To Robert Fisher's birthday. History of the grandeur and madness of the brilliant chess player Chess

Today, March 9, his 82nd birthday could celebrate Robert James Fisher-one of the best, if not the best, chess player in history. The Chicago native aimed to become a chess world champion as a child, and at the age of 13 he became the youngest winner of the US Youth Championship.

It was the first step of the American to the status of the best player of his time, and his inheritance is alive and still in the form of chess Fisher. There were still many such steps, but they were all « seven » – the youngest grandmaster of his time (until 1991), the youngest contender for the title of World Champion, 40 wins from 65 parties within the Olympics, a three -time Oscarmaster Oscar and more.

In 1972, Fisher beat Boris Spassky in the match for the world championship, but even then the first signs of ambiguity of the American genius appeared. Having lost the first party, Bobby put forward his next condition, which the organizers did not accept – to remove all the cameras, all journalists and play in the closed room. After the refusal, the chess player simply did not appear in the second party and refused to play on. Spassky unexpectedly went to the opponent and eventually lost the match.

It was not the first and not the last bell about the instability of Fisher's personality, about his incendiary nature and, as they would say in the 21st century – a sense of self -importance.

What preceded personal changes?

Ten years before the status of the World Champion, Fisher was very disrespectful about chess players, not considering women as competitors in chess or in mental activity in general.

« All women are weak. They play a beginner level and lose every part of a man. They do not need to play this game at all, because there is no woman in the world that I would not beat with a horse from a horse, » Fisher said for Harper.

When Robert returned for a chessboard in a match with Spassky in 1972, he constantly complained about the noise in the hall, the noise of candy wrappers, TV camera glare and more.

Someone considers such claims from the brilliant American is nothing more than a manifestation of fanatical selfishness, and someone – the beginning of a paranoid disease. Interestingly, during the negotiations on the continuation of the match with Spassky, Robert emphasized the importance of the absence of cameras and closed doors through the many « beetles », which will get the gambling room.

The next match for the title of World Champion simply did not take place because of the large number of requirements of the American, one of which was contrary to the USSR's policy, whose representative had to play against Fisher – Anatoly Karpov. At that time, Robert demanded that the winner the title of « Chess Champion among professionals », which was impossible for representatives of the Union.

The Soviet chess player tried to personally explain to Robert that in his country there are no « professionals, everyone should be lovers », but it has passed Fisher and the match did not happen.

Karpov has become a world champion without playing with an American who, after this incident, left official chess. In 1992, Fisher played the so-called « Revight Match » against Spassky, winning his opponent again, but interesting. The match took place in Yugoslavia, which was on fire and was under the sanctions of the UN. Even the ban on the United States to go in the territory of the dying state did not stop Robert, for whom the arrest warrant was ready.

The New York Times

« When he was behind the board, it was like a game of God. The purity of his thoughts was aimed at finding the truth in chess, finding the root of the problem. Robert never sought an easy option to play the opponent – he was looking for truth in chess, » Shelby Lyman said.

What happened to Fisher?

In fact, there are a very small number of people in the world who would be serious about the study of Fisher's « phenomenon »-how a 49-year-old chess player could simultaneously become an antisemite, a mizogin and keep a warrant for arrest from a state that was very proud of him 20 years before his issue.

Fordhem University Lecturer Joseph Ponterotrotto addressed Freud in the hope of finding some answers to changes in Robert's personality, but was able to find only distant explanations of Shahmist's « whim ».

« Fisher grew up without a father who was very influenced. He had no success now except the chess and when he made a certain name, he began to take revenge on all people. It was all revenge to those who despised him as a child.

For some time, the chess player visited the World Church of God, but left it, accusing it of Satanism. Robert began to intentionally dress like a homeless, use various vitamins and repeated that he did not want to help the Communists who would come to poison him one day.

After the scandal with the match-Rewan, Fisher lived in Belgrade for a while, later in Budapest, but never returned to the rating tournaments. There was such a noise around Bobby in the world that he wanted to see him in all corners of the world for any money. Everyone wanted to get private lessons from a chess genius, and some even tried to organize the relevant TV shows that Fisher had no desire to lead.

In 1999, Robert was distinguished by an incomprehensible statement in the ether of one of the Hungarian radio stations, saying that there was no Holocaust, and the United States is currently under the control of this nation. In 2001, when the world shook a 9/11 terrorist attack, the chess player rejoiced in many casualties, because, he said, « someone had to give an ass these Americans. »

In 2004, Robert Fisher was detained when attempting to fly out of Japan through the US Passport. The chess player spent 8 months in prison for illegal migrants, after which he was still deported.

Welt

According to Frenko Brady, Fisher's chief biographer, despite all his madness, the chess player had the strengths of the character that blocked everything.

« The courage and honesty before society remained the main virtues of Robert. He never » filtered « his opinion, but always said what he thinks here and now. Besides, he had the courage to fight against the US machine since 1992 until his death.

Last years as a result of life

After deportation from Japan, Shahist lived in Iceland. He almost did not leave his home, did not trust modern medicine and swore people. When Fisher was wounded with osteosarcoma and metastases in September 2007, he personally refused surgery, saying that the best medicine was human warmth.

Getty Images

Robert has left not only a great sports inheritance after his death, but also many questions that no one will ever give answers. Bobby fought Fide for the sake of the chess players no less than boxing, but at the same time did very strange demarchi, which no one understood in the chess world. Fisher was half a Jew, but it did not prevent him from saying « Jewish rats headed by the United States » and denying the Holocaust.

As early as 2022, the American newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer issued the assumption that Fisher was recruited to the Soviet KGB, citing the supervision of the FBI for his mother. However, this information was not confirmed, as there was no answer to the question: if Fisher was an agent of the USSR, then why did he climb against the US state?

Despite the greatness of the individual, there are only 101 books in the world, which is dedicated to Robert. Unfortunately, there are almost no contemporaries in Fisher in the world who could tell certain details of communication with a prominent chess player so that competent people could form a psychological portrait of an American who could impress with frantic decisions on a chessboard and no less crazy pranks in life.