GM Anatoly Ufimtsev ( 1914 - 2000 ) ------------------------------------- Anatoly Ufimtsev has passed away. It happened on July 2 2000 in the town of Kustanai, where he has lived for many years. Ufimtsev was born on May, 11 1914 in Omsk, but he spent most of his life in Kazakhstan. He was an economist by profession and held several high public posts but, at the same time, chess was his second ego. After Anatoly Gavrilovich became a master in 1946, he successfully took part in all-Union chess competitions, though he managed to pass to the final of the XV Championship of the USSR only once. It was in 1947, and I would like to note that he gained a number of brilliant victories that time, among them were victories over S. Flohr and V.Smyslov. Ufimtsev was the ten-time Champion of Kazakhstan. At the same time, he is world famed for his popular opening system, known as the Pirc-Ufimtsev Defense. V.Pirc, the Slovenian grandmaster, was really the first to start researching this system, but original and fundamental ideas of it undoubtedly belong to Anatoly Gavrilovich. Over 40 years ago he remarked on this subject that his opening was similar to Pirc's system only in the exterior configuration of the pawns. This opening was widely used by such chess grandees as M. Botvinnink, I. Boleslavsky, and T. Petrosian, and Grandmasters of the next generation, such as J. Nunn, J. Timman, J. Seiravan, and Z. Azmaiparashvili successfully used it in their games. These outstanding chess players enriched the heritage of maestro Ufimtsev. Now, R. Ponomariov, one of the youngest Grandmasters in the world, has added this defense to his armory. In my opinion Ufimtsev's theoretical brainchild will play a significant role in the world of chess for a long time. We have to say goodbye to its author, a man of a great culture and talent. But we'll revere & keep his memory alive. The moves by Lupco: 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. f4 Bg7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. e5 Nfd7 7. h4 ( I played e6 a few times) c5 8. h5 cxd4 9. hxg6 dxc3 10. gxf7+ Rxf7 11. Ng5 11.Bc4 or 11.e6 all unclear, etc...