num_pages: 256
description: Initially things looked gloomy for Bobby Fischer. Because he had refused to participate in the 1969 US Championship he had missed his chance to qualify for the 1970 Interzonal Tournament in Palma de Mallorca. Only when another American Pal Benko withdrew in his favour and after the officials were willing to bend the rules could Bobby enter the contest. And begin his phenomenal run that would end with the Match of the Century in Reykjavik against World Champion Boris Spassky.Fischer started out by sweeping the field at the 23-round Palma Interzonal to qualify for the next stage of the cycle. In the Candidates Matches he first faced Mark Taimanov in Vancouver. Fischer trounced the Soviet ace effectively ending Taimanovs career. Then a few months later in Denver he was up against Bent Larsen the Great Dane. Fischer annihilated him too. The surreal score in those two matches twice 6-0 flabbergasted chess fans all over the world.In the ensuing Candidates Final in Buenos Aires Fischer also made short shrift of former World Champion Tigran Petrosian beating the hyper-solid Armenian Tiger 6-2. Altogether Fischer had scored an incredible 36 points from 43 games against many of the worlds best players including a streak of 19 consecutive wins. Bobby Fischer had become not just a national hero in the US but a household name with pop-star status all over the world.Jan Timman chronicles the full story of Fischers sensational run and takes a fresh look at the games. The annotations are in the authors trademark lucid style that happy mix of colourful background information and sharp crystal-clear explanations.
language: English
title: The unstoppable American - Bobby Fischer's road to Reykjavik
publisher: New in Chess