Would Garry Kasparov have beaten Bobby Fischer? Was Capablanca stronger than Morphy? Many chess authors have speculated about such questions, but this book, based on a sophisticated computer analysis undertaken at the University of British Columbia, provides the definitive answer. It contains an objective ranking list of the 64 strongest players of all time, with short biographies and stylistic descriptions.These are supported and illustrated by over 80 complete games, and by numerous extracts from other important games. All of these are annotated, most of them with comprehensive original notes, and were played entirely between members of this elite group.
First published by Hardinge Simpole in 1989 and widely recognised then as a seminal work, arriving at conclusions necessitating a fundamental reappraisal of how chess strength should be assessed.
Key comments by leading reviewers are included at the front of this edition. Who was the greatest chess player of all time? This book answered that question.
Raymond Keene is a British Chess Champion, and the first British Player to achieve a FIDE (World Chess Federation) Grandmaster norm. He was awarded the OBE for services to chess in 1985. He is Chess Correspondent of The Times, The Sunday Times, The Spectator, and The International Herald Tribune. He is a prolific author of chess books, several of which are classics of the genre. He has organised three World Chess Championships.
Nathan Divinsky is Professor of Mathematics at the University of British Columbia, and has also been a Visiting Professor at Queen Mary College, now part of the University of London. He has published many research papers on mathematics, and two important books - Rings and Radicals and Linear Algebra. He is also well known as a chess expert and commentator, having represented Canada and edited the national chess magazine, as well as serving as his country's delegate to the World Chess Federation. He has been Canadian Contract Bridge champion.
