Members · Prefs · Laboratory · Collections · Openings · Endgames · Sacrifices · History · Search Kibitzing · Kibitzer's Café · Chessforums · Tournament Index · Players · Kibitzing

Alekhine Memorial (1956) For a quarter-century after he fled the Soviet Union, Alexander Alekhine was treated as a traitor and an enemy of the people. This attitude softened within a decade of his death, and in 1956 the Soviet Union held an important international event in his memory. Earlier that year, in April, a Soviet delegation, including Smyslov, Keres, Bronstein, Geller and Petrosian, had marked the tenth anniversary of his death at a ceremony, organised by FIDE, in the Montparnasse cemetery in Paris. The Alekhine Memorial was held in Moscow from October 9-November 2, 1956, and featured a star-studded field including World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik and his usual challenger at the time, Vasily Smyslov. They, along with reigning Soviet Champion Mark Taimanov, forged into the lead around the half-way point and stayed one step up on the field the rest of the way. It was Botvinnik who broke the logjam with a spurt of 4.5 points from rounds 10-14, taking a full point lead into the last round. His opponent was an out-of-form Paul Keres, who nevertheless pulled himself together to administer a stunning defeat (Keres vs Botvinnik, 1956). Taimanov settled for a short last-round draw, but Smyslov ground out a win over Gideon Ståhlberg to tie for first place. Moscow, Soviet Union (Russia), 9 October - 2 November 1956 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 Botvinnik * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11.0 2 Smyslov ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11.0 3 Taimanov ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 10.5 4 Gligoric ½ ½ ½ * 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 1 10.0 5 Bronstein ½ ½ 0 1 * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 9.5 6 Najdorf 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ * ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 9.0 7 Keres 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ * 1 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 8.5 8 Pachman ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 * ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 1 8.5 9 Unzicker ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 1 ½ * 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 1 8.0 10 Ståhlberg 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 * ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 8.0 11 Szabo 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 6.0 12 Padevsky 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ * 0 ½ 1 ½ 5.5 13 Uhlmann 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 * 1 ½ ½ 5.5 14 Ciocaltea 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 * 1 ½ 3.5 15 Sliwa 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 ½ 0 * ½ 3.0 16 Golombek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ * 2.5 Original collection: Game Collection: Alekhine Memorial International Tournament, 1956, by User: Resignation Trap.  page 1 of 5; games 1-25 of 120  Game   Result Moves Year Event/Locale Opening 1. Botvinnik vs Golombek 1-0 45 1956 Alekhine Memorial B14 Caro-Kann, Panov-Botvinnik Attack 2. Taimanov vs Bronstein 1-0 41 1956 Alekhine Memorial E73 King's Indian 3. Uhlmann vs Keres   ½-½ 43 1956 Alekhine Memorial D40 Queen's Gambit Declined, Semi-Tarrasch 4. Najdorf vs Szabo   ½-½ 45 1956 Alekhine Memorial E64 King's Indian, Fianchetto, Yugoslav System 5. Sliwa vs Pachman   0-1 28 1956 Alekhine Memorial D86 Grunfeld, Exchange 6. Gligoric vs Smyslov   ½-½ 23 1956 Alekhine Memorial E55 Nimzo-Indian, 4.e3, Gligoric System, Bronstein Variation 7. Unzicker vs N Padevsky   ½-½ 23 1956 Alekhine Memorial B91 Sicilian, Najdorf, Zagreb (Fianchetto) Variation 8. Stahlberg vs V Ciocaltea   1-0 45 1956 Alekhine Memorial E63 King's Indian, Fianchetto, Panno Variation 9. Smyslov vs Botvinnik   ½-½ 46 1956 Alekhine Memorial B39 Sicilian, Accelerated Fianchetto, Breyer Variation 10. Bronstein vs Sliwa 1-0 29 1956 Alekhine Memorial C75 Ruy Lopez, Modern Steinitz Defense 11. Szabo vs Keres 1-0 77 1956 Alekhine Memorial A23 English, Bremen System, Keres Variation 12. Najdorf vs Unzicker   1-0 64 1956 Alekhine Memorial A30 English, Symmetrical 13. Pachman vs Stahlberg   ½-½ 36 1956 Alekhine Memorial A17 English 14. N Padevsky vs Taimanov   0-1 32 1956 Alekhine Memorial B22 Sicilian, Alapin 15. Golombek vs Uhlmann   ½-½ 21 1956 Alekhine Memorial E89 King's Indian, Samisch, Orthodox Main line 16. V Ciocaltea vs Gligoric 0-1 30 1956 Alekhine Memorial E75 King's Indian, Averbakh, Main line 17. Botvinnik vs V Ciocaltea 1-0 36 1956 Alekhine Memorial C75 Ruy Lopez, Modern Steinitz Defense 18. Stahlberg vs Bronstein   ½-½ 41 1956 Alekhine Memorial D20 Queen's Gambit Accepted 19. Keres vs Golombek   1-0 45 1956 Alekhine Memorial B18 Caro-Kann, Classical 20. Taimanov vs Najdorf 1-0 39 1956 Alekhine Memorial A16 English 21. Gligoric vs Pachman   ½-½ 29 1956 Alekhine Memorial D87 Grunfeld, Exchange 22. Uhlmann vs Smyslov 0-1 18 1956 Alekhine Memorial E15 Queen's Indian 23. Unzicker vs Szabo ½-½ 41 1956 Alekhine Memorial C71 Ruy Lopez 24. Sliwa vs N Padevsky 0-1 37 1956 Alekhine Memorial E51 Nimzo-Indian, 4.e3 25. Pachman vs Botvinnik   ½-½ 20 1956 Alekhine Memorial A36 English  page 1 of 5; games 1-25 of 120    REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2)     There is no kibitzing for this page, yet.   NOTE: Create an account today to post replies and access other powerful features which are available only to registered users. Becoming a member is free, anonymous, and takes less than 1 minute! If you already have a username, then simply login login under your username now to join the discussion. Please observe our posting guidelines: No obscene, racist, sexist, or profane language. No spamming, advertising, duplicate, or gibberish posts. No vitriolic or systematic personal attacks against other members. Nothing in violation of United States law. No cyberstalking or malicious posting of negative or private information (doxing/doxxing) of members. No trolling. The use of "sock puppet" accounts to circumvent disciplinary action taken by moderators, create a false impression of consensus or support, or stage conversations, is prohibited. Do not degrade Chessgames or any of it's staff/volunteers. Please try to maintain a semblance of civility at all times. See something that violates our rules? Blow the whistle and inform a moderator. NOTE: Please keep all discussion on-topic. This forum is for this specific tournament only. To discuss chess or this site in general, visit the Kibitzer's Café. Messages posted by Chessgames members do not necessarily represent the views of Chessgames.com, its employees, or sponsors. All moderator actions taken are ultimately at the sole discretion of the administration. Spot an error? Please suggest your correction and help us eliminate database mistakes! Home | About | Login | Logout | F.A.Q. | Profile | Preferences | Premium Membership | Kibitzer's Café | Biographer's Bistro | New Kibitzing | Chessforums | Tournament Index | Player Directory | Notable Games | World Chess Championships | Opening Explorer | Guess the Move | Game Collections | ChessBookie Game | Chessgames Challenge | Store | Privacy Notice | Contact Us Copyright 2001-2023, Chessgames Services LLC