Boris Spassky's Chess Legacy is Greater Than Just Being Bobby Fischer's Most Famous Opponent

Boris Spassky, who reigned as World Chess Champion from 1969-72, passed away today at the age of 88. He is perhaps best known for losing the 1972 World Chess Championship match to Bobby Fischer, but his chess legacy is much greater than being Fischer's most famous opponent. Spassky won the Soviet Championship--one of the strongest tournaments in the world--twice (1961, 1973), and he twice tied for first only to lose in the playoffs (1956, 1963). He played in three World Chess Championship matches, losing to Tigran Petrosian in 1966, dethroning Petrosian in 1969, and then losing to Fischer in 1972. Spassky was an elite level player for the better part of 30 years, participating in the Candidates round of the World Chess Championship cycle in 1956, 1965, 1968, 1974, 1977, 1980, and 1985. He won the Candidates cycle in 1965 and 1968--earning the right to play Petrosian on both occasions--and he lost to Viktor Korchnoi in the 1977 Candidates Finals. Spassky represented the Soviet Union seven times in Chess Olympiads from 1962-78, scoring 45 wins, 48 draws, and just one loss while winning a total of 13 medals (individual and team combined).

Spassky was a prodigy by the standards of his time; in the modern era, it is common for the best players to earn the Grandmaster title before the age of 20, but when Spassky became a Grandmaster at age 18 he was the youngest Grandmaster ever, a mark he held for just three years before Fischer became a Grandmaster at age 15.

Spassky won the 1955 World Junior Chess Championship, the event's third edition. He was the first World Junior Chess Champion who became the World Chess Champion, a feat later matched by Anatoly Karpov (1969 World Junior Chess Champion, 1975 World Chess Champion), Garry Kasparov (1980 World Junior Chess Champion, 1985 World Chess Champion), and Viswanathan Anand (1987 World Junior Chess  Champion, 2000 FIDE World Chess Champion/2007 World Chess Champion).

Spassky is deservedly praised for his universal playing style, but it should be remembered that he was a brilliant and ferocious attacker, particularly in his early years. Here is an example of the young Spassky's swashbuckling style, as he used a devastating sacrifice on move 16 to dismantle Grandmaster David Bronstein, who battled World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik to a 12-12 tie in the 1951 World Chess Championship match (by rule, Botvinnik retained the title). Spassky was White versus Bronstein in this game from the 1960 Soviet Championship:

1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 d5 4. exd5 Bd6 5. Nc3 Ne7 6. d4 O-O 7. Bd3 Nd7 8. O-O h6 9. Ne4 Nxd5 10. c4 Ne3 11. Bxe3 fxe3 12. c5 Be7 13. Bc2 Re8 14. Qd3 e2 15. Nd6 Grandmaster Andy Soltis called this move "One of the deepest sacrifices this side of The Evergreen Game." Nf8 16. Nxf7 exf1=Q+ 17. Rxf1 Bf5 18. Qxf5 Qd7 19. Qf4 Bf6 20. N3e5 Qe7 21. Bb3 Bxe5 22. Nxe5+ Kh7 23. Qe4+ 1-0. A position based on this game was featured in the 1963 James Bond movie "From Russia With Love."

In the 1970 Soviet Union versus the Rest of the World match, Spassky won a scintillating miniature versus Grandmaster Bent Larsen, defeating Larsen on the Black side of Larsen's Opening (1. b3):

1. b3 e5 2. Bb2 Nc6 3. c4 Nf6 4. Nf3 e4 5. Nd4 Bc5 6. Nxc6 dxc6 7. e3 Bf5 8. Qc2 Qe7 9. Be2 O-O-O 10. f4 Ng4 11. g3 h5 12. h3 h4 13. hxg4 hxg3 14. Rg1 Rh1 15. Rxh1 g2 16. Rf1 Qh4+ 17. Kd1 gxf1=Q+ 0-1.

Despite Spassky's long, impressive career, he is best known--particularly to the general public--as Fischer's most famous opponent. Spassky scored three wins and two draws versus Fischer prior to facing him in the 1972 World Chess Championship, but Fischer won the 1972 match 12.5-8.5 despite spotting Spassky a 2-0 lead by blundering in a drawn position in game one and forfeiting game two while protesting the playing conditions. In 1992, Fischer beat Spassky in a non-title match (even though Fischer insisted that this was a World Chess Championship rematch) 10-5 with 15 draws (draws did not count in the score, per Fischer's rules). Spassky was on good personal terms with most of his opponents, including Fischer. Spassky said, "I prefer to have good relations with my opponent. My chess suffers if I have to play a man I consider unfriendly." Spassky was not only friendly with Fischer, but he shared some of Fischer's antisemitic view. Fischer's antisemitism is well-documented, but Spassky's feelings about Jews are not discussed as often; however, in 2005, Spassky signed a Russian petition seeking to ban Jewish organizations in Russia. Spassky later distanced himself from that petition but did not deny that he signed it. Evgeny Gik, a chess master who knew Spassky well, recalled that several Grandmasters reacted with disgust in the 1990s when Spassky--the guest of honor at a dinner party--made antisemitic remarks. Although Spassky did not speak publicly about Jews as often as Fischer did, Spassky's general attitude toward Jews is not a secret, and is a regrettable blot on his name.

After losing the match to Fischer in 1992, Spassky played occasionally in the 1990s, including a 5.5-4.5 match loss to 16 year old prodigy Judit Polgar in 1993. Spassky suffered a minor stroke in 2006, followed by a more serious stroke in 2010 that paralyzed the left side of his body. He spent the last stage of his life outside of the public eye, but Spassky's chess legacy is that he was a great champion, not just Fischer's foil.