AWinnipeg Free Press Saturday, July 07, 1962, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada - Page 8
Petrosian Captures Chess Title
Willemstad, Curacao — Soviet grandmaster Tigran Petrosian won the 1962 International Candidates Chess Tournament Tuesday night and the right to challenge Russia's world champion Mikhail Botvinnik.
Petrosian captured first-place in the tournament finals when fellow countryman Paul Keres was held to a tie by American Bobby Fischer in 30 moves of a queen's gambit declined.
If Keres had beaten the American, he and Petrosian would have deadlocked for the lead. The draw left Petrosian with undisputed claim to the title.
In his own match Tuesday night, Petrosian drew with Czechoslovakia's Miroslav Filip.
Spectators crowded into the Hotel Intercontinental to watch the tense final games which determined the outcome of the weeks-long tournament dominated by Petrosian and other Russian contenders.
During most of the Keres-Fischer match, Keres held the initiative, but Fischer defended tenaciously, steering for a rook and pawn ending by bringing about exchanges of major pieces.
Keres Disappointed
Keres saw no chance for victory and accepted reluctantly when Fischer proposed a draw. Keres, 46, appeared greatly disappointed afterward, having been trying for a shot at the title for more than 25 years.
Petrosian, asked how he felt, said: “I feel better than I did during the tournament. I consider this the hardest tournament I ever played in and I attribute my victory to the fact that I am 15 years younger than Keres.”
