Mikhail Tal (b. 1936 -- d. 1993) was an
aggressive,
attacking
chess player. He was
world champion only between
1960 and 1961, defeating and then losing to
Mikhail Botvinnik.
Until
Garry Kasparov
claimed the world title years later, Tal was the youngest person to become
world champion. His
personality may have defined what I think of as the stereotypical
chess geek: a
chain smoker with tons of
nervous energy who was
obsessed with
chess and loved
speed chess. Tal loved to
attack relentlessly and would often
sacrifice in order
to maintain
initiative. Many of his sacrifices were so stunning,
and
questionable, that he earned the
nickname "the Wizard of Riga."
(thanks
ymatsu.)
Mikhail Tal was born in Riga, Latvia.
He kept playing chess until his death,
even winning the World Blitz Championship in 1988. A few days before
his death in 1993 he defeated Garry Kasparov in a quick game.
In fact, in his lifetime he only lost once to Kasparov
and once to Anatoly Karpov.
In 1976
Tal authored a classic book called The Life and Games of
Mikhail Tal. Quotations attributed to Tal include: