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Carlos Torre-Repetto vs Emanuel Lasker
"Seventh Seal" (game of the day Jul-31-07)
Moscow International Tournament 1925  ·  Torre Attack: Classical Defense (A46)  ·  1-0


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Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 3 OF 3 ·  Later Kibitzing >
Jul-31-07   unixfanatic: This is not the Sicilian Najdorf, however, it is very similar to the Hedgehog system, which is characteristic of those openings.
Jul-31-07   Jim Bartle: A simul, then?

Then again, as realbrob suggests, maybe God's really playing an unending six-billion board simul.

Jul-31-07   backyard pawn: With 24..., Qb5 Lasker hangs his queen. Now after 25 Bf6 he can't both save his queen and defend against the attack on his king. Lasker would have been better off if he had simply "passed" on his 24th move.
Jul-31-07
Premium Chessgames Member
  kevin86: Here is one case where the pun fits the GAME-and not just the name of a player. The windmill on the seventh rank by Torre certainly "tilted" the outcome of this one.

Anytime Lasker lost,it was news-and especially here-in such an artistic game!

Jul-31-07   laskereshevsky: In the Boris Vainstejn's book on the Lasker's life and carrer, he reported this anecdote...:

<The witnesses report that during the game, while Torre reflected on its difficult position, an errand boy posed in front of Lasker a telegram. Frau Marta communicated it that the commedia VOM MENSCEN DIE GESCHICHTE, wrote from he with the brother Berthold, would have been soon put in scene.

Lasker, that it held always a reserved behavior, was not in degree in this occasion, to contain the own joy. This commedia was the fruit of seven years of intense job and expressed its "philosophy of the inequality". It is necessary to add that with the aid of the Berthold's wife, the poetess Else Lasker-Müller, was made it one poetic version.

Those December's day in the Metropol Lasker probably lived the happyest moment in his life. He moved away from the chessboard and with emotioned mood air showed to the friends the event. It was the only circumstance in hes life when he didnt respect the rule not to be distracted from the tournament game and not to never lose the concentration. When they said it that Tower had moved, Lasker made return the chessboard and... it committed three serious consecutive mistakes!

After this game Laker became unrecognizable. Find herself in a no hope's position against Duz-Chotimirskij, also ending in order to win, and little after lost against Levenfish in a finale that could have saved; Subsequently drawed with Tartakower in 17 moves. Towards the end others two draws with outsiders like Sämisch and Gottilf (in 18 moves)... It was clearly that Lasker was victim of some chess extra problems, be placed second in front of Capablanca and to all the pleiade of the best grand masters, it came however considered by all like a great success....>

An interesting anectode, expecial considering that Vainstejn was a living witness of the tournament, thanks to his he partecipation in the tournament bulletin typing...

Jul-31-07
Premium Chessgames Member
  fm avari viraf: At one stage, Lasker must have thought that he almost won White's Bishop on g5 but his joy was ephemeral as Carlos Torre grinded his whole combo into the windmill where Lasker was mere a spectator. A didactic game where one learns the windmill tactics.
Jul-31-07   Rodrigo Gutierrez: This game is often considered "The Mexican Immortal" by the Chess community here in Mexico. It's an honor that it was chosen as a tribute to Bergman's life and career. Human existence is so brief and frail! In the end, Death always wins the game and would even if it played with black...
Jul-31-07   Timothy Glenn Forney: This is Torre's best game IMHO-Carlos Torre vs N Banks, 1924
Jul-31-07
Premium Chessgames Member
  Calli: <laskereshevsky> The exact story is in Hannak's "Life of a Chess Master" which was published 30 years before Vainstein's "Thinker". (I don't know if it is really true.)
Jul-31-07   soberknight: Wow. That was a cool windmill. I could just imagine Torre wearing a T-shirt saying: "I sacrificed my queen, set up a windmill, and all I got was two lousy pawns" - but it was enough to win.
Jul-31-07   syracrophy: Something important to mention about this game, is that Torre said in an interview (with Gabriel Velasco):

<"I really don't consider this game as a good one, since both of us commited a lot of mistakes <On my early analysis it can be explained>...I really appreciate Lasker's attacking spirit and I know that he was not at his best day...">

Oct-13-07
Premium Chessgames Member
  Calli: Four minutes of "The Seventh Seal" is available on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vyqg...
May-14-09
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <After this game Laker became unrecognizable. Find herself in a no hope's position against Duz-Chotimirskij, also ending in order to win, and little after lost against Levenfish in a finale that could have saved; Subsequently drawed with Tartakower in 17 moves. Towards the end others two draws with outsiders like Sämisch and Gottilf (in 18 moves)... >>

This is a rather selective view of the rest of Lasker's tournament. The Torre game was in round 12. In round 13 he got an extremely bad position against Dus Chotmirsky and nevertheless won; but as we read in other books winning from a bad position is the very quintessence of Lasker. In round 14 he beat Marshall in an excellent game. In Round 15 came the missed draw against Levenfish, followed by a short draw against Tartakower; but in the next two rounds he beat Spielmann and Zubarev. He ended the tournament with a quiet draw against Saemisch, a great drawn battle with Bogoljubov, and another short draw against Gotthilf. But it is silly to make much of the last-round Gotthilf game. Lasker would have had to beat Bogoljubov the round before to have a realistic chance of catching him. In the final round, Bogoljubov drew in 20 moves to clinch first place, and Capablanca had a bye. So 1st, 2nd and 3rd places were all determined.

Lasker certainly played worse in the second half of the tournament than in the first, and I would include the Torre game in the substandard play; as I wrote somewhere, given the number of errors by both men, maybe they both were getting handed exciting telegrams at key moments. But it isn't as if Lasker collapsed after Round 12. Maybe he got a little tired.

Jun-05-09   WhiteRook48: I've heard about this game!! But I didn't know who the players were!!
Jun-06-09   epiglottis5: <syracrophy> Is there analysis for 22...f6? It looks like white can escape with a draw. 22...f6 23.Nc4! Red8 24.Ne3 Qg6 (now white's bishop will be trapped after 25.Qxg6 Nxg6) But white has 25.Bxf6! Qxf6 26.Ng4! followed by Nh6+ with a draw by perpetual check.
Sep-18-09   WhiteRook48: 25 Bf6!!
May-12-10   SirChrislov: <syracrophy: Something important to mention about this game, is that Torre said in an interview (with Gabriel Velasco):

"I really don't consider this game as a good one>* <...since both of us commited alot of mistakes.>** <I appreciate Lasker's attacking spirit and I know he was not on his best day.">***

*not a good game?? I find it unbelievable that he would say this, if I were the author of this gem, I would speak highly of it and refer to it as my pride and joy. He must have been a very humble person.

**So what?? The immortal game is a treasure of chess history although it's full of mistakes!. So his play is less than elegant at the beginning, but he works up some fireworks and the combination after 25.Bf6!! has since become a hallmark tactic.

***Again, words of a humble, gentle Grandmaster. Que descanse en paz y siempre viva La Inmortal Mexicana, his birthday gift to posterity.

Jun-23-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  hstevens129: Good stuff about Torre:

http://www.chess.com/article/view/t...

Aug-30-10   sevenseaman: A great game at last. Black is slowly stripped naked. Is there a technical term for the repetitive discovered check? Its a spell of magic!
Aug-30-10   DarthStapler: Windmill
Aug-30-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  TheFocus: Also called a see saw combination, but I also prefer windmill.
Aug-30-10   I play the Fred: I somehow imagine that this is the first windmill game most developing players play over. But what is the earliest known instance of a windmill combination played in a game? Is it this one?
Aug-30-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  TheFocus: From Edward Winter's Chess Notes:

5853. Seesaw

Regarding the seesaw, or windmill, maneuuvre, the earliest instance of the word ‘seesaw’ found so far appeared on page 251 of the American Chess Magazine, September 1897:

‘A pretty so-called seesaw of checks finishes the game ...’

John Simpson (Oxford, England), the Chief Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, notes an earlier, different, use of the term on page 263 of the Chess Player’s Chronicle, 1849:

‘This see-saw is pretty enough. White evidently must not accept the proffered donum.’

The proffered donum was the black rook, the note being appended to Black’s 38th move. The full game, from pages 262-263 of the Chronicle, was: Henry Edward Bird – Elijah Williams
Occasion?
French Defence

1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 exd5 exd5 4 Nf3 Nf6 5 Bd3 Bd6 6 O-O O-O 7 c3 Ne4 8 Nbd2 f5 9 c4 c6 10 cxd5 cxd5 11 Qb3 Kh8 12 Qc2 Nc6 13 a3 h6 14 b4 a6 15 Nb3 Qf6 16 Bb2 g5 17 Nfd2 g4 18 f4 gxf3 19 Rxf3 Qh4 20 Rh3 Qg5 21 Re1 Rg8 22 Nf3 Qg7 23 Ne5 Bxe5 24 dxe5 Be6 25 Bc1 f4 26 Rh4 Raf8 27 Bxf4 Ng5 28 Kh1 Ne7 29 Nd4 Bf7 30 e6 Bg6 31 Bxg6 Qxg6 32 Qxg6 Rxg6 33 Bxg5 Rxg5 34 Rxh6+ Kg7 35 Rh3 Re5 36 Rg3+ Ng6 37 Rc1 Rc8 38 Rf1 Rf8 39 Kg1 Rxf1+ 40 Kxf1 Re4 41 e7 Kf7 42 Nf5 Rf4+ 43 Rf3 b6 44 Kf2 a5 45 bxa5 bxa5 46 Kg3 Rxf3+ 47 Kxf3 Ne5+ 48 Ke3 Nc4+ 49 Kd4 Nxa3 50 Kxd5 Nb5 51 Nd6+ Nxd6 52 Kxd6 Ke8 53 Kc5 and White won.

Other early examples appear in the Feature Article: The Chess Seesaw - Edward Winter.

Aug-30-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  TheFocus: When I posted that, it was in Descriptive Notation, but <CG> converted it into algebraic. Neat trick!
Sep-01-10   DarthStapler: I don't see a windmill in that game
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