The U.S. Chess Hall of Fame and the World Chess Hall of Fame are inducting the 2024 class of honorees this month, featuring a roster of some of the game’s best-known stars of yesteryear — and a couple of worthy but less prominent names.
The sole inductee into the St. Louis-based U.S. Chess Hall of Fame might not be all that familiar to even the serious students of the game: Charles Henry Stanley, an English-born player, columnist and publisher who holds the distinction of being the first recognized U.S. national champion.
The New York-based Stanley took the (unofficial) crown in 1845, defeating New Orleans champion Eugene Rousseau in a match with an impressive stake of $1,000 for the winner. Stanley, who authored the country’s first regular newspaper chess column, was considered the country’s top player until decisively dethroned by the transcendent Paul Morphy 12 years later.
Interestingly, Morphy’s uncle Ernest served as second to Rousseau in the 1845 match, played at New Orleans’ famed Sazerac Coffee House, and the eight-year-old Paul was said to be inspired by the quality of the play.
Famed grandmasters Efim Geller, Fridrik Olafsson, Robert Huebner Vladimir Kramnik and former women’s world champ Nana Alexander are part of the contingent of 10 stars entering the World Hall of Fame this year.
Joining them is another lesser-known but still remarkable talent: Russian-born Irina Levitina, whose eclectic trophy case includes a Soviet women’s championship in 1971 (one of four) won at the age of 17; a women’s world championship runner-up finish to Georgian great GM Maia Chiburdanidze in 1984; three outright or shared American women’s national titles after emigrating to the U.S. in 1990; and, remarkably, five world championships in women’s bridge — another game in which the 70-year-old St. Petersburg native is a world-class talent.
We have some fine over-the-board work from both Stanley and Levitina to offer today.
Stanley took a big early lead in that 1845 match, with the winner the first to win 15 games, draws not counting. Game 18 was important as it stopped a mid-match rally from Rousseau. This being the pre-Morphy era, one should not judge too harshly the opening play in this Guiuoco Piano (though White’s tension-dissolving 7. dxe5?! is particularly hard to explain), but by 9. Nbd2 h6 10. Bh4 Bg4, the two players have reached a reasonable position with good development and chances for both sides.
Stanley as Black allows his queenside to be wrecked, getting good compensation in his active bishops and control of the board’s only open file. White starts to go wrong on 16. Bh2?! (the beginning of a misbegotten, slow-developing plan to gin up a mating attack on the Black king) f6 17. g4 Bg6 18. Nh4 Bh7 19. Kh1 (Rousseau is nothing if not consistent, but his single-minded focus on the attack leaves him vulnerable in the center) Nc5, when White still has time to pull back the throttle with 20, f3 Qf7 21. Nb3 Ne6, with a playable game.
Instead, Stanley alertly exploits his opponent’s monomania after 20. Rg1? (see diagram) Rxd2! (an impressive idea for the time — the knight on d2 was the only thing holding White’s center together, and this exchange sacrifice allows Black’s other pieces to flood the zone) 21. Qxd2 Nxe4 22. Qe2 Nxf2+ 23. Kg2 Be4+ 24. Kg3, and it’s the white king, not his black counterpart, that is the target of a withering attack.
Black finishes up in style, opening more lines for the attack in classic Morphy-esque fashion: 24…f5! 25. Nxf5 (another road to ruin for White was 25. Nf3 f4+ 26. Kg2 Qh4 27. Kf1 Qxh3+ 28. Ke1 Nd3+ 29. Kd1 Bxf3 and wins) Rxf5! (a second exchange sacrifice in the space of five moves leaves the White king totally exposed) 26. Rgf1 (gxf5 Qg5+ 27. Qg4 Nxg4) Qg5 27. Bg1 Qf4+ 28. Kh4, and one more rook offering provides the satisfying finale on 28…Rh5+! 29. Kxh5 Qg5 mate.
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Levitina had many lively battles with longtime women’s world champion Nona Gaprindashvili, defeating the great Georgian grandmaster in their Candidates’ match in 1983. One of their most stirring battles came in the Soviet women’s national championship four years earlier, an event Levitina went on to win with a 12½-4½ score.
This Sicilian Pelikan is a far more sophisticated handling of the opening than was seen in Rousseau-Stanley, but Gaprindashvili as Black still gets herself into early trouble after 14. 0-0 Nd7 15. Rfe1 Nc5?! (missing a trick; safer was just 15…f4) 16. Nf4!, when lines like 16…exf4? 16. exf5 Qf6 18. fxe6 Nxe6 19. Nxb5! axb5 20. Qxb5+ Kd8 21. Qb6+ Nc7 22. Rad1 give White a ferocious attack.
But Levitina in turn let her opponent off the hook after the game’s 16…Rg8 17. exf5 Bd7 18. f6?! (releasing the tension prematurely; 18. Nd5 keeps White’s strong initiative) Nxd3 (good enough to equalize; the computer says Black can even get away with 18…Qxf6!?, with one wild line being 19. Nd5 Rxg2+!? 20. Kh1 (Kxg2? Bc6!) Rxh2+!? 21. Qxh2 Qf3+ 22. Qxg2 Qxg2+ 23. Kxg2 Bc6, with White perhaps just a tad better) 19. cxd3 Qxf6 20. Nd5 Qg7 (Rxg2+ 21. Kxg2 Bc6 was also worth a look) 21. g3 Be7 22. Qf3 (Nc7+?? Kd8 23. Nxa8 Bg4 traps the White queen), and now it’s White that has to be careful as Black’s major pieces and bishops bear down on her king.
The struggle for the upper hand in a complicated position becomes intense, with Levitina not content with passive defense: 24. Nc7+!? (safer was 24. Qe3 Bc6 26. Nxe7 Kxe7) Kf8 25. Qb7!? (White’s pieces are getting dangerously far from her king) Kg7 26. Qxa6 Bg5 27. Rc2 b4 28. Nab5 Qf3, and White walks a tightrope as Gaprindashvili is just a move away from unstoppable mate threats.
Both sides falter — understandably — in the tense play that follows: 29. Qxd6?? (White eyes an X-ray defense along the long diagonal, but this shouldn’t work; 29. Nxd6! was the right capture, meeting 29…Bh3 with 30. Qc6) Bh3 30. Qc6 Qf5? (Black returns the favor, missing the remarkable 30…e4! 31. Qxe4 Rge8!!, the point being that taking the Black queen leaves White exposed to another mate: 32. Nxe8+ Rxe8 33. Nd4 [Qxf3 Rxe1 mate] Qg2+!! 34. Qxg2 Rxe1+ 35. Qf1 Rxf1 mate) 31. Nd6!, and now the White defense holds — barely.
On 31…Qxd3 32. Nxc8 Rxc8 33. Qc4 Qf3 34. Qe6 e4 35. Qxe5, Black has one less rook to place on e8 and the previous tactic no longer works. The attack is decisively turned back and White emerges from the chaos with a winning game.
The finale: 36. Rxe4 Bf5 37. Re5 (good enough, but even better was 37. Re8!, winning at once) Bxc2 38. Rxg5+ Kf6? (making it easy for White, but Black is still in a lost ending after 38…Kh6 39. Rc5 Bb1 40. a3 bxa3 41. bxa3) 39. Rc5, and Black resigned as her pawn deficit is just too large after 39…Bf5 40. Nd5+ Ke5 41. Rxc8 Bxc8 42. Nxb4.
Not a perfect game, but one that does credit to the fighting spirit of both players.
(Click on the image above for a larger view of the chessboard.)
Rousseau-Stanley, U.S. title match, Game 18, New Orleans, December 1845
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Qe7 5. O-O d6 6. d4 Bb6 7. dxe5 dxe5 8. Bg5 Nf6 9. Nbd2 h6 10. Bh4 Bg4 11. Qc2 Rd8 12. Bb5 O-O 13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. Bg3 Nd7 15. h3 Bh5 16. Bh2 f6 17. g4 Bg6 18. Nh4 Bh7 19. Kh1 Nc5 20. Rg1 Rxd2 21. Qxd2 Nxe4 22. Qe2 Nxf2+ 23. Kg2 Be4+ 24. Kg3 f5 25. Nxf5 Rxf5 26. Rgf1 Qg5 27. Bg1 Qf4+ 28. Kh4 Rh5+ 29. Kxh5 Qg5 mate.
Levitina-Gaprindashvili, USSR Women’s Championship, Tbilisi, Georgia, December 1979
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e6 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Bf4 e5 8. Bg5 a6 9. Na3 b5 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Nd5 f5 12. Bd3 Be6 13. Qh5 Nb8 14. O-O Nd7 15. Rfe1 Nc5 16. Nf4 Rg8 17. exf5 Bd7 18. f6 Nxd3 19. cxd3 Qxf6 20. Nd5 Qg7 21. g3 Be7 22. Qf3 Rc8 23. Rac1 Qg4 24. Nc7+ Kf8 25. Qb7 Kg7 26. Qxa6 Bg5 27. Rc2 b4 28. Nab5 Qf3 29. Qxd6 Bh3 30. Qc6 Qf5 31. Nd6 Qxd3 32. Nxc8 Rxc8 33. Qc4 Qf3 34. Qc6 e4 35. Qxe4 Qxe4 36. Rxe4 Bf5 37. Re5 Bxc2 38. Rxg5+ Kf6 39. Rc5 Black resigns.
• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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