To Gligoric with Love

2/6/2008 – Svetozar Gligoric, born in Belgrade on February 2, 1923, is the best ever chess player in Serbia and ex-Yugoslavia. He won the national championship eleven times, earned twelve Chess Olympiad medals, six in European championships and was candidate for World Championship title many times. Gligoric was honoured on his 85th birthday with an 85-player Swiss tournament. Illustrated report.

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Tribute by Josip Asik

The best ever chess player in Serbia and ex-Yugoslavia, GM Svetozar Gligoric turned 85 on February 2nd, 2008. On his birthday there was a big celebration tournament, entitled “To Gligoric with Love”, in the city of Pancevo, near to Belgrade. It was the idea of Milorad Mitrovic, international chess organizer, to make this day very special for Gligoric and all chess players in Serbia. In the rapid chess tournament, the number of invited players was limited to exactly 85, in order to show symbolism of Gligoric’s present age.

Happy birthday, dear Gligo!

The living chess legend was warmly welcomed by many chess lovers who came to show him their gratitude and respect. Svetozar Gligorić (Serbian Cyrillic: Светозар Глигорић) was born in Belgrade on February 2, 1923, and won the Yugoslav championship eleven times. He earned twelve Chess Olympiad medals, starting with Gold in Dubrovnik 1950 and totalling one gold, six silver and five bronze. He won six medals (5 silver, one bronze) in European championships, the last in 1983. During three decades after II World war he was candidate for World Championship title and one of the best players outside the Soviet Union.

Tournament poster “To Gligoric with Love”

First congratulations and presents came from Maric sisters:
IM Alisa Maric and WGM Mirjana Maric-Stamenkovic

The hall was packed, not a single seat left empty

A gift from the Major of Pancevo, Srdjan Mikovic – a beautiful Danube river landscape

Gligoric with the Nedeljkovic chess family

WGM Verica Nedeljkovic was second on World Chess Championship Candidates Tournament in Plovdiv 1959, her husband Srecko, a well known cardiologist, was the trainer of the Yugoslav national team at the Chess Olympiad in Dubrovnik 1950 (Gold medal!), and their son Milos (left), President of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Belgrade University, is a keen chess enthusiast.

Gligoric with a recognition plaque awarded by Pancevo Town

This is from the the Valjevo Chess Club

Birthday songs by a local music orchestra

Before the start of the commemorative tournament

The tournament had exactly 85 players, including 23 GMs, 21 IMs, twelve FMs, four WGMs, one WIM and three WFMs. It was a nine round Swiss at 15 minutes per game. Five players shared first, with Serbia's “number one”, GM Ivan Ivanisevic, taking the trophy.

Place	Seed	Player	Title	Rating	Pts
1	1	Ivanisevic, Ivan	GM	2649	7.0
2	28	Marinkovic, Ivan	IM	2453	7.0
3	5	Kovacevic, Aleksandar	GM	2575	7.0
4	10	Savic, Miodrag R.	GM	2536	7.0
5	27	Zlatic, Mihajlo	IM	2455	7.0
6	6	Perunovic, Milos	GM	2570	6.5
7	9	Vuckovic, Bojan	GM	2556	6.5
8	30	Kojovic, Dragan	FM	2444	6.0
9	8	Popovic, Dusan	GM	2556	6.0
10.	2.	Solak, Dragan	GM	2626	6.0
11	4	Damljanovic, Branko	GM	2582	6.0
12	29	Martinovic, Slobodan	GM	2449	6.0
13	11	Pikula, Dejan	GM	2524	6.0
14	22	Drazic, Sinisa	GM	2489	6.0
15	7	Sedlak, Nikola	GM	2568	6.0
16	12	Pavlovic, Milos	GM	2522	6.0
17	15	Milanovic, Danilo	IM	2510	6.0

18-26th were IM D. Nestorovic, FM Bogosavljevic, GM Cabrilo, GM Rajkovic, IM Pap, IM Brenjo, IM Z.Arsovic, GM Lajthajm, GM Miladinovic with 5.5 points.

Generations: Gligoric and 12-year-young tournament participant Vladimir Lukovic