Lock Up

The fourth Capablanca Memorial held in 1965 was marked by an unusual circumstance. U.S. Chess Champion Robert James Fischer had been invited to play and was offered a $3000 appearance fee, but the United States Department of State would not allow him to travel to Cuba. Thus Fischer played his games by telex from the Marshall Chess Club in New York City. Capablanca’s son José Raúl Capablanca Jr. relayed the moves in Havana. When Fischer’s participation seemed assured, Cuban President Fidel Castro called it a “great propaganda victory for Cuba”, making headlines. When Fischer heard of this, he cabled Castro threatening to withdraw unless Castro stopped making political statements about Fischer’s participation. A cabled reply from Castro eased Fischer’s concern and he joined the field of twenty-two players, with thirteen Grandmasters and seven International Masters. Play by teletype added to the strain of the tournament. Former World Champion Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov (USSR) won the tournament with 15½ points of 21. Borislav Ivkov (Yugoslavia), Efim Geller (USSR), and Fischer shared second through fourth, a half point behind. Although Fischer did not win, his performance was widely considered a success given the playing conditions and the fact that Fischer was playing his first international tournament in three years. Photo: Everett.