Zurich 1953: 15 Contenders for the World Chess Championship - Miguel Najdorf
Zurich 1953: 15 Contenders for the World Chess Championship - Miguel NajdorfIntroduction by Yuri Averbakh and Foreword by Andy SoltisPaperback, 392 pagesThe Stuff of Legend A great tournament deserves a great book. That's what grandmaster Miguel Najdorf produced in his account of one of the greatest and most important chess events of all time, the 1953 Zrich Candidates Tournament, in which 15 of the world's top players battled for the right to challenge the world champion, Mikhail Botvinnik. After two months and 210 games, many of which rank among the best ever played, Russian grandmaster Vassily Smyslov finally came out at the head of a star-studded field that included Sam Reshevsky, Paul Keres, David Bronstein, Tigran Petrosian, Efim Geller, Alexander Kotov, Mark Taimanov, Yuri Averbakh, Isaac Boleslavsky, Laszl Szab, Svetozar Gligoric, Max Euwe, Gideon Sthlberg, and Najdorf himself. This is the first English edition of this classic work, until now available only in its original Spanish. It includes all 210 games with Najdorf's full extensive notes, plus all the original introductory material, biographical sketches of the players, round-by-round accounts of the action, closing summary, and a survey of the tournament's impact on opening theory. Additionally this edition has many more diagrams and photos, plus forewords by grandmasters Yuri Averbakh (one of the last surviving participants) and Andy Soltis. Najdorf produced much more than a collection of games. This is a rich, vivid, firsthand account of an historic event by a direct participant, written in a style at once colorful, eloquent and erudite. Najdorf was not only one of the greatest players of all time, but a fine writer who knew how to combine education and entertainment. All chessplayers, whether serious or casual, will find themselves both interested and instructed, and history buffs will learn much here that cannot be found anywhere else.About the AuthorGrandmaster Miguel Najdorf (1910-1997) was born in Poland. While he was playing in the 1939 Olympiad in Buenos Aires, World War II broke out. Jewish, Najdorf could not risk returning to his Nazi-occupied homeland, and so he remained in Argentina, where he became successful in both business and chess. He ranked among the world's top 20 players for over 20 years, and was always among the game's most colorful and esteemed personalities. This was his only book.978-1936490431
