Ulf Andersson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ulf Andersson |
|
|---|---|
Andersson in 2008
|
|
| Country | Sweden |
| Born | 27 June 1951 Västerås, Sweden |
| Title |
|
| FIDE rating | 2516 (June 2025) |
| Peak rating | 2655 (January 1997) |
| Peak ranking | No. 4 (January 1983) |
Ulf Andersson (born 27 June 1951) is a top Swedish chess player. He became an International Master in 1970 and a Grandmaster in 1972. These are very high titles in the world of chess.
Contents
Ulf Andersson's Chess Career
At his best, Ulf Andersson was ranked number four in the world by FIDE, the international chess organization. He won or shared first place in many important tournaments. Some of these include the Swedish Chess Championship in 1969, Dortmund in 1973, and Wijk aan Zee in 1983.
Playing Against World Champions
In 1983, Andersson played a six-game match against Mikhail Tal, a former world champion, and the match ended in a draw. He also played on the top board for the "Rest of the World" team in a big match against the Soviet Union in 1984.
Leading the Swedish Team
Andersson was the leader of the Swedish team at the Chess Olympiads throughout the 1970s and 1980s. His best result at an Olympiad was in Buenos Aires in 1978. He finished third on the first board, which is a great achievement. Even now, in his seventies, Andersson still plays in chess tournaments sometimes.
Ulf Andersson's Playing Style
Andersson is known as a very strong positional player. This means he focuses on placing his pieces in good spots and building a strong position, rather than looking for quick attacks. He often plays very carefully and tries to avoid risks.
Master of Endgames
He is especially famous for his skill in endgames, which are the final parts of a chess game when there are only a few pieces left. He is known for winning games that seem impossible to win, especially in rook endgames. These games can often be very long!
Thinking Ahead in Chess
Chess expert Jacob Aagaard said that Andersson is a "prophylactic player." This means he is very good at seeing what his opponent might do in the future and stopping their plans before they even start. He avoids traps with great skill. Another chess writer, Dennis Monokroussos, noted that for most players, trading many pieces often leads to a quick draw. But for Andersson, it was often a sign that his opponent was about to face a tough challenge.
Ulf Andersson's Correspondence Chess
In 1995, Andersson started playing correspondence chess. This is chess played by mail or email, where players have a lot of time to think about each move. He became a correspondence chess grandmaster in the same year. It's rare for a player to be so successful in both regular (over-the-board) chess and correspondence chess.
Why Correspondence Chess Suited Him
Ulf found correspondence chess helpful because he had more time to think. In regular chess, he sometimes felt nervous. With more time, he could carefully consider every small detail of each move. His correspondence games were often very tactical, which was different from his careful style in over-the-board games.
Highest Rating in Correspondence Chess
While playing in a special tournament, he reached the highest provisional rating ever in the ICCF, with a score of 2821 in 1998. He later reached the top of the official rating list in 2002.
Ending His Correspondence Career
In the early 2000s, many correspondence players started using computers to help them. Ulf was one of the few who still played without computer help. As games became faster (email instead of postal mail), he felt he had to send moves before he was fully ready. He decided to stop playing correspondence chess in 2003, finding it too demanding. Even so, he lost only one official game in his entire correspondence career. As of 2024, he is still the highest-rated inactive player on the ICCF rating list.
Notable Chess Games
| This section uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves. |
Ulf Andersson is famous for helping to create a chess setup called the "Hedgehog" formation. In the game below, using this setup, he defeated Anatoly Karpov. This was Karpov's first loss as world champion!
| h | g | f | e | d | c | b | a | ||
| 1 |
            |
1 | |||||||
| 2 | 2 | ||||||||
| 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| 4 | 4 | ||||||||
| 5 | 5 | ||||||||
| 6 | 6 | ||||||||
| 7 | 7 | ||||||||
| 8 | 8 | ||||||||
| h | g | f | e | d | c | b | a | ||
Images for kids
-
Ulf Andersson in 2008
See also
In Spanish: Ulf Andersson para niños
