Lajos Portisch facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lajos Portisch |
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Lajos Portisch in 1968
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| Country | Hungary |
| Born | 4 April 1937 Zalaegerszeg, Kingdom of Hungary |
| Title | Grandmaster (1961) |
| FIDE rating | 2467 (August 2025) |
| Peak rating | 2655 (January 1980) |
| Peak ranking | No. 2 (January 1981) |
Lajos Portisch (born 4 April 1937) is a famous Hungarian chess Grandmaster. He was known for his strong and careful playing style. Because of this, people called him the "Hungarian Botvinnik".
Lajos Portisch was one of the best chess players from the early 1960s to the late 1980s. He took part in twelve Interzonal tournaments in a row, from 1962 to 1993. These tournaments are steps to qualify for the World Chess Championship. He made it to the final stage, called the Candidates Tournament, eight times.
Portisch also set many records at the Chess Olympiads. These are big team chess competitions for different countries. He won or shared the title at the Hungarian Chess Championship eight times. Throughout his career, he won many important international tournaments. In 2004, Hungary gave him its highest national sports award, called 'Nemzet Sportolója' (Sportsman of the Nation).
His favorite hobby is singing opera songs. He has a great baritone voice. His younger brother, Ferenc (born 1939), is also a chess player with the title of International Master.
Contents
Early Chess Adventures
Lajos Portisch started playing chess at a young age. He represented Hungary at the World Junior Chess Championship in 1955. He finished fourth in this important event for young players.
In 1956, he tied for first place in a master event in Budapest. He also played for Hungary in team matches against other countries. He made his first appearance at the Chess Olympiad for Hungary in 1956. He would go on to play in a record twenty Olympiads!
In 1958, he won his first individual international tournament in Balatonfüred. This win helped him earn the International Master title. He then finished second at the Hastings tournament in 1958–59.
Hungarian Chess Champion
Portisch first played in the Hungarian Chess Championship when he was 18 years old in 1955. He became the national champion or shared the title nine times. This shows how strong he was in his home country.
Here are his results in the Hungarian Championship:
- 1955: Shared tenth/eleventh places
- 1957: Shared fifth/sixth places
- 1958: Shared first/third places, won playoff
- 1959: Shared first/third places, third after playoff
- 1961: Shared first/second places, won playoff
- 1962: Champion
- 1963: Fourth place
- 1964: Champion
- 1965: Champion
- 1968: Second place
- 1971: Champion
- 1975: Champion
- 1981: Champion, shared first/second places
- 1984: Shared second/fourth places
- 1991: Sixth place
- 2003: Shared second/third places
Aiming for the World Title
Lajos Portisch was a strong contender for the World Chess Championship. He played in every Interzonal tournament from 1962 to 1993. These tournaments are where players try to qualify for the next stage, the Candidates Tournament. He qualified for the Candidates Tournament eight times. His best results were reaching the semi-finals in 1977 and 1980.
In 1961, the international chess organization FIDE gave him the Grandmaster title. This is the highest title a chess player can achieve.
Portisch played his first Candidates match in 1965 but lost to Mikhail Tal. He qualified again in 1967 but lost to Bent Larsen in 1968. He kept trying and qualified many more times. In 1977, he reached the semi-finals of the Candidates matches after beating Bent Larsen. However, he then lost to Boris Spassky.
In 1980, Portisch got his revenge against Spassky. They tied their match, but Portisch moved on because he had more wins with the Black pieces. He then lost in the semi-finals. He continued to play in the World Championship cycle for many years, showing his dedication to chess.
Winning Many Tournaments
Lajos Portisch was very active in international chess tournaments for over 30 years. He often won or placed very high in these events, even against the best players from around the world. He was known for his consistent performance.
He won at least one major international tournament almost every year for nearly two decades. Some of his notable wins include:
- Sarajevo in 1962 and 1963
- Amsterdam IBM in 1963, 1967, and 1969
- Beverwijk in 1965 (shared title)
- Skopje/Ohrid in 1968
- Monte Carlo in 1969 (shared title)
- Hastings in 1969–70 and 1970–71
- Wijk aan Zee in 1972 and 1975
- Las Palmas in 1972
- San Antonio in 1972 (shared title)
- Ljubljana/Portorož in 1973
- Interpolis Tournament in 1978
He also played a famous match in 1970 called the USSR vs Rest of the World. He played on board three and defeated Viktor Korchnoi.
Team Chess Achievements
Lajos Portisch was a key player for the Hungarian national chess team. He played in four Student Olympiads, winning three medals for his team.
He led the Hungarian team to a gold medal at the 23rd Chess Olympiad in Buenos Aires in 1978. This was a very special win because it was the only Olympiad between 1952 and 1990 that the Soviet Union did not win (except for 1976 when they boycotted).
Portisch holds a record for participating in 20 Olympiads from 1956 to 2000. He played a record 260 games over six decades and won 11 medals. His total score in Olympiads was 121 wins, 26 losses, and 113 draws.
He also represented Hungary in eight European Team Championships. He won nine medals in these events, including two individual gold medals. In 1985, he played board one for Hungary at the first World Team Chess Championship, where Hungary won silver medals.
Personal Life
Lajos Portisch is a dedicated Catholic.
Famous Chess Games
Here are some of Lajos Portisch's most interesting games:
- Portisch vs. László Szabó, Budapest 1958: Portisch, a young player, beat the experienced Szabó.
- Portisch vs. Svetozar Gligorić, Madrid Zonal 1960: Portisch showed his deep knowledge of chess openings.
- Portisch vs. Leonid Stein, Amsterdam Interzonal 1964: A crucial win for Portisch against a Soviet champion.
- Portisch vs. Tigran Petrosian, Moscow 1967: Portisch, known for his positional play, showed his attacking skills against the World Champion.
- Bent Larsen vs. Portisch, Porec Candidates' match 1968, game 4: Portisch played a strong defensive game to win.
- Portisch vs. David Bronstein, Monte Carlo 1969: Portisch won against the creative Bronstein.
- Vasily Smyslov vs. Portisch, Portorož Candidates' Reserve match 1971, game 4: Portisch defeated a former world champion with the Black pieces.
- Portisch vs. Anatoly Karpov, San Antonio 1972: Portisch won against Karpov, who would become World Champion soon after.
- Mikhail Tal vs. Portisch, Varese Candidates' Playoff 1976: Portisch got his revenge against Tal, who had beaten him years earlier.
- Boris Spassky vs. Portisch, Mexico Candidates' match 1980, game 1: Portisch started his revenge match against Spassky with a win.
- Anthony Miles vs. Portisch, Lucerne Olympiad 1982: Portisch showed his strength against a younger player.
- Nigel Short vs. Portisch, Linares 1990: Portisch, at an older age, won a clever game against the rising star Short.
Images for kids
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Lajos Portisch in 1968
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Portisch in 2005
External Links
- Lajos Portisch player profile and games at Chessgames.com
- Lajos Portisch download 1984 of his games in pgn format.
- Lajos Portisch Chess Olympiad record at OlimpBase.org
See also
In Spanish: Lajos Portisch para niños
