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Euwe 
 
Max Euwe
Number of games in database: 1,391
Years covered: 1919 to 1980
Overall record: +693 -228 =468 (66.7%)*
   * Overall winning percentage = (wins+draws/2) / total games
      Based on games in the database; may be incomplete.
      2 exhibition games, odds games, etc. are excluded from this statistic.

MOST PLAYED OPENINGS
With the White pieces:
 Orthodox Defense (93) 
    D63 D52 D50 D66 D67
 Nimzo Indian (74) 
    E38 E33 E32 E22 E23
 French Defense (50) 
    C13 C12 C11 C07 C02
 Ruy Lopez (43) 
    C83 C85 C86 C91 C62
 Grunfeld (32) 
    D72 D70 D71 D96 D99
 King's Indian (32) 
    E60 E67 E62 E68 E69
With the Black pieces:
 Ruy Lopez (108) 
    C83 C77 C68 C80 C82
 Slav (70) 
    D12 D15 D19 D17 D10
 Sicilian (59) 
    B83 B88 B56 B57 B24
 Ruy Lopez, Open (56) 
    C83 C80 C82 C81
 King's Indian (47) 
    E60 E61 E91 E67 E92
 Queen's Pawn Game (44) 
    D02 A46 D04 D00 A45
Repertoire Explorer

NOTABLE GAMES: [what is this?]
   Tartakower vs Euwe, 1948 0-1
   Euwe vs Alekhine, 1935 1-0
   Geller vs Euwe, 1953 0-1
   Euwe vs Najdorf, 1953 1-0
   Euwe vs Loman, 1923 1-0
   Euwe vs Van Mindeno, 1927 1-0
   Szabo vs Euwe, 1946 0-1
   Euwe vs G A Thomas, 1934 1-0
   L Stumpers vs Euwe, 1946 0-1
   Euwe vs Reti, 1920 1-0

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: [what is this?]
   Alekhine-Euwe World Championship Match (1935)
   Euwe-Alekhine World Championship Rematch (1937)
   FIDE World Championship Tournament (1948)

GAME COLLECTIONS: [what is this?]
   Garry Kasparov's On My Great Predecessors (2) by AdrianP
   WCC Index [Euwe-Alekhine 1935] by suenteus po 147
   Endgames World champions - part one by Alenrama
   FGetulio's How World Champions Win II by fgetulio
   1932 match:Euwe-Flohr by capybara
   Zurich 1934 by suenteus po 147

Search Sacrifice Explorer for Max Euwe
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MAX EUWE
(born May-20-1901, died Nov-26-1981) Netherlands

[what is this?]
Machgielis (Max) Euwe (UHR-vuh) was born on the 20th of May 1901 in the town of Watergraafsmeer near Amsterdam. He was taught the game by his mother when he was four but as a child never completely devoted himself to it, and remained an amateur for many years. In 1921 he won the Dutch National Championship for the first of many times (he won it a record 12 times from 1921 to 1955).

A student of mathematics at Amsterdam university he graduated with honours in 1923 and gained his doctorate in 1926. His main profession was teaching and as a result he could only find time to play in small tournaments usually during school vacations. In 1928 he won the Second and last World Amateur Championship played in The Hague and had several good tournament results in the 1930's. He was first at Hastings 1930-31, second at Berne 1932 and second at Zurich 1934 and in this period played matches with Jose Raul Capablanca, Salomon Flohr and Rudolf Spielmann.

In 1935 Alexander Alekhine selected him as his opponent for the World title. Euwe won the match (+9 =13 -8) to become the 5th World Champion. In 1937 he lost the rematch (+4 =11 -10). After the Second World War he had his best tournament result, second at Groningen in 1946. He fared badly in the 1948 World Championship Match Tournament and still continued to play in events but wasn't able to equal his earlier successes.

From 1970-1978 he was President of FIDE (the World Chess Federation) and on it's behalf at his own expense he visited more than 100 countries, and was largely responsible for the affiliation of more than 30 new member countries to the organization. This period also included the contentious World Championship Matches of 1972 and 1978.

He was also a prolific author and many of his works are still in print.


 page 1 of 56; games 1-25 of 1,391  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves Year Event/LocaleOpening
1. Euwe vs G Kroone  1-054 1919 Amsterdam m1C53 Giuoco Piano
2. Euwe vs W Schelfhout  ½-½56 1919 NED-ch03C12 French, McCutcheon
3. G Oskam vs Euwe 1-012 1919 NED-ch03D00 Queen's Pawn Game
4. Euwe vs G Kroone  0-128 1919 Amsterdam m2D34 Queen's Gambit Declined, Tarrasch
5. G Kroone vs Euwe  ½-½38 1919 Amsterdam m1C83 Ruy Lopez, Open
6. Euwe vs E Palmer  1-026 1919 Hastings-CC55 Two Knights Defense
7. G Kroone vs Euwe  ½-½37 1919 Amsterdam m2A84 Dutch
8. Euwe vs G Kroone  ½-½26 1919 Amsterdam m1D32 Queen's Gambit Declined, Tarrasch
9. G Kroone vs Euwe  1-016 1919 Amsterdam m1C83 Ruy Lopez, Open
10. Euwe vs J O'Hanlon 1-029 1919 HastingsC54 Giuoco Piano
11. Euwe vs C Craig  1-026 1919 Hastings-CC54 Giuoco Piano
12. G Kroone vs Euwe  ½-½16 1919 Amsterdam m2C29 Vienna Gambit
13. Euwe vs G Kroone  1-045 1919 Amsterdam m1D33 Queen's Gambit Declined, Tarrasch
14. G Kroone vs Euwe  0-135 1919 Amsterdam m1C83 Ruy Lopez, Open
15. H Van Hartingsvelt vs Euwe 0-130 1919 HaarlemC44 King's Pawn Game
16. Euwe vs G Kroone  1-020 1919 Amsterdam m2C33 King's Gambit Accepted
17. G Kroone vs Euwe  1-045 1919 Amsterdam m1C68 Ruy Lopez, Exchange
18. Euwe vs G Kroone  0-114 1919 Amsterdam m1B45 Sicilian, Taimanov
19. Euwe vs R A J Meijer  1-038 1919 NED-ch03C53 Giuoco Piano
20. Euwe vs B Von Gelder  1-043 1919 AmsterdamC42 Petrov Defense
21. J W Te Kolste vs Euwe  0-130 1919 NED-ch03C46 Three Knights
22. Euwe vs G Kroone  1-014 1919 Amsterdam m2C56 Two Knights
23. G Kroone vs Euwe  1-026 1919 Amsterdam m1C63 Ruy Lopez, Schliemann Defense
24. Euwe vs M Marchand  0-128 1920 Amsterdam m3A81 Dutch
25. Euwe vs V Sjoberg  1-048 1920 GoteborgD31 Queen's Gambit Declined
 page 1 of 56; games 1-25 of 1,391  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2) | Euwe wins | Euwe loses  
 

Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 17 OF 17 ·  Later Kibitzing >
Feb-14-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  tamar: Euwe was an everyman's champion, because he was an amateur.

Think of Roger Bannister's 4 minute mile, Euwe was that kind of champion-one who just set himself a goal, accomplished it, and then went on with his life.

Feb-14-08   nescio: <Open Defence: [...]others may not share my opinion but I feel we never really saw the full strength of Euwe the chess player>

Strangely enough I think we did. He was the strongest in the world for a brief period, and had he accepted all invitations for tournaments after he won the title he might have defeated Alyekhin more convincing in 1937.

But then again he might not. He was a chess professional from 1946-1949 and you'll remember that he then played the worst chess of his career. Only after he went back to mathematics did he recover and he played an excellent candidates tournament in 1953.

<I guess he had other interests> He probably needed them. It was the interaction between interests (mathematics, chess, and his family) that gave him his motivation.

Feb-14-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Open Defence: <nescio> the way I see it is that he was capable of being at the top for a good period but didn't that didn't seem to matter to him.. maybe I'm wrong
Feb-14-08   nescio: <Open Defence> I don't know. He was close to the top for a very long time. There is a story from the aftermath of the Groningen tournament in 1946 when he had a conversation with Fritz Sämisch about his ambition to win the title because he was hungry for chess after 5 years of German occupation.

The eccentric German seems to have replied: "If you want to become world champion again, you'll have to drown your wife and children". Euwe didn't do that, but he did choose the life of a chess professional, which resulted in the debacle of 1948.

Feb-14-08   Jim Bartle: Looking at the photo above: Is Stephen Colbert a grandson of Max Euwe?
Feb-14-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Open Defence: <nescio> I felt that by 1948 he was probably past his best chess strength and more importantly Botvinnik and the other Soviet players had taken the game to a new level.

I don't think Euwe could match that level... it was a bit like Steinitz playing Lasker though not as drastic a mismatch maybe I'm simplifying it too much ?

Feb-14-08   nescio: <Open Defence> Don't worry, he could match that level. But he was 10 years older than Botvinnik and 20-30 years older than most of them. Still, that also wasn't the reason for his 1948 collapse, which already began in the first rounds. Five years later, in Zürich, he met the best of the Soviets:

round 1 Euwe vs Kotov, 1953 1-0

round 2 Geller vs Euwe, 1953 0-1 (16...b5!; 22...Rh8!)

round 3 Euwe vs Smyslov, 1953 0-1 (26.Nd7!)

round 4 Keres vs Euwe, 1953 1/2

round 6 Bronstein vs Euwe, 1953 1/2 (22...Rd8!)

round 8 Taimanov vs Euwe, 1953 0-1 (27...Rg4!)

round 10 Petrosian vs Euwe, 1953 1-0 (7.Qe1!)

round 11 Euwe vs Averbakh, 1953 0-1 (36...Nxa3!)

round 15 Boleslavsky vs Euwe, 1953 1/2 (6...e5!)

Such adventurous chess could only be played by someone fully equal to his opponents. His advanced age showed clearly in the second half of the tournament, but that's beside the point.

As an aside the following masterpiece, as illustration of Euwe's good form in the first half of his last international tournament:

round 9 Euwe vs Najdorf, 1953

Feb-15-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Red October: <nescio> is it possible he worked on his game and re-invented himself in the 50s ?
Feb-15-08   nescio: <Red October: <nescio> is it possible he worked on his game and re-invented himself in the 50s ?>

Sure, he must have done, but as I tried to explain to <Open Defence> the problem in 1948 wasn't his chess ability, but a kind of depression, caused by too much chess. In 1949 he went back to teaching mathematics and he probably promised himself to prove once, and only once, more that he was one of the best in the world.

In Amsterdam 1950 you still see a very timid Euwe, drawing 13 of the 19 games, but thereafter he regained his confidence and the quality of his play improved. The games in the first nine rounds of Zürich 1953 were magnificent.

A few months later, in 1954, he lost the Dutch championship (after 33 years!) to Donner and for Euwe that meant a farewell to international chess, I presume, for he never competed in an important tournament again.

Feb-15-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Red October: <but as I tried to explain to <Open Defence>> lol this is <Open Defence> .. this is a duplicate account I have for the GMT game... Ok I get the picture now..

so this seems a bit paradoxical because the image I had of Euwe was that his chess had to be prepared and planned rather than OTB inspiration.. but from what you say his chess was better when he mixed his life with other things

I am not challenging what you say but trying to look at it against the other things we see from his games

Feb-15-08   nescio: <Open Defence> <Red October> :) I'll teach myself to read kibitzer's profiles.

<so this seems a bit paradoxical because the image I had of Euwe was that his chess had to be prepared and planned rather than OTB inspiration.. but from what you say his chess was better when he mixed his life with other things>

Good summary. Looking at his games I see little evidence of planning. He did a lot of preparation for his first match versus Alyekhin, studying his middle-games, but apart from analysing certain positions from the opening, how can you prepare a chess game? Every player formulates a plan to himself in the early middle-game, of course, but even the greatest "planner" of them all, Botvinnik, had to concede that the weak moves of his opponents tended to obstruct his carefully laid-out plans.

Feb-15-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Red October: thanks <nescio> the depth of your insight into these players is impressive :)

btw .. I don't know if you see a sort of similarity between Euwe, Huebner and Anand ?

Feb-15-08   nescio: <Red October: thanks> It is my pleasure. Some games are like old friends: it's always nice to see them again.

<Euwe, Huebner and Anand ?> I don't know about Anand, for I have only seen some of his games when he was a teenager, and some of the most recent years, but only superficially. Hübner and Euwe had indeed a similar style in playing, purposeful and combinatorial when needed, but a completely different style of analysis.

Euwe's notes you can read and understand without the use of a chess set, but Hübner...I once discovered his analysis of Huebner vs Portisch, 1981 and it took me a week of evenings just to work through his notes. Every move was accompanied by literally dozens of variations and subvariations. Unbelievable. Incidentally he started at the 15th move and showed convincingly that every move thereafter was a mistake and unworthy of a grandmaster :)

Feb-15-08   MichAdams: <I don't know if you see a sort of similarity between Euwe, Huebner and Anand ?>

All four-eyed gits?

Mar-12-08   Ruy Lopez: <Open Defence: <knight13> check out this game Euwe vs Alekhine, 1935 others may not share my opinion but I feel we never really saw the full strength of Euwe the chess player I guess he had other interests> Yes, i see what you mean he was a math teacher. And we also, must remember in that game that ALekhine was drunk.
May-20-08   Billy Vaughan: First to say...

Happy birthday Max Euwe! A great chess player and gentleman :)

May-20-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  ahmadov: <Billy Vaughan: First to say...> I wanted to say that first, but I later thought one cannot say that to dead people...
Jun-05-08   Xeroxx: Well at least you can say birthday. Cause he was once born.

So birthday in arrears, Euwe!

Jul-16-08   myschkin: http://www.maxeuwe.nl/
Aug-10-08   myschkin: . . .

"Silence and coffee"

http://chesshistory.com/winter/pics...

http://www.evrado.com/chess/katalog...

Aug-31-08   myschkin: . . .

In 1981 Max Euwe was interviewed by GM Hans Bouwmeester for Europe Echecs. The interview was also published in Chess, September-October 1981.

http://blog.chess.com/view/inside-m...

[has anyone a source for it?]

Sep-13-08   Fanacas: He was the only and last amteure world champion. His greatest weakenes was that he couldnt get himself good out of bad positions.
Sep-21-08   GrahamClayton: Euwe had accepted an invitation from the ICCF to play in the final of the 11th World Correspondence Championship. As preparation, he entered the 10th Dutch CC championship, but died before it was completed. His unfinished games were adjudicated, and he finished in 4th place with a score of 9.5/14.

Source: Tim Harding "50 Golden Chess Games - More Masterpieces of Correspondence Chess", Chess Mail, 2004

Oct-23-08   Sem: I was surprised to read that in Wallonic, the ancient French-like dialect of Southern Belgium, 'Euwe' means 'water'.
Nov-24-08   GrahamClayton: Here is a quote from GM Raymond Keene about Euwe during the 2008 Howard Staunton Memorial:

"The theme of sacrificing on an empty square is very much associated with the Dutch World Champion Max Euwe".

Is this true? How many of Euwe's games feature this theme?

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