- Mark Taimanov
-
Mark Taimanov 
Full name Mark Evgenievich Taimanov Country Soviet Union
RussiaBorn February 7, 1926
Kharkiv, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet UnionTitle Grandmaster FIDE rating 2386 Peak rating 2600 (July 1971) Mark Evgenievich Taimanov (Russian: Марк Евгеньевич Тайманов; born 7 February 1926, Kharkiv) is a leading Soviet and Russian chess player and concert pianist.
Contents
Career
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 ten players. He played in 23 USSR Chess Championships (a record equalled by Efim Geller), tying for first place twice. In 1952 he lost the playoff match to Mikhail Botvinnik, while in 1956, he beat Yuri Averbakh and Boris Spassky for the title. He is probably best known for his 6–0 loss to Bobby Fischer in the 1971 World Championship Candidates match. However, few players have beaten six world champions (Botvinnik, Vasily Smyslov, Mikhail Tal, Tigran Petrosian, Spassky, and Anatoly Karpov) as Taimanov has.
After his loss to Fischer, the Soviet government was embarrassed, and, as Taimanov later put it in a 2002 interview, found it "unthinkable" that he could have lost the match so badly to an American without a "political explanation".[1] Soviet officials took away Taimanov's salary and no longer allowed him to travel overseas. The official reason given for punishing Taimanov was that he had brought a book by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn into the country, but that explanation was secondary in nature. The officials later "forgave" Taimanov, and lifted the sanctions against him. Fischer's 6-0 win against Bent Larsen later in 1971 may have helped change their minds.
He has opening variations named after him in the Sicilian Defence, Benoni Defence and Nimzo-Indian Defence. He has written books on two of his named variations, as well as an autobiographical best games collection.
Music
With his wife, Lyubov Bruk, he formed a piano duo, some of whose recordings were included in the Philips and Steinway series Great Pianists of the 20th Century.[2]
Personal life
Taimanov was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine, but his family moved to Saint Petersburg when he was 6 months old.[3] He remarried late in life and became the father of twins at the age of 78.[4][5] 57 years separate his oldest child and his twins.[6]
See also
- Taimanov Variation
References
- ^ "Interview with Mark Taimanov - My life with chess and music". ChessBase. http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=320. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
- ^ "Going strong at 85 – Mark Taimanov's birthday". ChessBase.com. 2011-02-16. http://chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=7019. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
- ^ "Прославленный гроссмейстер Марк Тайманов: 'И мой сын, и внучка обожают возиться с малышами'" (Russian). JewishNews.com.ua., accessed October 31, 2011.
- ^ "Марк Тайманов."Победа" от Микояна, шахматы от Фиделя" (in russian). Sport-Express. http://others.sport-express.ru/reviews/958/. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
- ^ "Однажды с... / Марк Тайманов" (Russian). Cannel One, accessed October 31, 2011.
- ^ http://chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=7019
External links
- Interview with Mark Taimanov
- Mark Taimanov player profile at ChessGames.com
- Mark Taimanov download 1262 of his games in pgn format.
- Chessville - Interviews - 20 Questions with GM Mark Taimanov
- Grandmaster Profile: GM Mark Taimanov
- FIDE rating card for Mark E Taimanov
- Filmography on www.kinoglaz.fr
Categories:- 1926 births
- Living people
- People from Kharkiv
- Chess grandmasters
- World Senior Chess Champions
- Chess theoreticians
- Ukrainian chess players
- Ukrainian classical pianists
- Russian chess players
- Soviet chess players
- Ukrainian chess writers
- Classical piano duos
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
