Born in Zlatoust, Russia, on May 23, 1951, Anatoly Karpov showed an
aptitude as excellent chess player at an early age and became a grandmaster at 19. He
reaped monetary rewards and international acclaim while reigning as the
world champion of chess from 1975 until 1985.
After defeating Viktor Korchnoi, Karpov
was set to play in the world championship of chess in 1975. However,
Bobby Fischer chose not to defend his title, so Karpov automatically
took his place as the world's leading chess player.
In 1978 and
1981, Karpov succeeded in keeping his title while playing against
Korchnoi once more. By then, Korchnoi had defected from the Soviet
Union, so Karpov's victories won him the approval of then-President
Leonid Brezhnev.
In 1984, Karpov faced Gary Kasparov, to fight for the world
championship. The event turned into an extensive, drawn out affair, with
a series of games that continued for five months. The tournament only
ended when the president of the World Chess Federation (FIDE) suspended
play, citing concerns for the participants' health. With no winner,
Karpov kept the title. However, Kasparov defeated him in the next
championship event, which was held later in 1985.
Karpov
unsuccessfully faced Kasparov again in 1986, 1987 and 1990. In 1993,
Karpov regained the FIDE world champion title, but only because Kasparov
had left FIDE to form another chess organization. Karpov remained
FIDE’s world champion until 1999.
In 2010, Karpov ran to become president of FIDE. He garnered the support of many national chess federations. However, Karpov was defeated by the organization's sitting president, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.
Throughout his life, Karpov has extolled the benefits of chess. He has
established chess schools in a number of countries, and has been
involved in outreach programs that teach prison inmates chess. In
addition to these activities, Karpov continues to play chess himself.
Karpov became a UNICEF
ambassador and servs as chair of the International Association of
Peace Foundations. But he remains best known for his accomplishments and
abilities in the game that has defined his life.
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Anatoly Karpov
