English Chess Forum

Gone midnight so Feb 8th.

Happy birthday, Yuri.

I attended Yuri Averbakh's 80th birthday lecture to ARVES in Belgium. Was that really 20 years ago?

www.arves.org

Wikipedia still says Averbakh is 99 as it calculates ages using UTC timings. Is Averbakh the first GM to reach the grand old age of 100? The Wikipedia page has a photo of him at his 80th birthday party.

Nice photo here of Averbakh and Bronstein in 1963:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... 4-6981.jpg

chess24

Yuri Lvovich Averbakh is now the first ever Grandmaster to become 100 years old. The specialist has applied the most famous of endgame principles to his own life: Do Not Hurry!

Pete Doggers

Christopher Kreuzer wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 07, 2022 10:44 pm

Wikipedia still says Averbakh is 99 as it calculates ages using UTC timings. Is Averbakh the first GM to reach the grand old age of 100? The Wikipedia page has a photo of him at his 80th birthday party.

Nice photo here of Averbakh and Bronstein in 1963:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... 4-6981.jpg

Not just that, but I think the first FIDE title holder of any sort.

Even if he isn't the first he is the first player of real noteworthiness to get there - and the best part is he still plays a little bit too, I always have extra admiration for players who don't give up.