Soviet-era chess champion Boris Spassky lost to American Bobby Fischer and died in 88

Boris Spassky, the world chess champion in the Soviet era, lost his title in the United States Bobby Fischer In a legendary 1972 match, which became the agent of Cold War competition, died Thursday in Moscow. He is 88 years old.

The Chess Federation (Chess Federation) confirmed his death. No reason.

The group said on social media that Spassky is “one of the greatest players of all time”. He “left an indelible mark in the game.”

The Russian Chess Federation called his death a “huge loss to the country” and said generations of chess players learned from his game.

One of the earliest reactions was Soviet master Anatoly Karpov, who told Tas State News Agency: “He has always been one of my main idols.”

Spassky was remembered in 1972 duel with Bobby Fischer and American Bobby Fischer, which symbolized the confrontation between the East and the West. The duel is called “the match of the century.”

The Soviet chess giant lived a quiet life, in the conflict between the top conflicts with the best players of that era and the virtual disappearance period.

Born in 1937 in Leningrad, now in St. Petersburg, Spassky showed great talent early on, becoming the 18-year-old teenage world champion and the youngest grandmother in history.

He said he learned to play chess at a five-year-old orphanage and managed to escape from Leningrad with his family while being besieged by the Nazis during World War II.

After the war, his peers noticed his aggressive style without fear of sacrifice and were encouraged by the state, and the state provided him with scholarships and coaching.

After impressing, he found himself in the shadow of Soviet chess, Mikhail Tal, the so-called “Riga Magician”.

It was not until 1961 that Spassky won an extraordinary comeback by winning the Soviet Union.

Eight years later, he defeated his fellow countryman Tigran Petrosian to win the world championship.

“I never set the goal of becoming a world champion. Everything becomes everything that works hard. My progress and boundaries are progressing.”

Svetozar Gligoric, the master of Yugoslav, said Spassky's secret power “is in his huge skills that can adapt to his own different styles,” the Washington Post reported.

“Great Responsibility”

But Spassky will only retain the title for three years.

In 1972, in Iceland, he competed in a competition that would define his career against American prodigy Fischer.

With the highest score in the Cold War, the Soviet Union has dominated the game for many years, and Spassky faced a must-win situation with the quirky 29-year-old, who publicly criticized Soviet chess players.

But after starting a comfortable start for Spassky, the Americans roared and won the victory, ending the uninterrupted streak of the Soviet world champions since 1948.

Although the loss was a slap from Moscow, it was a relief for Spassky to get rid of “huge responsibility”.

“How reassuring was when Fischer took the title from me. I released myself from a very heavy burden and breathed freely.”

The iconic Cold War duel has been the subject of many books, documentaries and movies. Most notably, it inspired Walter Tevis' novel The Queen's Gambit, which was adapted into the famous Netflix series in 2020.

But at the time, after his failure, Spassky stood out.

Four years later, in 1976, he married a French woman of Russian descent and moved to France. He obtained French citizenship in 1978.

Spassky didn't return to the public domain for many years until he played informal competition at Fischer, Yugoslavia in 1992.

The last few years of his life were characterized by poor health and mysterious family conflicts.

After two strokes, he returned to Russia in 2012 with the help of his sponsor and at the advice of his wife and sister.

“I have to start from scratch, but I'm not afraid,” Spassky said on Russian TV after he came back.

A few years ago, in 2008, he visited the grave of his former rival Fischer, his grave Died that year and was buried in a small cemetery in Iceland.

“Do you think the nearby places are available?” Spassky asked the reporter to accompany him on the visit.

Spassky lives in Moscow, and his relatives told RIA Novosti News Agency.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.