: 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Ng1 Bg7 4. Qa4 0-0 5. Qxd7 Qxd7 6. g4 Qxd2+ 7. Kxd2 Nxg4 8. b4 a5 9. a4 Bxa1 10. Bb2 Nc6 11. Bh8 Bg7 12. h4 axb4 draw agreed). The arbiters ruled that both players must apologize and play an actual game at 7 p.m. Rogoff appeared and apologized; Hübner did neither. Hübner's clock was started, and after an hour Rogoff was declared the winner Harv|Alexander|1973|pp=80-81.

A game may be drawn in any number of moves, or even no moves, if the tournament officials (unlike those at Graz) do not object. According to ChessGames.com, in the 1968 Skopje-Ohrid tournament Dragoljub Janosevic and Efim Geller agreed to a draw without playing any moves. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1263859 Janosevic-Geller, Skopje/Ohrid 1968] ]

Latest first capture

In Rogoff-Williams, World Junior Championship, Stockholm 1969, the first capture (94.bxc5) occurred on White's 94th move.

Longest decisive game without a capture

Nuber - Keckeisen, Mengen 1994 lasted 31 moves without a single capture. In the end Keckeisen, facing imminent checkmate, resigned. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1442039 Nuber-Keckeisen, Mengen 1994] ]

Greatest concentration of grandmasters

As of December 2005, Reykjavik, Iceland, with eight grandmasters (Jon Arnason, Johann Hjartarson, Margeir Petursson, Fridrik Olafsson, Throstur Thorhallsson, Helgi Gretarsson, Hannes Stefansson, and Bobby Fischer) had a higher percentage of grandmasters per capita than any other city worldwide; the city of 110,000 had one grandmaster per 13,750 residents. [ [http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=2790 The Beer Sheva Chess Club -- see Addendum in middle of article] ] As of April 2008, the population of Reykjavik had grown to 118,861; Fischer died on January 17, 2008.

Perfect tournament and match scores

In top-class chess it is rare for a player to complete a tournament or match with a 100 percent score. This outstanding result was however achieved in tournaments by:
*Emanuel Lasker at New York in 1893 (he scored 13 out of 13)
*Henry Atkins at Amsterdam 1899 (15/15)
*José Raúl Capablanca at New York in 1913 (13/13, including one default)
*Capablanca at New York in 1914 (11/11)
*David Janowski at Paris in 1914 (9/9)
*Alexander Alekhine at Moscow in 1919-20 (11/11)
*Boris Kostic at Hastings 1921-22 (7/7); Kostic, a Yugoslavian, was the only non-British participant. Harv|Cload and Keene|1991|p=123-24
*Bobby Fischer at the US Championship of 1963/64 (11/11) [ Harv|Hooper and Whyld|1984|p=67-68 Harv|Soltis|2002|p=81-83 Harv|Sunnucks|1970|p=76.Hooper and Whyld call Fischer's achievement "the most remarkable achievement of this kind", noting that the 1963/64 U.S. Championship was "a tournament of about category 10." Capablanca is the only person to accomplish this feat twice. Harv|Hooper and Whyld|1984|p=68 Sunnucks also lists Alekhine's 10/10 score at Caracas 1939, but Soltis writes that it, and Buenos Aires 1926, which Alekhine won with the same score, were "weak events". Harv|Soltis|2002|p=81.]
* Alexander Beliavsky at Alicante in 1978 (13/13)

Perfect scores were achieved in matches by:
*Wilhelm Steinitz over Joseph Henry Blackburne in 1876 (7/7)
*Capablanca over Kostic in 1919 (5/5)
*Fischer over Mark Taimanov in 1971 (6/6) (quarter-final Candidates Match)
*Fischer over Bent Larsen in 1971 (6/6) (semi-final Candidates Match)Harv|Hooper and Whyld|1984|p=67-68. Fischer is the only person to accomplish this feat twice.

Future grandmaster William Lombardy is the only player ever to achieve a perfect score in the World Junior Chess Championship, open to players under the age of 20 as of January 1 in the year of competition. He scored 11-0 at Toronto 1957 Harv|Kazić|2002|p=273-74.

Most games lost

N.M. MacLeod scores the record for the most games lost in a single tournament: he lost all 31 of his games at the New York 1889 tournament Harv|Chernev|1974|p=50 Harv|Winter|1996|p=3.

Lost all games on time

At Linköping 1969, Friedrich Sämisch lost all thirteen games in a tournament by exceeding the time control. Harv|Hooper and Whyld|1984|p=293.

Consecutive wins

Steinitz won his last 16 games at Vienna 1873, including a two-game playoff against Blackburne at the end. He played no serious chess until an 1876 match against Blackburne that Steinitz swept 7-0. After a long period of inactivity, Steinitz played at Vienna 1882, where he won his first two games before finally ending his winning streak with a draw. Steinitz's 25-game winning streak over nine years has never been equalled. Harv|Soltis|2002|p=42

The modern record of 20 consecutive wins is held by Fischer. He won his last seven games at the 1970 Palma de Mallorca Interzonal. (This included his aforementioned one-move win against Panno.) In the quarter-finals of the Candidates Matches leading to the world championship, Fischer swept Grandmaster Mark Taimanov 6-0. In the semi-finals, Fischer swept Grandmaster Bent Larsen by the same score. In the Candidates Match final, Fischer beat former World Champion Tigran Petrosian in the first game before snapping his streak by losing the second match game. Harv|Soltis|2002|p=43, 73

Consecutive games without a loss

Between October 23, 1973, when he lost a game in a Soviet championship, and October 16, 1974, when he lost to Kirov at the Novi Sad tournament, Mikhail Tal had a string of 95 games without a loss (46 wins and 49 draws). This does not count an exhibition game that was a adjudicated a loss for Tal in his 1974 telex match against eight Australians. Harv|Soltis|2002|p=44 Harv|Tal|1976|p=500

Best and worst results in simultaneous exhibitions

In 1922, José Raúl Capablanca, the recently crowned World Champion, played 103 opponents simultaneously in Cleveland. He completed the exhibition in seven hours, scoring 102 wins and one draw (99.5%), the best result ever in a simultaneous exhibition on over 75 boards. Harv|Damsky|2005|p=235 Harv|Chernev|1974|p=8

The best result in a simultaneous exhibition solely against grandmasters is World Champion Garry Kasparov's performance against a West German team consisting of Vlastimil Hort, Eric Lobron, Matthias Wahls, and Gerald Hertneck at Baden-Baden in 1992. Unusually for simultaneous exhibitions, half of the players (Lobron and Hertneck) played White. Kasparov beat Lobron and Wahls, and drew the other two players, for a 3-1 victory. Harv|Damsky|2005|pp=247-49 Before the term "grandmaster" was in common usage or had an established meaning, Paul Morphy gave an arguably even more impressive exhibition. On April 26, 1859, at London's St. James Chess Club, Morphy played "five games simultaneously against a group of masters who could be described as among the top ten players of the day", scoring 3-2. Morphy defeated Jules de Rivere and Henry Bird, drew Samuel Boden and Johann Löwenthal, and lost only to Thomas Wilson Barnes. Harv|Soltis|2002|p=103

In 1951, International Master Robert Wade gave a simultaneous exhibition against 30 Russian schoolboys, aged 14 and under. After seven hours of play, Wade had lost 20 games and drawn the remaining ten (16.7%). [GM Alexander Kotov wrote that former World Champion Max Euwe warned new arrivals in Moscow, "Just don't give exhibitions against Pioneers" (i.e. students at the Palaces of the Pioneers). Harv|Kotov|1964|p=66] Harv|Kotov|1964|p=66 Harv|Chernev|1974|p=110

More games in blindfold exhibitions

George Koltanowski played against 34 opponents in a simultaneous blindfold exhibition given at Edinburgh in 1934, winning 24 and drawing 10 games. This performance is included in the Guinness Book of Records. Later both Miguel Najdorf (45 games) and Janos Flesch (52 games) claimed to have broken this record, but their exhibitions were not properly monitored and so they were not officially recognized.

Lowest Career Loss Percentage

Jose Raul Capablanca holds the record for lowest career loss percentage in tournament and match play, with 5% of his total games lost. Bobby Fischer is second with 7%. Among world champions, Wilhelm Steinitz has the highest career loss percentage at 21%. Fact|date=July 2008

Maximum moves

Chess diagram small|=
tleft
Nenad Petrović, Fairy Chess Review, 1946
= 8 |rl| | | | | | |rl|= 7 | | | |ql| | | | |= 6 | |ql| | | | |ql| |= 5 | | | | |ql| | | |= 4 | | |ql| | | | |ql|= 3 |ql| | | | |ql| | |= 2 |pd|pd| |ql| | | | |= 1 |kd|bl|nl|nl| |kl|bl| |= a b c d e f g h
White can play 218 different moves.Diagram shows legal position with promoted pieces with maximum white moves.

See also

* Tasks and records in chess problems
* List of youngest grandmasters
* Chess libraries

Notes

References

*citation | last=Alexander | first=C.H.O'D. | author-link=C.H.O'D Alexander | year=1973 | title=A Book of Chess | publisher=Harper & Row | location=New York | isbn=0-06-010048-6
*citation | last=Brady | first=Frank | author-link= Frank Brady (writer)|Frank Brady | year=1973 | edition=2nd | title=Profile of a Prodigy: The Life and Games of Bobby Fischer | publisher=David McKay | location= New York | isbn=
*citation | last=Chernev | first=Irving | author-link=Irving Chernev | year=1974 | title=Wonders and Curiosities of Chess | publisher=Dover Publications | location=New York | isbn=9780486230078
*citation | last1=Cload | first1=Reg | last2=Keene | first2=Raymond | author-link= | year=1991 | title=Battles of Hastings | publisher=Pergamon Chess | location=Oxford and New York | isbn=0-08-037791-2
*citation | last=Damsky | first=Yakov | author-link= | year=2005 | title=The Batsford Book of Chess Records | publisher=Batsford | location=London | isbn=0713489464
*citation | last1=Hooper | first1=David | last2=Whyld | first2=Kenneth | author-link=David Hooper (chess player) |year=1984 | title=The Oxford Companion to Chess | publisher=Oxford University Press | location=London, New York | isbn=0192175408
*citation | last=Kazić | first=B.M. | author-link= | year=1974 | title=International Championship Chess: A Complete Record of FIDE Events | publisher=Pitman | location=New York | isbn=0-273-07078-9
*citation | last=Kotov | first=Alexander | author-link=Alexander Kotov | title=Why the Russians? | journal=Chessworld | date=January-February 1964 | pages=62-69
*citation | last=Soltis | first=Andy | author-link=Andrew Soltis | year=2002 | title=Chess Lists Second Edition | publisher=McFarland and Company | location=Jefferson, North Carolina and London | isbn=0786412968
*citation | last=Sunnucks | first=Anne | author-link=Anne Sunnucks | year=1970 | title=The Encyclopaedia of Chess | publisher=St. Martin's Press | location=New York | isbn=
*citation | last=Tal | first=Mikhail | author-link=Mikhail Tal | year=1976 | title=The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal | publisher=RHM Press | location=New York | isbn=0-89058-027-8
*citation | last1=Wade | first1=Robert | last2=O'Connell | first2=Kevin | author-link=Robert Wade (chess player) | year=1973 | edition=2nd | title=Bobby Fischer's Chess Games | publisher=Doubleday | location=Garden City, New York | isbn=0-385-08627-X
*citation | last=Winter | first=Edward | author-link=Edward G. Winter | year=1996 | title=Chess Explorations | publisher=Cadogan Books | location=London | isbn=978-1857441710
*Morse, Jeremy (1995; revised edition, 2001), "Chess Problems: Tasks and Records", Faber and Faber. ISBN 0-571-15363-1. Concentrates on maximum tasks and records.

External links

* [http://www.xs4all.nl/~timkr/records/records.htm Tim Krabbé's chess records page]
* [http://www.openrecordbook.com/ Free Open World and Local Records (see Games->Chess)]
* [http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3446 Guinness Chess Records in Mexico City]
* [http://www.jlevitt.dircon.co.uk/task.htm The Aesthetics of Task Problems]
* http://janko.at/Retros/Glossary/Records.htm