In 1965 at the age of 22, Bobby Fischer had hoped to play in the Capablanca Memorial Chess Tournament in Havana, Cuba. During this time, however, Americans were not able to travel to Cuba. Instead, he played the tournament’s games in New York from the Frank Marshall Chess Club – through telegraph. His moves would be transmitted to Havana and his opponent’s would be sent back.
From the day he picked up his first chess piece at six years old, Bobby Fischer slowly became an icon that depicted and represented more than just a chess player, chess champion or grandmaster. As an innocent intellectual on the international chess scene, Fischer began to play an unintentional role as a political pawn, pitted between the world’s governments.
Early Titles
The “Game of the Century” that he played in 1956 at the age of 12 against Donald Byrne was one of his first defining championships. With this win, he won the US title of National Master and was the youngest to ever receive this prize.
Two years later, he played in the U.S. Chess Championship in New York and received the title of International Championship at the age of 14. Another 2 years later in 1958, he receieved the title of Grandmaster, the youngest in history.
1972 World Chess Championship
In 1972, Fischer was set in the World Chess Championship against his long time friend and chess opponent, Boris Spassky. He had lost to Spassky prior, but this was how they became friends many years before. The tournament was set in Reykjavik, Iceland. For Fischer, it would be another attempt to win the World Chess Championship after having heavily criticized that the format and rules of the tournament made it near impossible for a non-Soviet player to win.
Fischer lost the first two games against Spassky and demanded that the conditions of the game were not fit – the cameras were upsetting him. Of the next 19 games, he won 7, lost only 1, and drew 11. This made him the 11th World Chess Champion.
What made this game sensational was that it was during the Cold War period when there was a great deal of conflict and tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. For the most part, the Soviets had dominated the global stage of chess. Thus, Bobby Fischer became known as an American icon: one man that was pitted and stood against the entire Soviet Union – and won. This game was called the “Match of the Century” and made both Fischer and the game of chess famous.
Later in Life
For 20 years after the World Chess Championship, Fischer didn’t play another serious game of chess. It was only in 1992 that he had a rematch with Spassky in Yugoslavia. At this time, however, Yugoslavia was under a severe United Nations embargo and prohibition which included sporting events. Fischer nonetheless decided to play and was issued an arrest warrant.
He never returned to the U.S. thereafter because he was a fugitive. Later, he would heavily and openly criticize the U.S. government, and is noted for having done so in a radio interview after 9/11
He moved from the Philippines to Japan, and finally remained in Iceland for the rest of his life. He died in his apartment from kidney failure at the age of 64 in Reykjavik, Iceland in January 2008.
