Semyon Furman. More Than Just a Trainer.

Afternoon everyone!

A few days ago my friend @kamalakanta posted a wonderful article. If you havent seen it, go take a look now. It is here.

There the name of Furman came up. It struck me that many players will know the name, and perhaps a little of his reputation. That is because he was one of Karpov's trainers/coaches/seconds. But, out of those who know the name, how many have actually looked at his games???!! Probably less than 1 in 50 I reckon!

That's a shame - he was a fine player, and a formidable theoretician. A genuine Grandmaster when it meant something, as Gufeld would have said - he beat Gufeld rather badly more than once!

His games would have attracted more attention had he played more often outside of he USSR. Looking at his career record an unduly large proportion of his individual events were in the various stages of The Soviet Championships.

No biography today, and very little in the way of annotation to the games - you will have to think for yourselves, and, if inspired to do so, go research the man!! Just some games and a couple of pictures.

So. 'Karpov's Trainer'. Parents and grandparents will understand. One day you are a person, with a name, a job and an independent existence. Then suddenly you are the baby's parent or grandparent!! Anyone know the feeling?? I haven't had a name for years!! ( Other than 'Grampy. I even have a baseball cap with Grampy on it!) However, Furman is rather inextricably linked to Karpov.

A nice cartoon.

It is to be found in the book I went to in order to choose a few games - scan from my own copy, so excuse the quality.

One thing I noted in the book was a testament to Furman's standing as a theoretician.  Taimanov - himself author of a book on the Nimzo- Indian, and an expert in the ...e6 lines of the Sicilian - wrote 18 pages on Furman's various opening ideas. a good choice of author, as Furman was an expert on those openings.

Let's go look at some chess, and introduce you to the games of Semyon Furman. ( The transliteration Semen can also be found, and I am not qualified on the subject)

Seriously good player!!

 Let's start with one that is rather forgotten within a now well documented idea - the so called 'Lasker Sacrifice', or Double Bishop Sacrifice. Actually the first known game with the idea was won by 'Cecil De Vere', and was discovered  very recently by Owen Hindle.

Tigran Petrosian is legendary for many reasons - not least for his use of the positional exchange sacrifice. Here the young Petrosian is taught a lesson in the concept.

Geller - no slouch when it came to opening preparation - takes Furman on in his own back yard - the Rubinstein variation of the Nimzo-Indian. He chooses an unusual line - this stuff was massive theory at the time - but  on move 16. Furman shows that he knows what he is doing as well - and in beautiful style too! If one of the renowned combinationalists of the Soviet school at the time - Nezmetdinov, for instance - had played this game, you would find it all over the internet with exclamation marks all over the place. but of course, Furman was a 'dull strategist' so you have never seen it before. Fancy that!!! As Walter Browne used to say, 'go figure'. And 'only a draw'. Nice one though!!

A game from near the end of Furman's career. His opponent was not only a wonderful player, but one with a well deserved reputation for maneuvering in quiet positions. Furman beats him - with black - on his opponent's own territory.

Furman caused something of a sensation in his first USSR Championship finals, finishing third ahead of a dozen Grandmasters. Along the way he beat Paul Keres in a stunning game.

 As  I have said before, I could easily write a whole book on the most  beautiful loses of the great Smyslov - he seems to have been a player who brought out the best in his opponents!

One  more for that book.

I mentioned re. the Geller game that the opening line was one of the main theoretical debates of the time. A couple of games against top opposition to show how tough it was to take Furman on in such lines.

In the same tournament this young man, photographed at the World Junior Championship of that year, which he won, was a little naive in expecting Furman not to have come prepared!

(The result is an outstanding game on Furman's part. If you only seriously study one of the games that I give here, then study this one, with no engines - just your understanding of chess. Like me, you will realize just how good this guy was.)

Another remarkable game, from a USSR Championship semi-final. If you dig out my short post on Lipnitsky you will see that these guys actually had to qualify for the finals!! 

Both Petrosian and Levenfish - my next project, time permitting - commented that the bulk of the serious games that they played were in events that were just qualifiers for stronger ones. Guys like Furman, Suetin, Simagin, Lipnitsky, Petrosian and Korchnoi had to win a tournament just to get to the national finals!! Make a team out of those 6, which came off the top of my head, and they would probably have walked all over any over any other country in the World back in the 1950's. ( Other opinions are available!!)

Apart from being a lovely game, the next one has a sub-text two trainers of World Champions meet over the board.

Apart from the opening - which is interesting in itself - this is a game that has stuck in my mind for aesthetic reasons. No notes - just enjoy the game!!!

Nice, wasn't it.

Yes, I am Simaginfan! This next game has a story behind it. I quote Caffery and Taimanov in their wonderful book on the soviet Championships.

'The seventh round game Furman - Simagin is worth reproducing as a curiosity. This Leningrad - moskow encounter was accompanied by the strange admission by Simagin that he had taken a tranquillizer before the game ( some sources say a beta-blocker. Simagin was notorious for his nervousness during games . Simaginfan) to counter the great excitement and worry he normally experienced during play. 

It was a case that the experiment was successful - the Muscovite felt calm during the game - but the patient died!'

It is also a brilliant game by Furman.

And one last game. One that baffles me!! Go study it for yourself and then tell me what is going on!!!

A photo from the Black Book, that I have taken the header picture from. It is the usual quality for those publications, but a lovely photograph. It reminds me - like a picture in my post on Kupreichik - of a time that I set fire to my hair during a chess game. hopefully the chess.com thought police won't delete the article because of it!!

And I will leave the last - respectful - words to Karpov. I hope that you have enjoyed the games, and now know a little about the chess played by the player that you had heard of, but never studied.

Cheers, Simaginfan.

Will quickly add one more game, as a response to a commenter below. Think this is the game that re is talking about. 

Hope you enjoy it - mind-blowing stuff!!