Happened Today in the Chess World - Mar 18, 2024

CHUKY

Linares 1991: GM Vassily Ivanchuk - Source: dgriffinchess.wordpress.com

Today is GM Vassily Ivanchuk's birthday. He was born in Kopychyntsi, Ukraine, on March 18, 1969.
Ivanchuk's list of successes is endless: he was World Clitz Champion in 2007 and World Rapid Champion in 2016, winner of many international tournaments (eight times first at the Capablanca Memorial), and winner of four Olympic games (two with the Soviet Union and two with Ukraine).
Vassily missed the deserved World Champion title, surprisingly losing to Ruslan Ponomariov in 2002. Ivanchuk was second in the world in 1991; his peak rating was 2787 Elo points, reached in October 2007.
An extraordinarily eclectic player with a phenomenal memory and a long career, Ivanchuk has always been a public darling for his eccentric personality and formidable creativity.
Today's combination is taken from the 2000 closed tournament in Montecatini, Italy, which Vassily won.

Smbat Lputian (2598)-Vassily Ivanchuk (2719), Montecatini Terme 2000
Black to move and win

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