Vasily Smyslov:  ChessVirtuoso

Vital Statistics:   Born March 24, 1921 in Moscow, USSR

This page is dedicated to my all time favorite chess player, Vasily Smyslov.  My real passion started with Smyslov back around 1982.  At that time I was starting to follow chess in the news and I was still hoping that Bobby Fischer would come back to chess and beat Anatoly Karpov (no such luck).  I was flipping through my Chess Life magazines and I saw the games and stories of the 1982 Las Palmas Interzonal.  While disappointed to see American Walter Browne get hammered (3 points out of 13, last place) I was amazed that this "old timer" named Vasily Smyslov took second place (8.5 out of 13) and qualified for the Candidates Tournament!

Then I hit the library and found out what I had missed!   Vasily was a former World Champion, and the best tournament player in the decade of the 1950's.  The old lion was roaring once again!  I jumped right on the bandwagon and started rooting my man on.  First he was to face Huebner, who I have never been a fan of.  And after 14 games the match was drawn (1 win each, 12 draws).  So to the Casino they went and spun the ball and Smyslov's color came up and he was on  to the next match versus Interzonal winner, Zoltan Ribli.

As fate would have it, he completely outplayed Ribli and won the match 3-1 with 8 draws.  I could here the "Rocky" music playing in the back round!  Up next however, was the new young superstar by the name of Garry Kasparov.  I really did not think Smyslov could defeat Garry, but I was rooting for him all the same.  Well, the miracle was over and Vasily was beaten 8.5 - 4.5 (4 losses, 9 draws) but nothing was stopping Kasparov back then and I celebrated the great run by my new favorite player, Vasily Smyslov.  A very credible effort by a true sportsman.  Also, setting a record certain never to be broken.  Vasily Smyslov was a candidate for the World Championship in 4 decades! (50's - 80's).

Soon after, Smyslov's book "125 Selected Games" came out and I scraped up enough cash to buy the book.  I have to admit, that not being a very strong positional player, I had a lot of difficulty understanding my new hero's games.  In fact, to this day, I still struggle to understand what he is thinking in a lot of cases, but I fell in love with the Harmony in which the games were played.  Completely underestimated in the opening phase of the game, Smyslov put together some strong opening lines that are still used today.  What he is known for is his endgame play and studies that he has graciously left behind for future generations to enjoy.  But in his greatest victories, he increases his position gradually until the defensive task is too much for his opponent, and then he breaks through tactically.  His best games are really treasures to play through.

While going back and finding our more about Mr. Smyslov, I was overwhelmed by what he had accomplished.  He was an incredibly successful player, and also a fabulous Tenor!  Music and chess, forever linked together it seems.  Vasily won numerous tournaments, candidates matches, and in 1954 drew a match with Botvinnik for the World's Championship (he won the 23rd game to tie the match, and the 24th game was drawn).  This proved he could play with the mighty Botvinnik, but could he beat him?  The answer was YES.  He battled through another candidates cycle, winning the rite to face Botvinnik again in 1957.  This time he blew Botvinnik away 12.5 - 9.5 and becoming the 7th World Champion. 

I will be the first to admit I am not a big Botvinnik fan (although his books are awesome), I look at the rematch with sadness and wonder.  Botvinnik was granted the rematch clause and did indeed beat Smyslov in 1958.  Smyslov at the time was ill but felt (from what I have read) that he could win anyway and did not want to postpone the match.  Well he came up short but the question I have is, where was Smyslov's rematch?   He was the World Champion and should have had the same rites as Botvinnik, but did not.  Botvinnik had to lose 2 consecutive matches to be unseated.  Vasily could not do it, nor could Tal after him.  Granted, those were the rules but how unfair.   In the 3 matches with Botvinnik, Smyslov had a plus score in the total matches!  Yet he was not World Chamption any longer.  How odd.  Had Vasily not lost in 1958, I suspect he would have been World Champion for quite a few years after that.  It would have been interesting to see how he would have fared against Tal in 1960. 

The reason why he became my all-time favorite player is because much like Spassky, he was a true gentleman.  Someone my kids could admire should they play the game of chess and follow its rich history.  Congratulations on a brilliant career Vasily Smyslov.  Though most people do not know you, the ChessOutpost is your #1 fan!

This picture was given to me from Mig Greengard and was taken in 2001.  You look great Vasily!  And what a final gift you have given me.  Just released is a 2 volume set of Vasily Smyslov's best games of chess.  Thank You Vasily!  I will be purchasing those shortly. 

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Last modified: December 04, 2007