On this DVD, Grandmaster Daniel King offers you a repertoire for Black with the QGD and against the Catalan. The repertoire is demonstrated in 20 stem games, covering all White's major systems.
The first game in the series features a bout played in 1960 between Bobby Fischer and Olicio Gadia at the Mar del Plata International tournament. Bobby Fischer was 16 years old, and had become a superstar the year before when he had become the youngest grandmaster in history after qualifying the 1959 Candidates tournament.
It was March in the quiet beachside resort town Mar del Plata, which remains quiet throughout the year except for a frenetic two-month period when a monsoon of people fill the city to enjoy its beaches for the summer holidays. Tournaments, expositions, and other activities held throughout the year are what ensure a small but steady economic influx.
Mar del Plata in 1960
The Mar del Plata at the time was a very highly respected tradition of international events, bringing in a few players of international renown, pitted against local talents and some other guests. Fischer had already graced the guest list in 1959, when he had come in 3rd-4th with Ivkov with 10.0/14, a half-point behind Najdorf and Pachman.
The lineup of players at the 1960 Mar del Plata tournament
This year, the guest list was even more prestigious as aside from young Bobby, it included Boris Spassky, David Bronstein, and Fridrik Olafsson. After a second round disaster, when he lost to Spassky (a disaster for someone planning to win the event that is), Fischer went on a terror run in which he scored 12.5/13 to finish tied with Spassky with 13.5/15. He started this fulminating streak in round three when he faced the Brazilian master, and 1959 champion, Olicio Gadia.
Game commented by GM Daniel King
On a funny note, Olicio Gadia, two-time Brazilian champion in 1959 and 1962, faced another prodigy a few years later, with equally little success, Henrique Mecking. In 1965, Mecking was about to win his second national title, having won his first at age 12 in 1962, and in the last round faced Olicio Gadia. After a long struggle the time came to adjourn the game, and since Mecking only needed a draw to guarantee the title, Gadia was certain he would not come back to the board if a draw were offered.
Olicio Gadia, Brazilian champion (1959 and 1962) in 1962
“I propose a draw”, Gadia exclaimed. The 15-year-old Mecking immediately replied, “I propose you resign”, much to the laughter of those around. The Brazilian genius, who would one day become world no.3, then showed his opponent how he would win the endgame, leaving Gadia with little to say, and he resigned.
Bobby Fischer’s resignation of his title and subsequent withdrawal and disappearance from chess and the world, led to more documentaries, books, articles, and discussions than possibly any other topic in chess history. If the world at large enjoyed Elvis Presley sightings on a regular basis, the same was true of Fischer in the chess world. That the chess player was still alive, yet remained so elusive only made the rumors and legend that much more nail-biting.
The $5 million purse was the largest in history for a chess match
Finally, in 1992, he came out of hiding, and with great fanfare and shock effect, played a match against his former rival, Boris Spassky. It was an opportunity to receive some measure of closure for the chess world, a last hurrah to see him at play in genuine competition, even if he was clearly no longer the same player as at his peak. Still, there he was, and if he had any great opening secrets he had been hoarding over the decades, these too might see the light of day in this match. Spassky himself had to realize what an incredible situation he had been put in, not to mention the fortune on the line, and made sure that if anything went amiss, he could never be blamed. When asked about any issue or detail on the match conditions, he would immediately defer to whatever Bobby wanted.
Part one of the game analysis by Daniel King
Part two of the game analysis by Daniel King
Be sure to see further videos by Daniel King at his PowerPlayChess Youtube channel.
