World Chess Championship 1960

The 1960 World Chess Championship was played between Mikhail Botvinnik and Mikhail Tal in Moscow from March 15 to May 7, 1960. Botvinnik was the reigning champion, after winning the World Chess Championship 1958, while Tal qualified by winning the Candidates tournamant. Tal won by a margin of 4 points.

1958 Interzonal tournament

An interzonal chess tournament was held in Portorož, SR Slovenia, SFR Yugoslavia in August and September 1958. The top six finishers qualified for the Candidates tournament.[1][2]

1958 Interzonal Tournament
123456789101112131415161718192021TotalTie break
1 Mikhail Tal (Soviet Union)x½½1½½½½01½11½½1½1½1113½
2 Svetozar Gligorić (Yugoslavia)½x½½0½½½½½11½½110111113
3 Tigran Petrosian (Soviet Union)½½x½½½½½1½1½½½½0111½112½117.25
4Pal Benko (stateless)0½½x½1½11½½0½1½½½½11112½115.25
5 Friðrik Ólafsson (Iceland)½1½½x101½1½½½½010011112115.75
6 Bobby Fischer (United States)½½½00x½½½½½½½1½11½11112106.00
7 David Bronstein (Soviet Union)½½½½1½x½½½1½½½½½1½0½111½112.75
8 Yuri Averbakh (Soviet Union)½½½00½½x10½½½111½1½½111½105.50
9 Aleksandar Matanović (Yugoslavia)1½00½½½0x1½½½½½11½1½111½105.50
10 László Szabó (Hungary)0½½½0½½10x½½1½0½1111111½100.75
11 Ludek Pachman (Czechoslovakia)½00½½½0½½½x½½½111½11111½99.75
12 Oscar Panno (Argentina)00½1½½½½½½½x½1½½1½1½½11104.25
13 Miroslav Filip (Czechoslovakia)0½½½½½½½½0½½x½1½½½1111198.00
14 Raúl Sanguineti (Argentina)½½½0½0½0½½½0½x1½11½1½10
15 Oleg Neikirch (Bulgaria)½0½½1½½0½10½00x0½11½1
16 Bent Larsen (Denmark)001½00½00½0½½½1x11½01
17 James Sherwin (United States)½10½100½0000½0½0x1011
18 Héctor Rossetto (Argentina)000½1½½0½0½½½0000x1½17
19 Rodolfo Cardoso (Philippines)½000001½00000½0½10x116
20 Boris de Greiff (Colombia)00½000½½½00½00½10½0x0
21 Géza Füster (Canada)00000000000½0½000001x2

1959 Candidates tournament

The 1959 Candidates Tournament was held in Yugoslavia in Bled, Zagreb, and Belgrade. The top two players from the previous tournament, Smyslov and Keres, were seeded directly into the tournament and joined by the top six from the interzonal. Mikhail Tal won, becoming the challenger in the 1960 championship match.

The tournament was notable in that the two top finishers, Tal and Keres, scored heavily against the bottom of the field. If only scores between the top 4 are taken into account, the results of the top 4 are quite similar (Tal 5½/12, Keres 6½/12, Petrosian and Smyslov both 6/12). But Tal and Keres scored heavily against the bottom 4, with Tal scoring an incredible 14½/16, including winning all 4 of his games against Fischer.

Future World Champion Bobby Fischer was 16 years old at the time. He was the youngest Candidate in history until Magnus Carlsen qualified for the 2007 Candidates under a different system.

1959 Candidates Tournament
12345678ScoreTie break
1 Mikhail Tal (Soviet Union)xxxx0 0 1 0= = = =0 1 = 11 = 1 11 1 1 11 1 1 =1 1 1 =20
2 Paul Keres (Soviet Union)1 1 0 1xxxx0 = = =1 = = 0= = 1 10 1 0 11 1 1 01 1 1 118½
3 Tigran Petrosian (Soviet Union)= = = =1 = = =xxxx= = 0 =0 = = 11 1 = =1 0 0 == 1 1 =15½
4 Vasily Smyslov (Soviet Union)1 0 = 00 = = 1= = 1 =xxxx0 = 1 0= = 1 0= 1 = 1= 0 1 115
5 Svetozar Gligorić (Yugoslavia)0 = 0 0= = 0 01 = = 01 = 0 1xxxx0 1 = == = 1 0= 1 = =12½162.00
6 Bobby Fischer (United States)0 0 0 01 0 1 00 0 = == = 0 11 0 = =xxxx0 1 = 1= 1 = 112½156.50
7 Friðrik Ólafsson (Iceland)0 0 0 =0 0 0 10 1 1 == 0 = 0= = 0 11 0 = 0xxxx0 0 = 110
8Pal Benko (stateless)0 0 0 =0 0 0 0= 0 0 == 1 0 0= 0 = == 0 = 01 1 = 0xxxx8

1960 Championship match

The best of 24 game match was held in Moscow. In the event of a 12–12 tie, Botvinnik, the title holder, would retain the Championship.

Due to Tal's less impressive results against the very top players, including his 3 losses to Keres in the Candidates, Botvinnik was the favourite.[3] However Tal won the match decisively, by a margin of 4 points.

World Chess Championship Match 1960
123456789101112131415161718192021Points
 Mikhail Tal (Soviet Union) 1½½½½1100½1½½½½½1½1½½12½
 Mikhail Botvinnik (Soviet Union) 0½½½½0011½0½½½½½0½0½½

Highlights

Game 6 is particularly famous, thanks to a speculative knight sacrifice by Tal on move 21. The audience became so excited that the game was moved to a back room due to the noise.[3]

Botvinnik-Tal, Game 6
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8
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
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Position after white's 21st move. Tal (black) now sacrificed a knight with the speculative 21...Nf4!?, and won in the ensuing complications.
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See also

Notes

  1. "World Chess Championship 1958 Interzonal Tournament". mark-weeks.com. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  2. "Portoroz Interzonal (1958)". Chessgames Services LLC. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  3. Clash of Champions: Tal vs. Botvinnik, Bryan Smith, chess.com, September 4 2014

References

  • Tal-Botvinnik 1960, by Mikhail Tal, Russell Enterprises, ISBN 978-1-888690-08-8
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