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Rudolf Spielmann vs Emanuel Lasker
Moscow (1935), Moscow URS, rd 8, Feb-24
Scotch Game: Schmidt Variation (C45)  ·  1/2-1/2

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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Kibitzer's Corner
Nov-15-05
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: Another famous Lasker save after a shaky opening.

By the way, according to the DB Spielmann was +0-1=4 against Lasker, +2-2=8 against Capablanca, and +2-3=11 against Alekhine, combined +4-6=23. There can't be many masters who have even close to that good a combined score against that trio. Rubinstein did OK against Lasker and Capablanca but not Alekhine, Nimzowitsch had a terrible score against Capablanca and Alekhine, Bogoljubov did badly against all three...who am I forgetting?

Nov-15-05  Koster: Botvinnik- +1 against Alekhine and Lasker, even with Capa.

Reshevsky- -1 with Alekhine, even with Capa, +1 against Lasker.

Fine- +1 against Alekhine and Lasker, even with Capa

Keres- +1 against Capa, never played Lasker, but -4 (ouch)against Alekhine.

Maybe the Nazis forced him to lose to Alekhine, just as the Commies made him lose to Botvinnik.

Nov-15-05
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: Thanks. I should have ruled out the post-1935 guys.

Nov-15-05  unferth: Marshall was +6 -40 = 47 against those three. Yikes ... I knew it was bad, but not that bad.

Schlecter was +2 -0 = 0 v. Alekhine, +0 -0 = 1 v. Capa, +2 -5 = 12 v. Lasker: +4 -5 =13 overall ... not bad.

Nov-15-05  Koster: <keypusher> Yes Lasker was giving up 40+ years to Reshevsky and Botvinnik, even more to Fine.
Sep-21-06  percyblakeney: <By the way, according to the DB Spielmann was +0-1=4 against Lasker, +2-2=8 against Capablanca, and +2-3=11 against Alekhine, combined +4-6=23.>

Not bad at all. And here he had excellent chances to improve those statistics but let Lasker escape with a draw. Maybe 27. Rxc4 followed by Nd8 would have won, 29. Rb1+ and 31. Nb5 are other computer suggestions improving white's winning chances.

Sep-21-06  Plato: <By the way, according to the DB Spielmann was +0-1=4 against Lasker, +2-2=8 against Capablanca, and +2-3=11 against Alekhine, combined +4-6=23.>

A small correction: his record against Alekhine was +2-4=11. This database does not include Spielmann's loss to Alekhine in Vienna, 1922. His combined score against the WC trio was, therefore, +4-7=22, which is still a great record versus those three.

Sep-21-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <Plato> Thanks. Do you have the score of the Alekhine win in the Vienna tournament? Can you submit it to the database? cg.com should have it.
Sep-22-06  Calli: <Plato> <keypusher> Spielmann's 2-3 vs Alyehkin is correct. His recorded loss at Vienna 1922 was a forfeit. He did not show up for the last round! I don't know why. Warum Spielmann nicht speil?
Sep-22-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: Thanks, Calli. You would know this if anyone would -- is there a Vienna 1922 tournament book? I am a big Rubinstein fan, so I would love to have it.
Sep-22-06  Calli: <keypusher> Surprisingly, there was no official tournament book. Larry Evans, age 16, did a spiral bound edition in 1948. 58 years ago! I was lucky enough to acquire a signed copy of this rare volume a while back. Anyway, Evans annotates all the games, but doesn't mention Spielmann's forfeit.
Sep-22-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: Wow, that sounds great! I am quite impressed with Evans, too, doing a tournament book -- for a quarter-century-old tournament, no less -- at that age. Did he do other such books?
Sep-22-06  Calli: Don't think he did other tournament books, but the next year, 1949, he did Bronstein's Best Games (or some title like that). This was incredibly prescient considering no one had picked Bronstein to challenge for the title.
Oct-29-11  Ulhumbrus: With 21 Nxc6! Spielmann offers Lasker a Knight sacrifice. Lasker cannot accept it as on 21...Kxc6 22 Rac1+ White gains a winning attack eg 22...Kd7 23 Bb5+ Ke7 24 Rc7+ Kd8 25 Rxd5+ Bd7 26 Rd5xd7 mate.

Lasker responds by 21...g5 displacing White's QB so as to reduce White's attack after the capture ...Kxc6. However on 22 Nxe4 Rxe4 23 Nd8+ the N evades immediate capture with tempo and on 23..Ka6 24 Bxg5 Spielman has won a second pawn.

However Spielmann has still to extricate his Knight and after 28...Kxb4 Spielmann has only one pawn for the bishop pair. Lasker manages to gain a draw in the end.

Apr-14-12  KokeFischer: You are forgetting one of the greatest legends:

the GM that played with the biggest set of World Chess Champions www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=65392

Andre Lilienthal beat Emanuel Lasker 1 to 0, with 2 draws. Alexander Alekhine beat Andre Lilienthal 1 to 0, with 1 draw. Andre Lilienthal tied Jose Raul Capablanca 1 to 1, with 2 draws.

These results make +1-1=5.

As far as I can recall, all other chessplayers had a negative score.

Two anecdotes of GM Lilienthal:

1.- Fischer seeing him and saying
20.- exf6!! at first

2.- His presence in a Moscu event
www.chessbase.com/newsprint.asp?newsid=1181

Apr-15-12  King Death: <KokeFischer> That's 7 games, nice but Spielmann had a lot more games against the champs that he played. I'll take Spielmann at -3 over 34 games.
Apr-15-12  King Death: < Koster: Botvinnik- +1 against Alekhine and Lasker, even with Capa. Reshevsky- -1 with Alekhine, even with Capa, +1 against Lasker...>

Yeah, Reshevsky 1-0 against Lasker is a really impressive +1.

<Fine- +1 against Alekhine and Lasker, even with Capa>

Another big +1 against Lasker in their only game.

<Keres...Maybe the Nazis forced him to lose to Alekhine, just as the Commies made him lose to Botvinnik.>

Lee Harvey Oswald was the only guy after JFK in Dallas too.

Jan-11-14  RookFile: Lasker showed extremely strong nerves in this game.
Sep-03-16  RookFile: Lasker could have played 16... Bd6, and the game may have been drawn soon after. Instead, he chooses the interesting 16... Kb6 !? which Stockfish says isn't bad. Apparently, 17....a5 was a mistake that gets black into danger - instead, 17... a6 18. b4 Bd7 19. f3 Nh5 20. a5+ Kb7 21. Bd2 g6 is something black can play that gives him a reasonable position.
Nov-28-16  andrea volponi: 37 Re3 Txa5-Cc2+ Rb5-Txa5+ Rxa5-Rd4 Rb5-Rxd5! Ac6 Rd6 Axg2-f4 Ae4-Ce3 Rb4-f5!!
Nov-29-16
Premium Chessgames Member
  perfidious: <unferth: Marshall was +6 -40 = 47 against (Lasker, Capablanca and Alekhine). Yikes ... I knew it was bad, but not that bad.>

The two wins from Lasker came forty years apart, in their first meeting, then the final encounter was in the first game of a short match.

Dec-30-19  Straclonoor: 29.Rb1 is more powerfull.

Analysis by Stockfish 091219 64 BMI2:

+- (3.71): 29.Rb1+ Ka3 30.Rd2 Rxa7 31.Bxa7 Bc3 32.Rdd1 Ka2 33.Rb6 Ra4 34.Rd6 Bxa5 35.Bd4 Kb3 36.Ke2 h5 37.h3 Kc4 38.Rc6+ Kb5 39.Rc5+ Ka6 40.Rc2 Bd7 41.Rb2 Bc7 42.Ke3 Ra3+ 43.Rd3 Rxd3+ 44.Kxd3 f5 45.Bc5 Be5 46.Rb6+ Ka5 47.Bd4 Bxd4 48.Rd6 Bxf2 49.Rxd7 Kb6 50.Rxd5 Bg3 51.Rxf5 h4 52.Ke4 Kc6 53.Rf7 Kc5 54.Kf3 Kc4 55.Kg4 Kd3 56.Re7 Kc3

Jul-27-23  andrea volponi: 37Ke3 Rxa5 -Nc2+ Kb5 -Rxa5+ Kxa5 -Kd4 Kb5 -Kxd5 Bc6 + -Kd6 Bxg2 -f4 Bh3 -Ne3 Kc6 -f5 Kc5 -Nd1 Bf1 -Nf2 Bg2 -Ng4 Bf3 -Nh6 Bd5 -h4 Bb3 -Kf6 +-.

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