Now that the question of the absolute strongest chess player in history has been conclusively (and boringly) settled (it's a computer), we can turn our attention to who was the greatest chess player: who had the most impact on the game in the history that followed them?
It's probably someone old, for they have naturally had the longest time to affect the play of others: Ruy Lopez, Philidor... They were writers.
Without Steinitz, we might not have positional play, only the romantic "if a gambit is offered, you must accept it" shoot-'em-up style.
Nimzowitsch gave us hypermodernism.
Botvinnik I think helped evolve chess into a serious game that you make into a respectable career, rising above the fray of say dominos or poker as a parlor game. His shadow looms large over his chess school and its future champions.
Fischer may have prevented chess from becoming a regional (Soviet) game, like Glinski's Hexagonal Chess or Shogi. Anand, too.
Kasparov is too recent to judge. Perhaps he was the first to achieve and maintain truly celebrity status, elevating chess to a game with celebrities fans adore (or despise). Did he take opening preparation to a new level, perhaps with the help of computers?
No comments :
Post a Comment