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

Anatoly Karpov
Karpov 
Photo copyright © 2006 by Milan Kovacs (www.milankovacs.com)  

Number of games in database: 3,700
Years covered: 1961 to 2022
Last FIDE rating: 2617 (2583 rapid, 2627 blitz)
Highest rating achieved in database: 2780
Overall record: +926 -214 =1258 (64.8%)*
   * Overall winning percentage = (wins+draws/2) / total games in the database. 1302 exhibition games, blitz/rapid, odds games, etc. are excluded from this statistic.

MOST PLAYED OPENINGS
With the White pieces:
 Sicilian (244) 
    B92 B81 B44 B84 B31
 King's Indian (192) 
    E60 E62 E81 E71 E63
 Queen's Indian (148) 
    E15 E17 E12 E16 E19
 Ruy Lopez (143) 
    C95 C82 C84 C92 C80
 Queen's Gambit Declined (125) 
    D30 D37 D35 D39 D38
 Grunfeld (104) 
    D85 D78 D73 D97 D87
With the Black pieces:
 Caro-Kann (259) 
    B17 B12 B10 B18 B14
 Queen's Indian (246) 
    E15 E12 E17 E19 E14
 Ruy Lopez (182) 
    C92 C77 C69 C95 C84
 Nimzo Indian (180) 
    E32 E54 E21 E42 E41
 Ruy Lopez, Closed (142) 
    C92 C95 C84 C93 C98
 Queen's Gambit Declined (88) 
    D37 D31 D35 D30 D39
Repertoire Explorer

NOTABLE GAMES: [what is this?]
   Karpov vs Kasparov, 1984 1-0
   Karpov vs Topalov, 1994 1-0
   Karpov vs Korchnoi, 1974 1-0
   Karpov vs Unzicker, 1974 1-0
   Timman vs Karpov, 1979 0-1
   Karpov vs Spassky, 1974 1-0
   Karpov vs Uhlmann, 1973 1-0
   Karpov vs Kasparov, 1985 1-0
   Karpov vs Korchnoi, 1978 1-0
   Kasparov vs Karpov, 1984 0-1

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: [what is this?]
   Karpov - Korchnoi World Championship Match (1978)
   Karpov - Korchnoi World Championship Match (1981)
   Karpov - Kasparov World Championship Match 1984/85 (1984)
   Karpov - Kasparov World Championship Match (1985)
   Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Rematch (1986)
   Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1987)
   Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1990)
   Karpov - Timman FIDE World Championship Match (1993)
   Karpov - Kamsky FIDE World Championship Match (1996)
   Karpov - Anand FIDE World Championship Match (1998)

NOTABLE TOURNAMENTS: [what is this?]
   6th Soviet Team Cup (1968)
   World Junior Championship Final-A (1969)
   Russian Championship (1970)
   URS-ch sf Daugavpils (1971)
   Skopje (1976)
   Las Palmas (1977)
   USSR Championship (1976)
   Bad Lauterberg (1977)
   Linares (1994)
   Baden-Baden Group A (1992)
   Trophee Anatoly Karpov (2012)
   Leningrad Interzonal (1973)
   Caracas (1970)
   Tilburg Interpolis (1994)
   Skopje Olympiad Final-A (1972)

GAME COLLECTIONS: [what is this?]
   Karpov Tournament Champion - I by chessgain
   Karpov Tournament Champion - I by amadeus
   Karpov Tournament Champion - I by enog
   Karpov Tournament Champion - I by docjan
   Kar pov 12th World Chess Champion by fredthebear
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by Incremental
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by jakaiden
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by Goatsrocknroll23
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by PassedPawnDuo
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by webbing1947
   Anatoly Karpov - My Best 300 Games by pacercina
   Karpov Tournament Champion - II by amadeus
   Karpov Tournament Champion - II by docjan
   Karpov Tournament Champion - II by chessgain

RECENT GAMES:
   🏆 Moscow Stars
   Karpov vs Morozevich (Jul-20-22) 1/2-1/2, rapid
   Morozevich vs Karpov (Jul-20-22) 1-0, rapid
   Morozevich vs Karpov (Jul-20-22) 1/2-1/2, rapid
   Karjakin vs Karpov (Jul-19-22) 1/2-1/2, rapid
   Karpov vs Karjakin (Jul-19-22) 1/2-1/2, rapid

Search Sacrifice Explorer for Anatoly Karpov
Search Google for Anatoly Karpov
FIDE player card for Anatoly Karpov

ANATOLY KARPOV
(born May-23-1951, 74 years old) Russia
PRONUNCIATION:
[what is this?]

Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov was born in the town of Zlatoust, located in the Southern Ural Mountains in the USSR. He learned to play chess at four years old and became a candidate master by age eleven. At twelve, Karpov was accepted into the chess academy presided over by Mikhail Botvinnik. Karpov won the World Junior Championship in 1969, thereby automatically gaining the title of International Master. In 1970, he became an International Grandmaster by virtue of finishing equal fourth at Caracas. A World Championship Candidate in 1973, he defeated Viktor Korchnoi in the Karpov - Korchnoi Candidates Final (1974) to earn the right to contest the Karpov - Fischer World Championship Match (1975) with World Champion Robert James Fischer. When FIDE declared Fischer forfeited, Karpov became the 12th World Chess Champion, the youngest since Mikhail Tal in 1960.

Karpov defended the championship twice against Korchnoi, in Karpov - Korchnoi World Championship Match (1978) and Karpov - Korchnoi World Championship Match (1981). After Karpov - Kasparov World Championship Match (1984/85), which was aborted with Karpov leading by two points over Garry Kasparov, he lost his title to Kasparov in Karpov - Kasparov World Championship Match (1985). He played three more closely contested matches with Kasparov, narrowly losing Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Rematch (1986), drawing Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1987) and again narrowly losing Kasparov - Karpov World Championship Match (1990).

Karpov was thrice Soviet Champion: in 1976*, 1983** and 1988***, on the latter occasion sharing the title with Kasparov. In 1993 Karpov regained the FIDE title against Jan Timman in Karpov - Timman FIDE World Championship Match (1993), after Kasparov had broken away from the organization. He successfully defended his title against Gata Kamsky in Karpov - Kamsky FIDE World Championship Match (1996) and Viswanathan Anand in Karpov - Anand FIDE World Championship Match (1998). In 1999 FIDE changed the rules, deciding that the World Champion would be determined by an annual knockout tournament, and Karpov retired from championship competition.

At Linares (1994), Karpov achieved one of the greatest tournament successes ever, outdistancing Kasparov by 2.5 points, with a tournament performance rating of 2985. In May 1974, his rating reached 2700, only the second player, after Fischer, to do so. **

At age 61 he won the Trophee Anatoly Karpov (2012) rapid tournament on tiebreak over Vasyl Ivanchuk. A year later, at 62, he won the Cap D'Agde (2013).

Outside of chess, Karpov has been linked to the company Petromir, which claimed in 2007 to have found a large natural gas field.****

* [rusbase-1]; ** [rusbase-2]; *** [rusbase-3]

** http://www.olimpbase.org/Elo/Elo197...

**** Miriam Elder, The St. Petersburg Times, Issue # 1242, 2007.02.02, Link: http://sptimes.ru/index.php?action_... and The St. Petersburg Times, Issue # 1246, 2007.02.16, Link: http://sptimes.ru/index.php?action_...

Wikipedia article: Anatoly Karpov

Last updated: 2024-07-29 08:35:45

Try our new games table.

 page 1 of 148; games 1-25 of 3,700  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves YearEvent/LocaleOpening
1. Karpov vs Nedelin 1-0361961RUS-ch JuniorsC97 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin
2. G Timoscenko vs Karpov 0-1531961RUS-ch JuniorsC10 French
3. B Kalinkin vs Karpov ½-½321961CheliabinskC97 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin
4. E Lazarev vs Karpov 0-1491961CheliabinskD55 Queen's Gambit Declined
5. A Shneider vs Karpov 0-1511961CheliabinskC34 King's Gambit Accepted
6. Shusharin vs Karpov 0-1351961CheliabinskC77 Ruy Lopez
7. Karpov vs Maksimov 1-0601961MagnitogorskE81 King's Indian, Samisch
8. V Kalashnikov vs Karpov ½-½621961ZlatoustE15 Queen's Indian
9. Karpov vs Budakov ½-½261961ZlatoustC99 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin, 12...cd
10. Karpov vs Gaimaletdinov 1-0601961ZlatoustC62 Ruy Lopez, Old Steinitz Defense
11. Karpov vs V Kalashnikov 1-0601961ZlatoustC68 Ruy Lopez, Exchange
12. Karpov vs Mukhudulin ½-½611961ZlatoustB56 Sicilian
13. Karpov vs Shefler 1-0431961ZlatoustC01 French, Exchange
14. Karpov vs Ziuliarkin 1-0351961ZlatoustA07 King's Indian Attack
15. Tarinin vs Karpov 1-0351961ZlatoustC97 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin
16. Zadneprovsky vs Karpov 0-1651961ZlatoustE27 Nimzo-Indian, Samisch Variation
17. Korchnoi vs Karpov ½-½301961SimulC45 Scotch Game
18. Karpov vs S Belousov 1-0401961BorovichiC07 French, Tarrasch
19. Larinin vs Karpov  1-0351961ZlatoustC97 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin
20. Aranov vs Karpov 0-1711962CheliabinskC10 French
21. Karpov vs Karin 1-0391962CheliabinskB06 Robatsch
22. Karpov vs Tarinin 1-0531962CheliabinskC73 Ruy Lopez, Modern Steinitz Defense
23. Kolishkin vs Karpov ½-½391962CheliabinskC86 Ruy Lopez, Worrall Attack
24. Manakov vs Karpov 0-1261962KoyenskC84 Ruy Lopez, Closed
25. V Kalashnikov vs Karpov ½-½361962ZlatoustC97 Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin
 page 1 of 148; games 1-25 of 3,700  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2) | Karpov wins | Karpov loses  

Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 5 OF 254 ·  Later Kibitzing>
Feb-11-04  Whitehat1963: Fair enough. I admit I was wrong, but it stands to reason that their's a psychological toll when you lose a match with someone. And Fischer had a tendency to intimidate players. Taimanov, Larsen and Petrosian were never the same. Of course, they were crushed, not just beaten.
Feb-11-04  ughaibu: There's the matter of age as well, Taimanov and Petrosian had been candidates 20 years before, they cant be expected to remain at the same level forever. Larsen did seem to be badly effected by it, personally I never thought he was world championship level despite his great strength.
Feb-11-04  Whitehat1963: <Square dance>, you make some good points. I guess, like most American fans, I find Fischer's chess spectacular, often like Morphy's in the sense that he analyzes things that no one else seems to consider. But, yes, you're right, there's no way to be sure. Whereas, I don't see those same things in Karpov's play; he seems so much more careful. On the other hand, that could mean his play is more sound. Hard to say.
Feb-11-04  Stavrogin: Good post Orcinus.
Feb-11-04  square dance: from <whitehat1963> <squaredance, you make some good points.> i really have to agree with you on that one. <but yes, you're right,...> of course i am! ok that was just for fun, i hope everyone can tell. i always wanted to do that though. on a serious note i actually agree with most everything you said <whitehat1963>, its just that i have a problem with dogmatic assertions of one players invincibility. i know as well as anyone that it is almost impossible to imagine anyone beating rjf in a match after the way he played from 70-72. the thing is, is that he may not have been the same player in 75 that he had been previously. although the general concensus was that fischer would eat karpov alive back in 75, karpov did so many positive things that many followers of the game put him on an equal footing as fischer. one example for me of a similar situation occured in boxing over the past decade. riddick bowe was heavyweight champion, and was ordered to defend the WBC portion of his title against lennox lewis. it seemed as though every so called boxing expert thought FOR SURE riddick bowe would win easily, but instead he threw that title in a garbage can and lost his other belts in a rematch with evander holyfield. after that loss, riddick bowe went on to have an unspectacular career as a fighter never regaining those titles and lennox lewis just retired last week as the recognized heavyweight champion of the world. im not trying to make a direct parallel to rjf vs. karpov in this story, but the lesson i learned was no matter how much we believe something it doesnt make it true. i mean fischer probably would've beaten karpov in 75 and maybe eveyone was right to think that bowe would've beaten lennox lewis at the time, but we'll just never know.
Feb-11-04  Whitehat1963: <square dance> And how often do people shock an unsuspecting world? Whether it's Alekhine, Euwe, Oliver McCall or Buster Douglas. Yes, anything can happen.
Feb-13-04  Stavrogin: How good is Karpov today?
Is it all over or are there still hope to see him in the big leagues making a stand?
Feb-13-04  Whitehat1963: I think Karpov is still capable of playing great chess and winning the occasional tournament, but the field is too crowded. I doubt he'll ever contend for the title again. But anything can happen. Smyslov certainly made a good run in the mid eighties, I forget what year exactly (I think it was '84). And Lasker, Steinitz and Botvinnik certainly played great chess later in their careers.
Feb-13-04  Catfriend: He's too old, and he isn't Lasker, I think. He never played great chess after 1995, actually. He's now not in the first 20, according to many rating-lists, I think! I don't think we"ll see him back on the top
Feb-13-04  ughaibu: I thought we won a match against Kasparov last year.
Feb-13-04  Catfriend: I thought it wasn't classic chess we played last year. And it isn't great chess. Huzman defeated Gazza so he's a great player?
Feb-20-04  tomh72000: <How good is Karpov today?> Karpov's appearances in tournaments are now very limited, and he seems to have restricted his openings repetoire to the incredibly drawish Petrov Defence and the Queen's Gambit. Surely there is still life in the "old man" yet though. It would be tragic for him to drop out of tournament chess now.
Feb-20-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  lostemperor: "Had I gotten the opportunity to play Fischer (like Kasparov could play me) I would have had a chesslevel beyond anybody's reach" ---Anatoli Karpov (a quote from my head).
Feb-20-04  ughaibu: Doesn't make any sense, why didn't playing Kasparov keep his level beyond Kasparov's reach?
Feb-20-04  Stavrogin: good point ughaibu.
a very odd quote which needs explanation!
Feb-20-04  square dance: it could be argued that karpov was a little past his prime by the time he played kasparov. maybe that is what he is alluding to in that quote.
Feb-20-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  lostemperor: What he meant is that he would raise his level by playing the world's strongest to such an extent, like Kasparov raised his level by playing him.
Feb-20-04  ughaibu: But then Kasparov would still have raised his level when meeting Karpov.
Feb-21-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  tamar: Karpov was very near to closing out the 1984 match with Kasparov 6-0, which would have changed chess history. He only had to find a6 in the 31st game, and it would have been over. I think that is the genesis of the quote. For some reason, Karpov lacked the Fischer killer instinct against Kasparov, and he ties that to the missing match with Fischer.
Feb-22-04  square dance: i think you either have some personality traits or you dont. korchnoi gave karpov good matches too and he had trouble closing him out in one match so i just think this may be wishful thinking. a fischer karpov match would have been chess at its zenith up to that point in history. it is quite likely,IMO, that they would have played more than one match so it could have been a great rivalry like kaspy/karpov.
Feb-22-04  steven18: When was the last time Karpov played in a high category tournament(Linares, Wijk ann zee etc)? I don't think it was in this century...
Feb-22-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  tamar: <When was the last time Karpov played in a high category tournament(Linares, Wijk ann zee etc)?> Wijk aan Zee 2003. Tied for 11th with Ponomariov.
Feb-22-04  henrilin: <For some reason, Karpov lacked the Fischer killer instinct against Kasparov, and he ties that to the missing match with Fischer.> It may be so that Karpov missed some killing instinct because he didn´t play Fischer, but on the other hand Karpov could have been crushed as Taimanov, Larsen and Petro. None of them recovered after 1971 in my opinion. Some interesting facts about a match Fischer-Karpov 1975: Fischers record 70-72 (including his match with Spassky) was remarkable in all senses. W: +42 =15 -2; B: +32 =22 -4
Karpovs record 73-75 was also remarkable, but in another sense. W: +45 =43 -2; B: +22 =59 -3
So Karpov had a much "worse" performance, especially with black - but, on the other hand, he didn´t lose more than five games so his losses were fewer than Fischers. It must be said that nobody could match Karpov in performance 73-75. Kortschnoj comes closest but not really near in fact. It looks like advantage Fischer if you comparae their records. On the other hand Karpov didn´t lose many games and the question is if Fischer could have found a way to break his defences. We will never know.
Feb-24-04  OneBadDog: I think that if Fischer had chosen to play Karpov and had beaten him in '75, Chess would have become a phenominally popular game. Who knows, maybe GM's could actually have made a decent living at Chess.
Feb-24-04  rafaelluiz: I agree with OneBadDog. The chessworld
lost a chance :)
Jump to page #   (enter # from 1 to 254)
search thread:   
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 5 OF 254 ·  Later Kibitzing>

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:

  1. No obscene, racist, sexist, or profane language.
  2. No spamming, advertising, duplicate, or gibberish posts.
  3. No vitriolic or systematic personal attacks against other members.
  4. Nothing in violation of United States law.
  5. No cyberstalking or malicious posting of negative or private information (doxing/doxxing) of members.
  6. No trolling.
  7. 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.
  8. Do not degrade Chessgames or any of it's staff/volunteers.

Please try to maintain a semblance of civility at all times.

Blow the Whistle

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 player 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 2001-2025, Chessgames Services LLC