The 8th Torneo Internacional de Ajedrez "Ciudad de Linares" was organized under the direction of Luis Rentero Suarez. The players were World Champion Garry Kasparov (Elo rated #1 in the world), Vassily Ivanchuk (#4) (who won the event in 1989), Valery Salov (#6), Alexander Beliavsky (#7), Nigel Short (#8), Ljubomir Ljubojevic (#11), Artur Yusupov (#14), Boris Gelfand (#15), Boris Gulko (#18), Lajos Portisch (#24), Boris Spassky (#61), and Miguel Illescas (#112). Gelfand, the new star of world chess after his victory in GMA Baleares Open (1989), replaced Manuel Rivas Pastor (#178), and Gulko replaced Robert Huebner (#33), both of whom withdrew due to health reasons. Illescas, who was controversially squeezed out in 1989, was back again. Kasparov had dramatically fled from Baku (Azerbaijan) with his relatives only a month before the tournament started. Spassky was hired by Rentero under a clause that forced him to make at least 40 moves in each game. Gelfand was totally focused on his first game against Kasparov and did not want to talk with anyone. There were no electronic boards, "like in a luxury hotel with no TV in the rooms" (Leontxo García). The daily bulletin was made by Paco Albalate and Javier Ochoa. According to Joan Segura, playing time was 3-9 pm.

Kasparov won his first of eight Linares titles with 8/11. He started with 6/7 but lost to Gulko in Round 8. It was the third time he lost to Gulko, who could boast of a plus score against the champion. Three young Soviet players followed closely behind, and the win was secured only in the last round when he beat Illescas. The Soviets took the first four places, and Short took 5th. Gelfand vs Kasparov, 1990 was voted the best game.

Hotel Anibal, Linares, Spain, 18 February - 3 March 1990

              Age Elo   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2
 1 Kasparov    26 2800  * ½ ½ 1 1 0 1 ½ 1 1 1 ½  8
 2 Gelfand     21 2615  ½ * 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 1 1 ½ 1  7½
 3 Salov       25 2645  ½ 0 * ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 ½  7
 4 Ivanchuk    20 2665  0 ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1  6½
 5 Short       24 2635  0 1 0 ½ * 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 0 ½  6
 6 Gulko       43 2610  1 0 ½ ½ 0 * ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 1  5½
 7 Yusupov     30 2615  0 1 0 ½ ½ ½ * ½ 1 0 ½ 1  5½
 8 Beliavsky   36 2640  ½ 0 ½ 0 0 1 ½ * 1 0 1 ½  5
 9 Spassky     53 2560  0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 * 1 ½ ½  4
10 Illescas    24 2530  0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 1 0 * ½ ½  4
11 Portisch    52 2605  0 ½ 0 0 1 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ * 1  4
12 Ljubojevic  49 2625  ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 *  3

At the post-tournament press conference, Kasparov said that in the last two months he had no time to prepare for the event as the situation in his country had prevented him. He also revealed that the Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1990) would be held in New York the first 12 games, and Lyon (France) the remaining games. The organizers, FIDE, and Grandmasters Association had reached the agreement on Saturday (March 3rd). On March 5th, Kasparov held a 'simul' at the Casino de Madrid. Among the players were former Atlético de Madrid president Alfonso Cabeza, the president of the Spanish Billiards Federation and the comedian José Luis Coll. Kasparov won all 32 games.

Bjarke Barth Sahl noted in CHESS that Rentero was nicknamed 'The steam roller' by his fellow citizens due to his successful business methods. Kasparov's opponents were rewarded for winning or even for not agreeing to a draw before move 40. Such extra prizes ranged from £1000-2000. The 21 year old Gelfand trailed the World Champion closely until Kasparov's win in the last round, with Salov, Ivanchuk and Short at times quite close too. All in different styles though; Salov by working immensely hard (his win against Short lasted for a full 162 moves!), Ivanchuk being hard to beat, while Short was more inconsistent with a lot of decisive games. But of the whole lot, rising star Gelfand was the most impressive. He looked casual at the board, played with ease, preserved his energy cleverly and won game after game at the beginning. Only in his game with Short did things go very wrong. Kasparov did as he was expected to, but not as impressively as in Tilburg and Belgrade last year. Kasparov said at the final press conference that "life as a chessplayer is getting tougher".

Sources

FIDE rating list January 1990 (http://www.olimpbase.org/Elo/Elo199...)
Bjarke Kristensen (= Bjarke Barth Sahl) in CHESS Magazine, May 1990, p. 22
Jaque 279 (1 March 1990), pp. 148-149 (http://www.bartelski.pl/olimpbase/l...)
Leontxo García in El País, 6 March 1990 (https://elpais.com/diario/1990/03/0...)
Leontxo García in El País, 18 February 1990 (https://elpais.com/diario/1990/02/1...)
Leontxo García et al. in Jaque 280, pp. 162-179 (http://www.bartelski.pl/olimpbase/l...)
Joan Segura in El Mundo Deportivo, 18 Feb 1990, p. 64 (http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.co...)
Joan Segura in El Mundo Deportivo, 19 Feb 1990, p. 77 (http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.co...)
Joan Segura in El Mundo Deportivo, 3 March 1990, p. 50 (http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.co...)
Joan Segura in El Mundo Deportivo, 4 March 1990, p. 65 (http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.co...)
Joan Segura in El Mundo Deportivo, 5 March 1990, p. 73 (http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.co...)
Kjell Krantz in Tidskrift för Schack, April 1990, pp. 153-155 (http://www.schack.se/tfsarkiv/histo...)
Jesus Maria de la Villa Garcia in Jaque 281, pp. 223-225, 235 (http://www.bartelski.pl/olimpbase/l...)

Previous edition: Linares (1989). Next: Linares (1991)

Original collections: Game Collection: Linares 1990 by User: suenteus po 147 and Game Collection: Linares 1990 by User: Tabanus. Round dates (from El Mundo Deportivo): February 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, March 1, 3. Thanks to User: Paint My Dragon for information fom CHESS Magazine, and thanks to User: Retireborn, User: OhioChessFan and User: Annie K. for suggestions and improving the English.