- John Wisker
John Wisker (
30 May 1846 ,Kingston upon Hull , England –18 January 1884 ,Richmond, Victoria ) was an Englishchess player and journalist. By 1870 he was one of the world's best ten chess players, and the second best English-born player behind onlyJoseph Henry Blackburne .Wisker moved to London in 1866 to become a reporter for the "City Press" and befriended
Howard Staunton . His proficiency at chess improved rapidly, and Wisker won the 1870British Chess Championship after a play-off againstAmos Burn ahead of the defending champion Blackburne. He won again in 1872 after a play-off against the first British champion,Cecil Valentine De Vere . After this second victory the British championship was not resumed until 1904. Wisker edited chess columns "The Sporting Times " and "Land and Water". From 1872 to 1876, Wisker was Secretary of theBritish Chess Association and co-editor of "The Chess Player's Chronicle".After learning that he had contractedtuberculosis , Wisker emigrated toAustralia in the autumn of 1876 to try to regain his health. In Australia he wrote a chess column for the "Australasian". In 1884 Wisker died frombronchitis and tuberculosis.* [http://www.chessgames.com/player/john_wisker.html 65 chess games of John Wisker]
References
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