To have a challenger for World Champion Anatoly Karpov, it was necessary to qualify eight players for the Candidates quarterfinal knock-out matches that would conclude in 1980. Two players, Viktor Korchnoi and Boris Spassky, had qualified by having reached the Korchnoi - Spassky Candidates Final (1977/78). The other six players would qualify from two interzonal tournaments: Rio (this page) and Riga Interzonal (1979). In Riga, Mikhail Tal, Lev Polugaevsky and (after the Budapest Interzonal Playoff (1979)) Andras Adorjan qualified.
To play in the Interzonals it was necessary to qualify from zonal tournaments. For the Rio Interzonal, Timman had qualified from the Amsterdam Zonal (1978). He arrived in Rio with his friend and second Ulf Andersson. Hübner and Kagan had advanced from Lucerne (1979), Bronstein from Tramandai (1978), Sax and Smejkal from Warsaw (1979), Shamkovich from the US Championship (1978), Harandi from Tehran (1978), Garcia from Cuenca (1978), Balashov and Vaganian from Lvov Zonal (1978), Velimirovic and Ivkov from Praia da Rocha (1978), Hebert from the Canadian Closed (1978), and Torre from Ito (1978). (1) Portisch, Petrosian and Henrique Mecking were qualified because they had reached the Candidates stage in 1977. (2) The host country was allowed by FIDE to add Sunye as player no. 19. (3)
The playing venue was Copacabana Palace Hotel, the most famous and luxurious hotel in Rio. (4) On the advice of his doctor, Mecking had to withdraw from the tournament after the adjournment of Smejkal vs Mecking, 1979 in Round 2. His two games (incl. Mecking vs Ivkov, 1979 in Round 1) were cancelled, and the tournament continued with two byes in each round (except in Round 11). (3) This caused confusion for some time as to which players were genuinely in the lead. (5) There was also some confusion about the standings before the last round, because of many unfinished games. (3) Hübner had then left for home (he had a bye in the last round). (3) The big surprise of the tournament was Sunye, who had draws against Timman and Petrosian and a win over Portisch in Round 9. Timman's draw in the last round left him half a point short of making a 4-player playoff, and Hübner, Portisch and Petrosian advanced to the Candidates matches.
Copacabana Palace, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 23 September - 20 October 1979
Elo 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pts
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
=1 GM Hübner 2595 * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 11½
=1 GM Portisch 2640 ½ * ½ ½ 1 0 1 0 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 11½
=1 GM Petrosian 2610 ½ ½ * ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 ½ 11½
4 GM Timman 2625 ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ 1 1 0 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 11
=5 GM Ivkov 2525 ½ 0 0 ½ * 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 9½
=5 Sunye 2375 0 1 ½ ½ 0 * 0 0 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 9½
=7 GM Sax 2590 ½ 0 0 0 ½ 1 * 1 0 ½ ½ 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 9
=7 GM Torre 2520 0 1 ½ 0 0 1 0 * ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 9
=7 GM Balashov 2600 0 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 1 ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 9
=10 GM Shamkovich 2495 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ * 1 ½ 1 1 0 0 ½ ½ 8½
=10 GM Smejkal 2550 1 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 * ½ 1 0 ½ 1 ½ 1 8½
12 GM Vaganian 2570 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ * 0 1 1 1 1 ½ 8
=13 GM Garcia 2490 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 0 0 1 * 1 0 ½ ½ 1 7½
=13 GM Velimirovic 2515 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 0 0 * 1 1 1 1 7½
15 IM Harandi 2410 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 0 0 1 ½ 0 1 0 * 0 1 ½ 6½
16 IM Bronstein 2420 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ 1 0 0 ½ 0 1 * 1 ½ 6
=17 IM Kagan 2445 0 1 0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 0 0 * 1 4½
=17 IM Hebert 2365 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 * 4½
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
GM Mecking 2615 - - - - ½ - - - - - ½ - - - - - - - (withdrew)
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Tournament director: Lincoln Lucena. General arbiter: Harry Golombek, with Silvio Luiz Teixeira Mendes as auxiliary arbiter. (6) Sunye made his final IM norm. (7) The Rio Women's Interzonal (1979) was played at about the same time. It was won by the 17-year-old Nana Ioseliani (14.5/16), ahead of Zsuzsa Veroci (12/16) and Nana Alexandria (11/16). (8)The draw for the Candidates matches was made on 17 November at FIDE in Amsterdam: (9)
Huebner - Adorjan Candidates Quarterfinal (1980)
Polugaevsky - Tal Candidates Quarterfinal (1980)
Portisch - Spassky Candidates Quarterfinal (1980)
Korchnoi - Petrosian Candidates Quarterfinal (1980)
Tournament books: Interzonal tournaments. Riga -79. Rio de Janeiro -79 by V. I. Chepizhny (Physical Culture and Sports, Moscow 1980. 415 pp.) (in Russian, not seen); Rio de Janeiro Interzonal 1979 by Tony Miles and Murray Chandler (Batsford, London 1979. 80 pp.) (this book has round dates). The Dutch newspapers (at http://kranten.delpher.nl/) followed Timman closely and had round reports. The Elo is from FIDE Rating List January 1979. (10)
Notes
1) Mark Weeks at http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/zon....
2) Tidskrift för Schack, vol. 85 (1979), p. 11.
3) Tidskrift för Schack, vol. 85 (1979), p. 270.
4) https://t-ec.bstatic.com/images/hot....
5) Golombek in The Times, 17 November 1979, p. 13.
6) https://web.archive.org/web/2006071....
7) Miles' tournament book.
8) Tidskrift för Schack, vol. 85 (1979), p. 240.
9) Tidskrift för Schack, vol. 85 (1979), p. 328.
10) http://www.olimpbase.org/Elo/Elo197....
Original collections: Game Collection: Interzonals 1979: Rio de Janeiro by User: capybara and Game Collection: Rio de Janeiro Interzonal 1979 by User: Tabanus.
Kibitzing
