1979 USSR Chess Championship

The 1979 Soviet Chess Championship was the 47th edition of USSR Chess Championship. Held from 29 November to 27 December 1979 in Minsk. The tournament was won by Efim Geller. He won it at the age of 54 and was the oldest player ever to have won the Championship, and did so in a field where young players abounded as never before. The qualifying tournaments took place in Bălți and Bishkek.[1][2]

47th USSR Chess Championship
LocationMinsk
Champion
Efim Geller
Efim Geller

Qualifying

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Swiss Qualifying

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The Swiss Qualifying was held in Bălți from 8-28 August 1979 with 62 players. Nukhim Rashkovsky won gaining a direct promotion to the final.

First League

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The top six qualified for the final.[3]

Bishkek, 2-29 October 1979
Player Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Total
1   Sergey Dolmatov 2495 - 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 11
2   Sergey Makarichev 2500 1 - ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 10½
3   Yuri Razuvaev 2470 ½ ½ - ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 10½
4   Konstantin Lerner 2475 ½ 1 ½ - ½ 1 ½ 0 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1 ½ 1 ½ 0 10
5   Yuri Anikaev 2455 0 ½ ½ ½ - ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 10
6   Artur Yusupov 2490 1 ½ ½ 0 ½ - 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½
7   Vladimir Tukmakov 2575 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 - 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1 1 0 ½ 0 1 9
8   Alexander Ivanov 1 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 0 - 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 1 9
9   Gennadij Timoscenko 2530 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 - ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 9
10   Alexander Kochyev 2545 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ - 0 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 9
11   Karen Grigorian 2480 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 1 - 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 9
12   Lev Psakhis 2480 0 0 0 1 1 ½ 0 0 ½ 1 1 - ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 1
13   Vladimir Bagirov 2545 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ - 0 ½ 1 ½ 1
14   Adrian Mikhalchishin 2480 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 1 0 1 ½ 0 ½ 0 1 - 0 ½ 1 1 8
15   Leonid Yurtaev 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 - ½ 0 0
16   Fikret Sideifzade 2320 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 1 0 ½ ½ - ½ 0 5
17   Alvis Vītoliņš 2430 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 ½ - 0 5
18   Smbat Lputian 0 0 0 1 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 - 5


Final

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The position after 11 rounds was exciting with Balashov, Geller, Kasparov, Kupreichik and Yusupov all sharing the lead on seven points. However, Geller finished like an express train. He had begun with seven draws before he won in rounds 8, 10, 11, 12, 14 and 15. Tal's result was catastrophic, and lost him 40 rating points. His poor form was largely due, according to chief judge Flohr in the bulletin, to the fact that he could not resist a wave of influenza which other participants threw off without too much difficulty.[4]

47th USSR Chess Championship
Player Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Total
1   Efim Geller 2550 - ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 11½
2   Artur Yusupov 2490 ½ - 0 ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 ½ 0 10½
3   Garry Kasparov ½ 1 - ½ ½ 1 1 1 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 0 ½ 10
4   Yuri Balashov 2600 ½ ½ ½ - ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 10
5   Sergey Makarichev 2500 ½ ½ ½ ½ - ½ 1 0 1 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1
6   Tamaz Giorgadze 2535 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ - 1 1 ½ ½ 0 1 0 1 1 ½ ½ 1
7   Viktor Kupreichik 2365 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 0 - 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1
8   Rafael Vaganian 2570 ½ 0 0 ½ 1 0 0 - 1 ½ ½ 0 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 9
9   Konstantin Lerner 2475 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 - ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ ½
10   Nukhim Rashkovsky 2500 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ - 1 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 8
11   Alexander Beliavsky 2595 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 ½ ½ 0 0 - ½ 0 0 0 1 1 ½ 8
12   Yuri Razuvaev 2470 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 1 ½ ½ ½ - ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 8
13   Oleg Romanishin 2560 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 0 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ - 1 1 ½ 0 1 8
14   Mikhail Tal 2615 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 - ½ 0 1 1
15   Sergey Dolmatov 2495 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 1 0 0 ½ - 1 1 ½
16   Evgeny Sveshnikov 2545 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 - 1 ½ 7
17   Yuri Anikaev 2455 0 ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 0 0 0 - ½
18   Vitaly Tseshkovsky 2560 0 1 ½ 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ -

References

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  1. ^ Cafferty, Bernard; Taimanov, Mark (2016). The Soviet Championships. London: Everyman Chess. p. 183.
  2. ^ Soltis, Andy (2000). Soviet chess, 1917-1991. McFarland & Co. ISBN 0-7864-0676-3. OCLC 41940198.
  3. ^ "Russian Base".
  4. ^ Cafferty; Taimanov 2016, p. 183