Yuri Lvovich Averbakh was born in Kaluga, Russia on 8 February 1922. He became a Grandmaster in 1952, competed in the legendary 1953 Zurich Candidates tournament, and won the USSR Chess Championship in 1954.
In a long and successful chess career, Yuri Averbakh was a noted endgame theoretician composing more than 100 chess studies. He is also a celebrated chess writer, authoring many bestselling chess books, and editing top Russian chess magazines.
At 90 years of age Yuri Averbakh is the oldest living Grandmaster and a true legend!
Many happy returns Yuri Lvovich!