Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Through the Wall

Eleven-time East Germany’s Chess Champion Wolfgang Uhlmann died in Dresden, Germany, on Monday, August 24, 2020 at 85 (he was born there on March 29, 1935). Uhlmann, who was East Germany’s most prominent Grandmaster and one among the top ten in the world during the 60s and 70s, is universally regarded as one of the most authoritative theorists and practitioners of the French Defence. In his long career he succeeded in winning at least a game against four World Chess Champions, namely (in alphabetical order): Viswanathan Anand, Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik, Robert James Fischer and Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov.

Wolfgang Uhlmann – Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik
15th Chess Olympiad; Varna, September 29, 1962
Queen’s Indian Defence E12

Comments in quotation marks by Dagobert Kohlmeyer, ChessBase.com, March 29, 2015.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 g5 7. Bg3 Nh5 8. e3 Nxg3 9. hxg3 Bg7 10. Qc2 Nc6 11. a3 Qe7 12. 0-0-0 g4 13. Nh4 a6 14. Kb1 h5. Curiously enough, Grandmaster Larry Evans assesses the position in his revised 10th edition of “Modern Chess Openings” (1965) as “∓” — just to show the influence Botvinnik’s aura had upon the commentators! 15. Be2 Rh6 16. f3 0-0-0 17. d5 Na7 18. Na4 gxf3 19. gxf3 d6 20. Ng2 Rdh8 21. e4 Kb8 22. Rd3 Re8 23. Re1 Bh8 24. Qd2 Rg6 25. g4 hxg4 26. fxg4 Be5 27. Rb3 Rh8 28. Qe3 Qg5. “28. ... Nc8 was necessary. Wolfgang Uhlmann, who has only a minute left for the remaining 12 moves before the time control, can now deliver the decisive tactical blow”.


29. Nxb6 Qxe3. Perhaps 29. ... cxb6 30. Qxb6 Qe7 31. c5 isn’t so dangerous as it seems, since 31. ... Nc8 32. Qa5 Qc7 apparently puts White’s attack into a deadlock. 30. Nd7+ Kc8 31. Nxe3 Kxd7 32. Rxb7 Bd4 33. Bd1 Bb6 34. Ba4+ Kc8 35. Bc6 Rh3. “Black had to play 35. ... Rgh6! so as to be sure to trade a pair of Rooks”. 36. Nc2 a5 37. Rf1 Nxc6 38. dxc6 Rg7 39. b4 a4 40. e5 Rb3+ 41. Kc1 Rd3 42. Rd1 Rxd1+ 43. Kxd1 Bg1 44. exd6 cxd6 45. b5 Bc5 46. Nb4 Bxb4 47. axb4 Rxg4 48. b6 1 : 0. “An extremely rare pictorial position. The two pairs of doubled Pawns on the b- and c- files ensure a quick mating attack. (Uhlmann)”.

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