In addition to five seeded players from the previous (1985-87) cycle, three players from the Subotica Interzonal (1987), three players from Szirák (this page) and three players from the Zagreb Interzonal (1987) would advance to the seven Candidates 1/8 final matches in 1988. The 1/8 final matches replaced the Candidates tournament, which had been revived with the Montpellier Candidates (1985), and aimed to select a challenger for the World Champion, i. e. the winner of the upcoming Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1987). The loser of this match (which was Anatoly Karpov) would join the seven eighthfinal winners for the quarterfinal matches, and so on, until the knockout system had produced a challenger in 1990. The enthusiasts behind Szirak (1985) and Szirak (1986) had lobbied for months to have an interzonal, and on Monday June 1, 1987 the FIDE president Florencio Campomanes arrived in Budapest to sign the protocol. The venue would be Kastély Hotel (Castle Hotel) in Szirák, a town about an hour's drive north of Budapest. The organizer would be the Hungarian Hydrocarbon Research and Development Institute, who remodeled the castle as a hotel in 1985. Campomanes had visited the hotel before and liked its tennis court. The hotel in 2012: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLd...
Five players were accommodated in another castle in Acsa, about 30 minutes from Szirák. They had to make this trip twice a day, even on the days of rest. These players were: Salov, Hjartarson, Todorcevic, Marin and De la Villa. Their respective seconds, as well as those of Bouaziz, Benjamin and Christiansen, also stayed at Acsa. Campomanes arrived in Acsa on Tuesday, and the first players arrived in Szirák on Wednesday. Beliavsky and Salov first, then Marin, Adorján and De la Villa, and late in the evening, also Christiansen and Allan. On Thursday, Portisch was the first to turn up. Flear soon followed him, and the others during the day, except Nunn, Andersson and Hjartarson, who missed the draw and technical meeting in the evening. Their absence was no obstacle and the three soon arrived. A 5-member jury consisting of Beliavsky, Christiansen, Portisch, Ljubojevic and Flear was elected. Beliavsky was given postponement of his Round 1 game because he had a fever and sore throat. On Friday Campomanes held a press conference. This was followed by a formal opening ceremony at 12 noon. Sándor Szerényi, President of the Hungarian Chess Federation and László Varga-Sabján, Vice-President of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, welcomed the participants. The games of the first round started at 3 pm.
Round 01 - Friday July 17 Round 07 - Sunday July 26 Round 13 - Tuesday August 4
Round 02 - Saturday July 18 Round 08 - Monday July 27 Round 14 - Wednesday August 5
Round 03 - Sunday July 19 Round 09 - Tuesday July 28 Round 15 - Thursday August 6
Round 04 - Tuesday July 21 Round 10 - Thursday July 30 Round 16 - Saturday August 8
Round 05 - Wednesday July 22 Round 11 - Friday July 31
Round 06 - Thursday July 23 Round 12 - Saturday August 1 Round 17 - Monday August 10
Dates are from the Icelandic newspapers Morgunblaðið and Þjóðviljinn (that reported on Hjartarson) and the Hungarian newspaper Nógrád (that reported on Portisch). Top seed Beliavsky was ill at the beginning of the event and played his Round 1 and Round 3 games on July 24 and July 29, respectively. There were six days for adjourned games. The rest days were July 25 and August 3.Salov and Hjartarson lost only one game each and shared first place with +9 -1 =7 (12.5/17). Hjartarson (who was assisted by Elvar Gudmundsson) was the first Nordic player to advance to the Candidates since Bent Larsen in 1976. Portisch and Nunn shared third place, and had to have a playoff match for the third spot in the Candidates. The closing ceremony was held on Tuesday August 11, at noon, with speeches by the Secretary of State Gábor Deák, by Campomanes, by Szerényi, and by Sándor Doleschall, the Director of the Hydrocarbon Research and Development Institute. The prizes and special prizes of the competition were awarded. The first prize, a Hollóházi Porcelángyár 5,000 dollar chess set, was handed over to Salov on Sonneborn-Berger score. The brilliancy prize went to Nunn for Nunn vs M Marin, 1987. He received a huge painting made by the artist József Bolgár (1928-1986). On behalf of the contestants, Nunn praised the organizers and thanked them for four nice weeks. The ceremony ended with a program enriched with folklore in the mansion opposite the castle.
Hotel Kastély, Szirák, Hungary, 17 July - 10 August 1987
Age Elo 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 Salov 23 2575 * ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 12½
2 Hjartarson 24 2550 ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 0 1 1 1 1 1 12½
=3 Portisch 50 2615 ½ ½ * ½ 1 ½ 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 12
=3 Nunn 32 2585 ½ ½ ½ * ½ 0 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 0 1 1 1 12
5 Beliavsky 33 2630 0 ½ 0 ½ * ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 11
6 Andersson 36 2600 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ * ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 10½
7 Ljubojevic 36 2625 ½ 0 1 0 ½ ½ * ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 ½ ½ 1 10
8 Christiansen 31 2575 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ * ½ 1 ½ 1 1 0 1 ½ 1 1 9
=9 Benjamin 23 2575 ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ * 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 1 1 1 8½
=9 Todorcevic 46 2475 1 0 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 1 * 1 0 ½ 0 1 1 1 1 8½
=11 Marin 22 2475 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 * 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 7½
=11 Velimirovic 45 2520 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 0 * 1 ½ 1 0 1 1 7½
=13 Adorjan 37 2540 0 1 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 * 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 7
=13 Milos 23 2495 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 ½ ½ 0 * ½ 1 0 1 7
15 Flear 28 2480 0 0 ½ 1 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ * ½ 1 1 6
16 De la Villa 29 2485 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ * 0 1 5½
17 Bouaziz 37 2375 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 1 0 1 * ½ 4½
18 Allan 42 2310 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ½ 0 0 0 ½ * 1½
Tournament category: XII (2527). Chief arbiters: Milos Petronic and Tibor Florian.Salov and Hjartarson went to the Hjartarson - Korchnoi Candidates Eighthfinal (1988) and Timman - Salov Candidates Eighthfinal (1988). The third candidate qualified at the Budapest Interzonal Playoff (1987) (26 September - 3 October):
1 2 3 4 5 6
Portisch 1 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 4
Nunn 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 2
Portisch went to the Portisch - Vaganian Candidates Eighthfinal (1988). The eighthfinal pairings were announced by the FIDE headquarters in Lucerne, Switzerland on October 5.Tournament book: János Pakucs (ed.), III. Hungaroil férfi egyéni sakkvilágbajnoki zónaközi döntö. Budapest 1987. 140 pp. (https://marvin.bline.hu/product_ima...)
Sources
Mark Weeks' website (https://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/wc...)
FIDE rating list July 1987 (http://www.olimpbase.org/Elo/Elo198...)
Nógrad, 17 July 1987, p. 7 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Nógrad, 18 July 1987, p. 11 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Nógrad, 12 August 1987, p. 1 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Morgunblaðið, 11 August 1987, p. 54 (http://timarit.is/view_page_init.js...)
Dunántúli Napló, 18 July 1987, p. 16 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Pest Megyei Hírlap, 3 June 1987, p. 7 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Pest Megyei Hírlap, 12 August 1987, p. 7 (https://library.hungaricana.hu/en/v... )
Jesus de la Villa in Jaque 225, pp. 497-501 (https://www.olimpbase.org/leagueES/...)
Tidskrift för Schack, August 1987, pp. 235-236 (http://www.schack.se/tfsarkiv/histo...)
Tidskrift för Schack, September 1987, pp. 246-249 (http://www.schack.se/tfsarkiv/histo...)
AP message in De Volkskrant, 6 October 1987, p. 11 (https://www.delpher.nl/nl/kranten/v...)
Jon Loftur Arnason in Dagblaðið Vísir, 18 July 1987, p. 21 (http://timarit.is/view_page_init.js...)
Original collections: Game Collection: Szirak interzonal 1987 by User: Chessdreamer and Game Collection: Szirak interzonal 1987 by User: Tabanus.
Kibitzing
