Alexander Nikolayevich Zaitsev (June 15, 1935 – October 31, 1971) was a Soviet chess grandmaster. He was born in Vladivostok, Russia and was also an electrical engineer.
Chess career
Zaitsev shared first place at the 1968 USSR Chess Championship in Alma Ata. He eventually took the silver medal after losing the play-off to co-winner Lev Polugaevsky.
The website Chessmetrics lists his highest ELO rating as 2661 (January 1969) and his highest world ranking as 21 (achieved in April 1969 and May 1969).
Death
Zaitsev died at the age of 36. The cause of his death was not announced.
Legacy
His name is attached to the "Zaitsev Gambit" (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.h4) of the Grünfeld Defence.
References
- ^ Horowitz, Al (24 January 1972). "Chess: Zaitsev, Soviet Grandmaster, Is Dead at the Age of 36". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- "Chessmetrics Player Profile: Alexander Zaitsev". Chessmetrics. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- Saba, Marco. "Scacchi: Enciclopedia pratica dei Gambetti" (in Italian). Studimonetari.org. Archived from the original on 6 December 2009. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
External links
- Alexander Zaitsev player profile and games at Chessgames.com
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