Famous chess players biography of donald

American chess player (–)

Donald Byrne (June 12, – April 8, ) was an American university professor and chess player. He held the title International Master, and competed for his country in the Chess Olympiad on several occasions.

Biography

Born in New York City, Byrne was a professor of English. He taught at Pennsylvania State University from until his death, having been invited there to teach and to coach the varsity chess team. Before his time at Penn State, he was a professor at Valparaiso University in Indiana.

He was a competitor in the chess club run by Brooklyn chess coach and master John W. Collins. Collins wrote about his students in the book My Seven Chess Prodigies, which features both Byrne brothers, Donald and Robert (see more below), and the young Bobby Fischer.

Byrne died in Philadelphia of complications arising from lupus. He was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in

Chess career

Byrne won the U.S. Open Chess Championship in in Milwaukee and around that time he achieved the second-highest rating in the U.S., behind Samuel Reshevsky, against whom Byrne had a winning record. He was awarded the International Master title by FIDE (the World Chess Federation) in , and played for or captained five U.S. Chess Olympiad teams between and In , he led a team representing Pennsylvania State University (the remainder of the team was alumni) to the US Amateur Team Championship in Philadelphia. The winning Penn State team consisted of Byrne, Dan Heisman, Steve Wexler, Bill Bickham, and Jim Joachim (alt.). Byrne's elder brother, GrandmasterRobert Byrne, was also a leading player of that time.

Byrne was a great ambassador for American chess, seemingly on good terms with players from both sides of the Iron Curtain. At the Chess Olympiad in Havana, Cuba, Bobby Fischer, a member of the Worldwide Church of God, would not compete on Saturdays, and the tournament officials knew this, yet they scheduled his first game against a

The 'Game of the Century' is a chess game that was won by the year-old future FIDE World Champion Robert James (Bobby) Fischer, against Donald Byrne. The game was played in the '3rd Rosenwald Memorial' tournament at the 'Marshall Chess Club' in New York City, on October 17, In the Magazine 'Chess Review', Hans Kmoch dubbed it 'The Game of the Century' and wrote: "The following game, a stunning masterpiece of combination play performed by a boy of 13 against a formidable opponent, matches the finest on record in the history of chess prodigies."

Donald Byrne () was one of the leading American chess masters at the time of this game. He won the U.S. Open Championship, and represented the United States in the , , and Chess Olympiads. He became an International Master in , and probably would have risen further if not for ill health.

Bobby Fischer () was at this time a promising junior facing one of his first real tests against master-level opposition. His overall performance in the tournament was mediocre, but he soon had a meteoric rise, winning the U.S. Open on tiebreaks, winning the U.S. (Closed) Championship, and all seven later championships in which he played, qualifying the FIDE Candidates Tournament and becoming in the World's youngest grandmaster at age He won the FIDE World Championship in , and is considered one of the greatest chess players of all time.

In this game, Fischer (playing Black) demonstrates noteworthy innovation and improvisation. Byrne (playing White), after a standard opening, makes a seemingly minor mistake on move 11, losing a tempo by moving the same piece twice. Fischer pounces with brilliant sacrificial play, culminating in a queen sacrifice on move  Byrne captures the queen, but Fischer gets copious material for it – a rook, two bishops, and a pawn. In the end, Fischer's pieces coordinate to force mate, while Byrne's queen sits useless on the other side of the board.

Above is the only known picture of Fisc

The Game of the Century is a famous chess game that was won by the year-old future world champion Bobby Fischer against Donald Byrne in the Rosenwald Memorial Tournament at the Marshall Chess Club in New York City on October 17, In Chess Review, Hans Kmoch dubbed it "The Game of the Century" and wrote: "The following game, a stunning masterpiece of combination play performed by a boy of 13 against a formidable opponent, matches the finest on record in the history of chess prodigies." 

Donald Byrne (–) was one of the leading American chess masters at the time of this game. He won the U.S. Open Championship, and represented the United States in the , , and Chess Olympiads. He became an International Master in , and probably would have risen further if not for ill health. Robert "Bobby" Fischer (–) was at this time a promising junior facing one of his first real tests against master-level opposition. His overall performance in the tournament was mediocre, but he soon had a meteoric rise, winning the U.S. Open on tiebreaks, winning the –58 U.S. (Closed) Championship (and all seven later championships in which he played), qualifying for the Candidates Tournament and becoming in the world's youngest grandmaster at age He won the world championship in , and is considered one of the greatest chess players of all time.

In this game, Fischer (playing Black) demonstrates noteworthy innovation and improvisation. Byrne (playing White), after a standard opening, makes a seemingly minor mistake on move 11, losing a tempo by moving the same piece twice. Fischer pounces with brilliant sacrificial play, culminating in a queen sacrifice on move Byrne captures the queen, but Fischer gets copious material for it – a rook, two bishops, and a pawn. At the end, Fischer's pieces coordinate to force checkmate, while Byrne's queen sits useless on the other side of the board.

Asked how he was able to pull off such a brilliant win, Fischer said: "I just made the moves I thought were best.

American chess official (–)

For the marketing expert, see Don E. Schultz.

Donald Schultz (May 13, , Woodhaven, Queens, New York – April 20, , New Jersey) was a president and a vice-president of the United States Chess Federation (USCF). He was elected vice-president on August 14, He was defeated by the Susan Polgar-Paul Truong slate when he ran for re-election in July, He was a rated chess expert.

Chess organizer and official

Although an expert chess player, Schultz's greatest joy came in bringing people together through the many chess tournaments that he either organized or helped with. Schultz and his family were traveling from their home in Brussels, Belgium in to the United States to visit family when they stopped in Reykjavik, Iceland to see the Fischer/Spassky tournament. Bobby Fischer was a friend and asked him to stay on as one of his allowed council of three. This was the beginning of Schultz's foray into the world of international chess. Over the next several decades, he traveled around the world for chess conferences and tournaments, often accompanied by his wife, Teresa Russ Schultz.

Schultz first ran for USCF President in , but was defeated by Marshall Rohland. In , Schultz was appointed U.S. Delegate to FIDE, the World Chess Federation. In , in Thessaloniki, Schultz was elected to the Executive Council of FIDE.

In , he was elected to the Policy Board of the USCF. In , he organized a tour for the Israel Youth Chess Team to the US. In and he, along with Yasser Seirawan, ran a chess school for children in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. In , Schultz was elected President of the USCF for a three-year term. In , Schultz was elected to the Executive Board of the USCF for a four-year term. He is the author of two books, "Chessdon" and "Fischer, Kasparov and the Others". He has held numerous political positions in chess.

Schultz died on April 20, , in Emerson, New Jersey from complications caused by the COVID virus.

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