WHO IS THE GREATEST CHESS PLAYER OF ALL TIME? Defend your answer...
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Wilhelm Stenitz should be in the conversation too
Yeah, no doubt his English would be better than the OP's.
There was a very interesting interview with Levon Aronian a while back where he claimed this question to be a rather silly exercise in futility, and that there is almost a case for any WCh to be included in the discussion. So his own suggestion was Alekhine or possibly Petrosian.
There is no answer to this question unless it's asked in a more specific way.Who was the greatest attacker/defender/opening theoretician/endgame expert/etc etc.Or who was the greatest match player/tournament player for example.
I doubt anyone will ever get close to Anatoly Karpov as a tournament player. His record of over 160 won tournaments is amazing.
Chigosian50 wrote:
There was a very interesting interview with Levon Aronian a while back where he claimed this question to be a rather silly exercise in futility...
If anyone has any doubts about that, just read these forums.
Mar 25, 2013
0
#227
I've always said Paul Morphy.
No computers.
No seconds.
No theory apart from maybe some embryonic stufff rom the masters of the day such as Lowenthal. But nothing that approached todays mass of theory.
No coach [?].
A lower general standard of opponents with which to increase your level.
Put Karpov back in that time. He's find it tough. And that's where I disagree with the late Bent Larsen who said that if you put the masters of his time back into the 1920's they would become a world champion easily; NOT if you gave them the limitations of that era.
ofc it makes no sense because everyone knows Fischer was the best.
Mar 25, 2013
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#229
Actually Fischer himself gave qualified disagreement that he was the best. He said that a distinction had to be made between knowledge [theory] and talent.
Fischer was a predator from the depths of the Universe, the only one that didn't skin his victims.
Mar 25, 2013
0
#231
Fischer would have been the antichrist had he not been occupied as a chess player.
we all would have been walking around with a giant 'F' on our foreheads for our enslavement in the cult of Fischer.
well i like bobby Fischer more then any other person im not related to .
btw fischer was chrisitan
I will probably offend quite a few people on here, but I see very little reason to exalt Bobby Fischer as the greatest player ever. When it comes to longevity and creativity there are several better candidates. Obviously he was a chess phenomenon with a fantastic technique and a ferocious will to win, but he was also allowed to dedicate more time to chess than any other player before or since. If he had lived in the Soviet Union, he would have been forced to finish his studies, get a degree, some sort of a job, and to meet standard social obligations. Fischer has more myths surrounding him than any other player because he was seen as a symbol of capitalism conquering communism during the Cold War, and in general the West being superior to the East. If you read Frank Brady's wonderful book Endgame(and Brady is a Fischer-fan!), Bobby comes across as a person with a remarkable IQ, who was also horrible and ungrateful to anyone who helped him; petty, vindictive, immature, intellectually defective (I'm referring to the anti-semitic rants) and most importantly utterly selfish in a most shocking way. He never became a real human being, so for me he has become a symbol of chess that has lost its rightful place in world culture and become utterly and completely meaningless. Even his religious life had no sign of virtue in any recognisable shape or form. Fischer lacked compassion and decency in so many tragic ways, it's absolutely heartbreaking.
On the plus side though, he played a mean game of tennis.
Probably not as good as Carlsen there, though; have you seen that kid's backhand? I always thought he was a bit of a berk, but damn boy can swing the single-hander righteous.
Dang, another word I just had to look up (do you guys pronounce it "bark" btw?).
In context of the time period in which he lived, I would say Ruy Lopez. He invented an opening in the 15th century that is still being widely used today.
AndyClifton wrote:
Dang, another word I just had to look up (do you guys pronounce it "bark" btw?).
Nope, as it's written.