Endgame Riddle: Kurajica vs Karpov, Skopje 1976

by Karsten Müller
3/11/2022 – Anatoly Karpov, World Champion from 1975 to 1985, was famous for being able to exploit tiny advantages in the endgame, and an often cited example for these skills is a seemingly drawish endgame with opposite-coloured bishops which Karpov managed to win against the Croatian-Bosnian Grandmaster Bojan Kurajica in Skopje 1976. But Karsten Müller wondered where Kurajica went wrong and whether Karpov's play was indeed as flawless as it seemed - and invites ChessBase readers to take a close look at this famous endgame.
Rules of thumb are the key to everything when you are having to set the correct course in a complex endgame. In this final DVD of his series on the endgame, our endgame specialist introduces you to the most important of these rules of thumb.

Bojan Kurajica vs Anatoly Karpov, Skopje 1976

 
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This game ended in a very famous opposite colored bishop ending. But was Karpov's conversion flawless or were mistakes made by both sides? 29...Re8 30.Rxe8+ Qxe8 31.Kf2 Qg6 32.Qd3 Qxd3 33.cxd3 h4 34.g3 Kf7 35.Ke3 f5 36.Kf4 Kg6 37.Ke3 Kh5 38.Bb4 g5 39.Kf2 Ba2 40.Ba3 Bb1 41.Ke2 Ba2 42.Bc1 Be6 43.Kf2 Bc8 44.d5 cxd5 45.d4 f4 46.gxf4 g4 47.Kg2 Bf5 48.Kf2 gxf3 49.Kxf3 Be4+ 50.Kf2 Kg4 51.Bb2 Kxf4 52.Bc3 Kg4 53.Bb2 c6 54.Bc1 Kh3 55.Kg1 Bg6 56.Kh1 Bh5 57.Kg1 Bd1 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Kurajica,B-Karpov,A-0–11976C77Skopje5

In the middlegame opposite-coloured bishops favour the attacker because the bishop of the attacker can target points which the bishop of the defender cannot defend. But endgames with bishops of opposite-coloured bishops have large drawish tendencies because the bishop of the defender is able to control points the attacker cannot attack.

Still, Karpov was able to win the endgame with opposite-coloured bishops after exchanging queens on move 32. But where did Kurajica go wrong? And was Karpov's play flawless or did he also make mistakes?

What do you think? Please share your analyses and thoughts in the comments!

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Karsten Müller is considered to be one of the greatest endgame experts in the world. His books on the endgame - among them "Fundamentals of Chess Endings", co-authored with Frank Lamprecht, that helped to improve Magnus Carlsen's endgame knowledge - and his endgame columns for the ChessCafe website and the ChessBase Magazine helped to establish and to confirm this reputation. Karsten's Fritztrainer DVDs on the endgame are bestsellers. The mathematician with a PhD lives in Hamburg, and for more than 25 years he has been scoring points for the Hamburger Schachklub (HSK) in the Bundesliga.

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