GM Isaac Boleslavski (1919 to 1977)
What is it that constitutes a good attacking game? First, ofcourse, the game must be aesthetically pleasing : there must be some surprising move or sacrifice that grips the imagination of the spectators. Next, the game must be directed with great energy and unrelenting vigor, making a successful defence as difficult as possible. And lastly, the attack must be precisely executed.
As such, for today, I have chosen a game by the late Ukranian GM Isaac Boleslavski, one of the strongest players of his generation, who at his best only narrowly let escape an opportunity to play for the world championship. I have always liked the games of this grandmaster; his best efforts are as close to art as chess can get! The late Bobby Fischer spoke very highly also of Boleslavski's skills.
Boleslavski's opponent was Lajos Steiner, and the game was held at the 1948 Interzonal at Saltsjobaden, Sweden. Below is the position after Black's 17th move
Boleslavski's opponent was Lajos Steiner, and the game was held at the 1948 Interzonal at Saltsjobaden, Sweden. Below is the position after Black's 17th move
STEINER
BOLESLAVSKI
Black's sense of danger escaped him when he preferred to create play on the Queenside rather than first castle. Here Black wants to follow up ...Nb6-c4, taking the initiative. Unfortunately for him, White strikes first--in the centre--Boleslavski played the incisive 18.e5!
Next is the position some 6 moves later, with White to play. Black has been forced to defend against direct threats and has not yet found the time to castle. Here Boleslavski finds the sensitive spot in Black's position :e6 and prepares an explosive sacrifice.
STEINER
STEINER
BOLESLAVSKI
BOLESLAVSKI
White proceeded 24.Bxh6! Bxh6 25.Qh3!
BOLESLAVSKI
If now Black plays the natural 25... Bf8 then White gets a winning attack directly with 26. Nxe6 fxe6 27. Qxe6 Kd8 28. Rd1..Therefore, play continued 25...Bg5!? 26. Ne4! Be7 arriving at the next position below
All of Boleslavski's pieces are perfectly placed. What now follows is the very strong and surprising break thru Rook sacrifice.
27. Rxf7!! Stunning
If Black takes this gift immediately he loses to a direct attack: 27... Kxf7 28. Qxe6 Kf8 29. Rf1 etc. Therefore, Steiner tried to hang on to dear life by desperately defending his e-pawn.
27...Qd5!?
STEINER
Steiner is hoping that the White Rook must retreat, but a very unpleasant surprise awaits him!
28.Rxe7!!
STEINER
This stock sacrifice removes the only piece defending the dark squares around the Black King. The end is in sight... play quickly continued:
28... Kxe7 29. Qh4! Kf7 30. Nd6 Kg7 31. Qe7 Kh6 32. Re3!
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Boleslavski (far left), Smyslov, Petrosian, Tolusch and Spassky at Bucarest 1953
David Bronstein (1924-2006) would eventually marry Boleslavski's daugher, Tatania
1951 World Championship Match
STEINER
BOLESLAVSKI
The Black King is getting mated. Steiner resigned.
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Boleslavski (far left), Smyslov, Petrosian, Tolusch and Spassky at Bucarest 1953
Isaac Yefremovich Boleslavsky was born on June 9, 1919 in Zolotonosha, Ukraine and died prematurely at age 57 on February 15, 1977 in Minsk as a result of slipping on an icy sidewalk and fracturing his hip --which soon became infected while hospitalized.
Boleslavsky taught himself chess at age 9. In 1933, Boleslavsky became schoolboy champion of Dnipropetrovsk. Three years later, he won third prize in the 1936 USSR All-Union Junior Championship, held in Leningrad.
After that his progress was quick. He won the Ukraine Championship at age 19 and at 20 he was already good enough to play in the USSR Championship. By 1941 Boleslavski was already recognized as one of the strongest players in the Soviet Union and by 1945 he was second only to Botvinnik in the USSR Championship of that year. In recognition of his enormous talent, he was awarded the title of Grandmaster of the USSR.
After the war Boleslavski was allowed to participate in international tournaments. In 1946 he played in the first really strong post-war tournament Graningen, where Canadian Abe Yanofsky was also participating.
Groningen was a great tournament! Boleslavski can be seen 2nd to the left in the 2nd row, beside Smyslov. Abe can be seen in the first row, far right. The tournament was the first set back of his life, where he found himself in 12th place after 12 rounds. Only a super-human effort in the second half of the tournament allowed him to tie for 7th place.
In the following years Boleslavski's results became more consisent, and more often than not he finished amongst the top 3 or 4 places. 1950 saw the Ukrainian champion score the greatest success of his life, tieing for 1st place with Bronstein at the prestigious and incredibly difficult Budapest Candidates Tournament. A match was arranged between the two of them in Moscow to determine the challenger to Botvinnik for the World Championship of 1951.
By this time Bronstein and Boleslavski were very close, perhaps too much so, for they secretly pre-arranged the match result to favour the younger Bronstein. According to Bronstein (whom I got to know quite well when he visited Lisbon in 1997), Boleslavski felt that he was unable to play against Botvinnik and he felt that he would most certainly lose against the World Champion in any match. (The previous tournament games between Botvinnik and Boleslavski were decisively in favour of the former. Boleslavski had never beaten him and had suffered 6 losses in a row with the Black pieces) The final match score between Boleslavski and Bronstein was +3−2=9 for Bronstein.
As a result of this victory, Bronstein played Botvinnik for the World Championship the following year (1951) , having Boleslavski as his second, and the match ended in a tie--Botvinnik therefore retaining his title. Bronstein never again got a chance to play for the world championship. After 1958 Bronstein was no longer considered amongst the very elite Soviet grandmasters.
Boleslavski played in the famous 1953 Zurich Candidates Tournament, finishing a disappointing 10th to 11th place, and this was to be his last appearance in such an important tournament. He never again qualified for subsequent world championship cycles. After a disappointing result in the 1961 USSR Championship, Boleslavski effectively ended his career as a tournament player and dedicated himself more to training ,teaching and writing. He became the chief trainer of the USSR chess federation, and in particular, he served as Tigran Petrosian's second during the 1963-1969 period when the Armenian held the world title.
Tigran Petrosian. World Champion from 1963-1969
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The picture features Boleslavsky’s son, Stanislaw, and his daughter, Tatiana (David Bronstein’s widow) standing beside their father's grave. Bronstein's grave is about ten paces away!
David Bronstein's grave
