Levente Lengyel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Levente Lengyel |
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Lengyel (Hoogovens 1964)
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| Full name | Levente Lengyel |
| Country | Hungary |
| Born | 13 June 1933 Debrecen, Hungary |
| Died | 18 August 2014 (aged 81) Budapest, Hungary |
| Title | Grandmaster |
| Peak rating | 2485 (January 1971) |
| This article uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves. |
Levente Lengyel (born June 13, 1933 – died August 18, 2014) was a talented Hungarian chess player. He earned the highest title in chess, Grandmaster, in 1964.
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Becoming a Chess Grandmaster
Levente Lengyel became an International Master in 1962. Just two years later, in 1964, he achieved the prestigious Grandmaster title. At his best, he was considered a very strong player. He proudly represented Hungary in many top chess events. He also won several medals for his country. Lengyel passed away in Budapest in 2014.
Playing for His Country
Lengyel played for Hungary in six Chess Olympiads between 1960 and 1970. The Olympiads are big team competitions for chess players from different countries.
His best results at the Olympiads include:
- In 1962, at the 15th Chess Olympiad in Varna, he won an individual bronze medal. His team, Hungary, finished 5th out of 37 teams.
- In 1966, at the 17th Chess Olympiad in Havana, Hungary won team bronze medals.
- In 1970, at the 19th Chess Olympiad in Siegen, Hungary won team silver medals.
Lengyel also played in the European Team Chess Championship three times. This is another important team competition for European countries.
His results there were:
- In 1961, at the 2nd European Team Championship, Hungary won team bronze medals.
- In 1965, at the 3rd European Team Championship, Lengyel won an individual bronze medal. Hungary also won team bronze.
- In 1970, at the 4th European Team Championship, Hungary won team silver medals.
Top Individual Achievements
Levente Lengyel also had many great results in individual tournaments:
- In 1962, he tied for first place in the Hungarian Championship.
- In 1963, he tied for second place in the Enschede Zonal tournament. This was a step towards the World Chess Championship.
- In 1964, he tied for third place in the Hungarian Championship.
- In 1968, he won the tournament in Solingen, Germany. He finished ahead of several other strong players.
- He won tournaments in Bari (1972), Reggio Emilia (1972-73), Budapest (1977), Virovitica (1977), Gausdal (1977-78), and Val Thorens (1980 and 1982).
In 1964, Lengyel played in the Amsterdam Interzonal tournament. This was a big competition to decide who would challenge for the World Chess Championship. He finished 12th in this tough event.
Memorable Chess Games
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Portisch - Lengyel,
Málaga 1964
after 52. f4
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Darga - Lengyel,
Amsterdam 1964
after 41... R6xe2+
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Lengyel had wins against famous players, including former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik. Two of his games are especially remembered for their unusual endings.
The Málaga Stalemate
In a game against Lajos Portisch in Málaga in 1964, Lengyel managed to get a stalemate draw. A stalemate happens when a player has no legal moves, but their king is not in check. This means the game is a draw.
In this game, Lengyel made a spectacular queen sacrifice. He offered his queen in a way that if his opponent took it, the game would immediately become a stalemate. This was a very clever way to save the game!
The Amsterdam Resignation
In another game against Klaus Darga in Amsterdam in 1964, Darga surprisingly resigned (gave up) even though he was in a winning position.
It seems both players missed a key move that Darga could have made. If Darga had played correctly, he would have won the game. But because he didn't see it, he resigned, and Lengyel won! This shows that even top players can sometimes miss things in a game.
See also
In Spanish: Levente Lengyel para niños
