Mikhail Tal

Mikhail Tal (Latvian: Mihails Tāls; Russian: Михаил Нехемьевич Таль, Michail Nechem'evič Tal', [mʲixʌˈiɫ nʲɪˈxɛmʲɪvʲit͡ɕ ˈtal]; sometimes transliterated Mihails Tals or Mihail Tal) (November 9, 1936 – June 28, 1992) was a Soviet-Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion. He was often called "Misha" (a diminutive for Mikhail) and also "The magician from Riga" for his daring combinational style. Both The Mammoth Book ... more

Mikhail Tal (Latvian: Mihails Tāls; Russian: Михаил Нехемьевич Таль, Michail Nechem'evič Tal', [mʲixʌˈiɫ nʲɪˈxɛmʲɪvʲit͡ɕ ˈtal]; sometimes transliterated Mihails Tals or Mihail Tal) (November 9, 1936 – June 28, 1992) was a Soviet-Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion. He was often called "Misha" (a diminutive for Mikhail) and also "The magician from Riga" for his daring combinational style. Both The Mammoth Book of the World's Greatest Chess Games (Burgess, Nunn & Emms 2004) and Modern Chess Brilliancies (Evans 1970) include more games by Tal than any other player. Tal was also a highly-regarded chess writer. He holds the records for both the first and second longest unbeaten streaks in competitive chess history. The Mikhail Tal Memorial is held in Moscow each year since 2006 to honour his memory. Many authorities consider him to have been the greatest attacking Grandmaster of all time. Tal was born in Riga, Latvia, into a Jewish family. At the age of... less