The Forgotten Champion

When you think of world chess champions, a few names quickly spring to your mind: Fischer, Kasparov, Capablanca, and of course Magnus Carlsen, who (for the next week) is still the current world champion. One name that almost certainly doesn't come to mind is Vasily Smyslov. 
    As I began writing this blog, I realized that I didn't actually know very much about him. He was an opera singer, he played beautiful positional chess, and he first defeated and then lost to Mikhail Botvinnik, the early pioneer of computer chess and legendary world champion. OK, maybe that's not true. I'm something of a chess history fan, and so I know a good bit more about him than that. But still, despite this, I don't know enough. It's time to dive in and start learning!

Who Was Vasily Smyslov? 

Smyslov and Keres on the Beach at Scheveningen. Do you know which is which?

Smyslov was a Soviet chess master who was world chess champion from 1957-1958. He defeated Mikhail Botvinnik in a world championship match, but lost in a 'revenge' match. He still holds the current record for most Olympiad medals (17), and won the Soviet Championship twice. Smyslov's career was extraordinarily long. He competed in the world championship cycle in the 1940s, 50s, 60s, and 1980s. For a bit of comparison, that would be like a player who competed in the 1980s against Kasparov still being involved in the Candidates tournament. That may seem unimaginable for us - and that's because it should be. Vasily Smyslov was an incredibly strong - and sometimes unremembered - player. 

Early Career

Smyslov was taught chess by his father at the age of six. Now, he was quite a strong player, as can be seen in this game, with annotations by the winner.

However, he did not began to play in tournaments until he was 14 (hey, maybe there is hope for me!). Despite this, he played in the famous Gorky Pavilion, where so many strong playeres got their first educations! I here have a quote from Golubovsky about Smyslov's first education.

"In the summer of 1935, a 14-year-old boy showed up in the chess pavilion of Gorky Park and signed up for the qualification tournament. Tall, somewhat slouchy, taciturn, dressed very modestly but tidy, almost always in a white shirt with a turn-down collar. That was Vasily Smyslov. He was often accompanied by his father Vasily Osipovich, an engineer at the Moscow automobile factory. Elderly, gray-haired, in pince-nez, always dressed in a gray tolstovka, he always radiated special warmth and goodwill. And of course, he always rejoiced at Vasya’s successes, which were many – the future world champion marched through all tournaments with almost 100% score, achieving the second category in a single summer." 

Now, the last sentence isn't quite true. Smyslov actually went from unrated to third category, which is still quite the achievement. 

At the age of 17, the young prodigy won the Soviet Junior Championship 1938, and came first in the Moscow Championship. Even through the Second World War (when his house was hit by a bomb!), Smyslov continued to become a strong grandmaster, and in 1948 he was one of the five players who played in the 1948 World Championship, following the death of Alekhine. He finished second, just points away from a world title. 

Smyslov's Championship Matches

Smyslov's World Championship Matches
In 1953, Smyslov won the famous Zurich tournament, qualifying for the world championship match, against who but Botvinnik. He tied the match with a 12-12 score, but Botvinnik still kept the title.

Smyslov playing against Botvinnik - can you tell which game it is?

In 1956, Smyslov won the Candidates Tournament in Amsterdam, earning him a second crack at the world title. This time, he defeated the world champion 12.5-9.4 (+6 -3 =13), becoming the seventh World Champion of Chess. Here's one of my favorite games below.

Due to the FIDE rules, Botvinnik was allowed a return match the next year, which he won by two points, regaining his title. But his career was not over.

Smyslov's Later Career

Despite his loss against Botvinnik, Smyslov stayed in the upper echelons of chess for several more decades. He played as a candidate in 8 cycles, a nearly unduplicated feat. In 1983, Smyslov reached the final match of the Candidates at the age of 62! The winner of the match would face Karpov for the throne, but Kasparov defeated Smyslov. By the way, a neat factoid about this match is that Smyslov was nearly three times as old as Kasparov. When Kasparov was born, Smyslov had won and lost the world title.

An aged Smyslov with Belka, his beloved cat

In 1991, Smyslov won the World Senior Championship. His legacy to the chess world lives on after his death in 2010.

Smyslov's Best Games

If you ask a chess afficionado why they remember Smyslov, they'll probably point to a positional masterpiece. (I likely would.) He was also a strong tactical player, as well as an impressive endgame player, something like a 20th century Magnus.

Let's look at several of his best wins! 

First, we have a spectacular attack against Florian. To allow you to enjoy the game in its unimpeded beauty, this game is unannotated. Grab the popcorn!