Author: Mike Byrne
Date: 18:38:12 02/10/03
50 years ago this month, Bucharest 1953 became the first informal foreign
tournament, in which several Soviet chess players participated. The tournament
commenced January 25th and ended February 27th, 1953.
Alexander Tolush finshed on top , ahead of 3 future world champions ,Smyslov,
Petrosian, and Spassky, while also gaining the coveted title of International
Grandmaster. His star protege, 16 year old Boris Spassky, earned his
International Master title in the same tournament.
Sadly, Alexander Tolush died in March 1969, just two months before his best
pupil, Boris Spassky, won the World Championship.
Only from the heavens did he have the joy of seeing his favorite student become
the king of chess.
Bucharest 1953
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
1 Tolush,Alexander * ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 14.0/19
2 Petrosian,Tigran ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 13.0/19
3 Smyslov,Vasily 1 ½ * 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 12.5/19
4 Spassky,Boris ½ ½ 1 * ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 12.0/19
5 Boleslavsky,Isaac ½ ½ ½ ½ * 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 12.0/19
6 Szabó,Laszlo ½ ½ ½ 0 1 * ½ ½ 0 0 0 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12.0/19
7 Barcza,Gideon ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 11.5/19
8 O'Kelly de Galway,Alberic ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ ½ 11.0/19
9 Szabo,Stefan 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ * ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 11.0/19
10 Sliwa,Bogdan 0 ½ ½ 1 0 1 ½ ½ ½ * 1 1 ½ 0 0 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ 10.5/19
11 Filip,Miroslav 0 0 ½ 1 0 1 1 ½ 1 0 * ½ ½ 1 1 0 0 ½ 0 1 9.5/19
12 Ciocaltea,Victor 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ * 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 9.5/19
13 Sajtar,Jaroslav 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 * 1 0 ½ 1 0 1 1 8.5/19
14 Milev,Zdravko ½ 0 0 1 ½ 0 0 0 ½ 1 0 0 0 * 1 0 1 ½ 1 1 8.0/19
15 Barda,Olaf ½ ½ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 * ½ ½ 1 1 1 8.0/19
16 Stoltz,Gosta 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 0 ½ 1 ½ * ½ 1 ½ 0 7.0/19
17 Radulescu,Mihai 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 1 1 0 0 ½ ½ * 0 0 1 6.0/19
18 Golombek,Harry 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 1 1 ½ 0 0 1 * ½ 1 6.0/19
19 Troianescu,Octavio 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 0 0 0 0 ½ 1 ½ * ½ 5.0/19
20 Reicher,Emanoil 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 ½ * 3.0/19
Tolush,A - Ciocaltea,V [A65]
Bucharest (4), 1953
[JvR]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nc3 g6 4.e4 Bg7 5.f3 0-0 6.Bg5 c5 7.d5 Re8!? 8.Qd2 Qa5 9.g4!?
Tolush attacks immediately. 9...e6?! 10.Be2?! [Both players miss 10.Nb5! Qb6
11.dxe6 Bxe6 12.0-0-0] 10...exd5 11.exd5 a6 12.h4 Nbd7 13.h5 Ne5 [More
consistency brings 13...b5! 14.hxg6 fxg6 15.Bh6] 14.hxg6 [14.0-0-0! is even
better.] 14...hxg6? [A fine counteraction starts 14...Nxc4! 15.gxf7+ Kxf7 16.Qf4
Nxb2 17.Kd2 Qb4] 15.0-0-0 b5 16.cxb5 c4 17.b6? [A decisive attack begins 17.Bh6!
Bh8 18.Qf4 axb5 19.Bg5 Nfd7 20.Qh2 Bg7 21.Qh7+] 17...Qxb6 18.Nh3? [18.Bh6! Bh8
19.Bg5 Bg7=] 18...Rb8 19.Rh2 Nfd7! 20.Rdh1 Nc5! 21.Nf2 Both sides have moved
their forces to the best squares. 21...Bd7? [Black fails to see the opportunity
21...Ncd3+! 22.Nxd3 cxd3 23.Bd1 Nc4! 24.Na4! Qc7! 25.Qxd3 Nxb2+ 26.Qc2 Nd3+
27.Kd2 Qa5+ 28.Kxd3 Qxd5#] 22.Bh6! Bf6 23.Nfe4 Nxe4 24.Nxe4 Nxg4! 25.Nxf6+ Nxf6
Tolush utilises the momentum.
[d] 1r2r1k1/3b1p2/pq1p1npB/3P4/2p5/5P2/PP1QB2R/2K4R w - - 0 26
A nice move!
26.Bg7! Nh5! 27.Rxh5! gxh5 28.Bd4 Qd8 29.Qh6 Re5 30.Rxh5 1-0
Here's Tolush placing a mating net around another future World Champion
Botvinnik.
A.Tolush
M.Botvinnik
USSR Ch., Moscow, 1944
1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Qxd4 Nc6 4.Qe3 Bb4+ 5.Nc3 Nge7 6.Bd2 0-0 7.0-0-0 d6 8.Qg3
Kh8 9.f4 f5 10.e5 dxe5 11.fxe5 Qe8 12.Nf3 f4 13.Qf2 Bg4 14.Re1 Rd8 15.Bd3 Qh5
16.Be4 Ba5 17.h3 Bf5 18.Rhf1 Bb6 19.Qe2 Be6 20.a3 a6 21.Bd3 Ba7 22.Ne4 Nd5 23.g4
Qe8 24.Neg5 Bg8 25.Qe4 Ne3 26.e6 Rxd3 27.Qxd3 h6 28.Nf7+ Bxf7 29.exf7 Qxf7
30.Bxe3 Bxe3+ 31.Kb1 Rd8 32.Qc3 Qd5 33.h4 Qe4 34.h5 Rd5 35.g5 hxg5 36.h6 Qg6
37.hxg7+ Qxg7 38.Rh1+ Kg8 39.Qc4 Qf7 40.Qb3 Nd8
[d]3n2k1/1pp2q2/p7/3r2p1/5p2/PQ2bN2/1PP5/1K2R2R w - - 0 41
41.Rh5! Qxh5 42.Qxd5+ Nf7 43.Qe4 Kf8 44.Rd1 g4 45.Ne1 Nd6 46.Qe6 g3 47.Rd5 Qf7
48.Qh6+ Qg7 49.Qh4 Nf7 50.Ng2 Qg6 51.Rd7 Kg8 52.Qe7 b6 53.Nh4 Qh5 54.Qf6 Bc5
55.Ng6 g2 56.Qxf7#!
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