Claim: Garry Kasparov is a former champion of a competition.

Garry Kimovich Kasparov -LRB- Га́рри Ки́мович Каспа́ров , -LSB- ˈɡarʲɪ ˈkʲiməvʲɪtɕ kɐˈsparəf -RSB- ; born Garik Kimovich Weinstein , 13 April 1963 -RRB- is a Russian chess grandmaster , former World Chess Champion , writer , and political activist , whom many consider to be the greatest chess player of all time . From 1986 until his retirement in 2005 , Kasparov was ranked world No. 1 for 225 out of 228 months . His peak rating of 2851 , achieved in 1999 , was the highest recorded until being surpassed by Magnus Carlsen in 2013 . Kasparov also holds records for consecutive professional tournament victories -LRB- 15 -RRB- and Chess Oscars -LRB- 11 -RRB- .   Kasparov became the youngest ever undisputed World Chess Champion in 1985 at age 22 by defeating then-champion Anatoly Karpov . He held the official FIDE world title until 1993 , when a dispute with FIDE led him to set up a rival organization , the Professional Chess Association . In 1997 he became the first world champion to lose a match to a computer under standard time controls , when he lost to the IBM supercomputer Deep Blue in a highly publicized match . He continued to hold the `` Classical '' World Chess Championship until his defeat by Vladimir Kramnik in 2000 . In spite of losing the world championship , he continued winning tournaments and maintained a number-one world ranking until his retirement from professional chess .   Kasparov announced his retirement from professional chess on 10 March 2005 , after which he devoted his time to politics and writing . He formed the United Civil Front movement , and joined as a member of The Other Russia , a coalition opposing the administration and policies of Vladimir Putin . In 2008 , he announced an intention to run as a candidate in that year 's Russian presidential race , but failure to find a sufficiently large rental space to assemble the number of supporters that is legally required to endorse such a candidacy led him to withdraw . Kasparov blamed `` official obstruction '' for the lack of available space . Although he is widely regarded in the West as a symbol of opposition to Putin , he was barred from the presidential ballot , as the political climate in Russia makes it difficult for opposition candidates to organize .   He is currently chairman for the Human Rights Foundation and chairs its International Council . Kasparov is a frequent critic of American professor emeritus of Russian studies Stephen F. Cohen , whom he describes as a Soviet and Russian apologist . Kasparov and Cohen participated in a Munk Debate in 2015 over the issue of reengaging or isolating Russia , with 58 % of the audience siding with Kasparov 's argument of isolating Russia , compared to 48 % before the debate . In 2014 , he obtained Croatian citizenship . He lives in New York City and travels often .