Boris Gelfand

Boris Gelfand
Gelfand at a 2006 tournament
Full name	Boris Abramovich Gelfand
Country	Israel
Born	(1968-06-24) 24 June 1968 Minsk, Belarussian SSR, Soviet Union
Title	Grandmaster
FIDE rating	2658 (June 2024) (No. 20 in the May 2012 FIDE World Rankings)
Peak rating	2761 (January 2010)
Ranking	No. 73 (June 2024)

Boris Abramovich Gelfand (Belarusian: Барыс Абрамавіч Гельфанд; Hebrew: בוריס אברמוביץ' גלפנד; born 24 June 1968) is an Belarusian-born Israeli chess Grandmaster. He won the 2011 Candidates Tournament and faced World Champion Viswanathan Anand for the World Chess Championship 2012. Although the match was level at 6-6, Gelfand lost in the rapid playoff games.

Biography

Boris Gelfand was born in Minsk, Belarussian SSR on 24 June 1968. His parents, Abram and Nella, were engineers. His father bought him a book about chess, Journey to the Chess Kingdom, by Averbakh and Beilin, when he was four years old.In 1980-1983, he attended the Petrosian School, where he met the former world champion in person and received advice that impacted on his life as a chess player: “I remember Petrosian saying to me that I shouldn’t make a single move without having an idea: ‘Even when you’re playing blitz, always think!’"

In 1998, Gelfand immigrated to Israel and settled in Rishon LeZion, where he became Israel's top ranking chess player. He is married to Maya.

Chess career

Early career

Gelfand was Junior Champion of the Soviet Union at 17, and European Junior Champion two years later. In 1988 he tied for first in the World Junior Championship, the title however going to Joël Lautier. The next year he earned the GM title. He has won about 30 tournaments in his professional career, including tournaments at Wijk aan Zee (in 1992 and 1994) and first places in Biel (1993), Dos Hermanas (1994), Belgrade (1995), Tilburg (1996), Malmö (1999), and Pamplona (2004).

Early World Championship Results

Gelfand has qualified several times for Candidates Tournaments for the World Chess Championship. In the World Chess Championship 1993, he qualified for the Candidates via the Interzonal. He won his first Candidates match, but was knocked out in the second (quarter-final) round by Nigel Short. In the FIDE World Chess Championship 1996 he won the Interzonal, then won his first two Candidates matches, before being eliminated in the semi-final by Anatoly Karpov. He had numerous strong results in the knockout tournaments for the FIDE World Chess Championships 1998–2004, with his best result being a semi-finalist in 1997. He played in the 8-player 2002 Dortmund Tournament, which was the Candidates for the Classical World Chess Championship 2004, but failed to reach the semi-finals.

2007 World Championship

Gelfand finished in the top 10 in the 2005 FIDE World Cup, which qualified him for the Candidates for the World Chess Championship 2007. He won his Candidates matches against Rustam Kasimdzhanov (in rapid tie-breaks) and Gata Kamsky (+2 −0 =3), to qualify for the championship tournament in September 2007. Gelfand was not one of the favourites for the World Chess Championship 2007, but he surprised most observers by finishing joint second with reigning world champion Vladimir Kramnik (third after tie breaks); the World Championship was won by Viswanathan Anand.

2012 World Championship

Main article: World Chess Championship 2012

In the Chess World Cup 2009, Gelfand was the top seed, and defeated Judit Polgár, reigning World Junior Champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Dmitry Jakovenko, and Sergey Karjakin to reach the final. He then faced former FIDE World Champion Ruslan Ponomariov for the championship, and won the match 7–5 in a playoff. By winning the Chess World Cup 2009, Gelfand qualified for the World Chess Championship 2012 Candidates Tournament.

In May 2011, Gelfand participated in the World Chess Championship 2012 Candidates tournament in Kazan, Russia where he was seeded fourth. In the quarterfinals, he won a complex struggle on the black side of the Najdorf Defense in game three to defeat Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2.5–1.5 and advance to the semifinals, where he faced American Gata Kamsky. After splitting the first four games 2–2, Kamsky won game three in the rapid playoff to go ahead 2–1, forcing Gelfand to win with black in the final rapid game in order to avoid elimination. Gelfand was up to the task, and then won the blitz playoff 2–0 to advance to the final. In the final, he faced Alexander Grischuk. After drawing the first five games, Gelfand won the sixth and final game on the white side of a Gruenfeld Defence to win the match and the tournament 3.5–2.5.
As winner of the Candidates Tournament, Gelfand faced Anand for the 2012 World Championship. His victory in game seven gave him the lead in the match, only to lose the lead in game 8 in a 17-move miniature. The match after its conclusion was level at 6 points each, but Anand won the rapid playoff 2.5-1.5 to maintain the title. Gelfand will be the top seed in the 2013 Candidates Tournament to determine who will face Anand in the World Chess Championship 2013.

Notable tournament victories

• European Youth Championship, 1989
• Majorca (GMA), 1989
• Moscow, 1992
• Manila, 1993
• Chalkidiki, 1993
• Dos Hermanas, 1994
• Debrecen, 1995
• Vienna, 1996
• Tilburg, 1996
• Polanica Zdroj, 1998
• Polanica Zdroj, 2000
• Cannes, 2002
• Pamplona, 2004
• Biel, 2005
• ACP World Rapid Cup, 2009
• Chess World Cup, 2009
• Candidates Tournament, 2011

Individual results

(Through 2007)

YEAR COUNTRY CITY EVENT CAT. RESULT 2007 Moscow II Tal Memorial 20 III–VI 2007 Calatrava II Chess Festival (rapid) open I–IV 2007 Odessa 1st ACP Cup (rapid) k.o. ½ F 2007 Prague Match vs David Navara 2719 2–2 2006 Dortmund Sparkassen Chess Meeting 19 III–V 2005 Biel XXXVIII Biel Int. Chess Festival 16 I–II 2005 Hamilton Bermuda Int. Invitational Tnt 17 I–II 2004 Pamplona XIV Torneo Int. de Ajedrez 16 I 2004 Ashdod The Int. Invitational Tnt 16 I–IV 2004 Hamilton Fourways International 16 II 2003 Mérida XVI Carlos Torre Memorial k.o. ½ F 2003 Bastia VII Corsica Masters (rapid) k.o. ¼ F 2003 Paks Match vs Judith Polgar (rapid) 2718 6–2 2003 Enghien V Masters 17 III–IV 2002 Cap d'Agde V Grand Prix (rapid) k.o. I 2002 Moscow Russia vs Rest of the World 19 PR 2788 2002 Monte Carlo XI Melody Amber (rapid) 18 I 2002 Cannes First NAO Chess Masters 18 I–II 2001 Biel XXXIV Biel Int. Chess Festival 16 III 2001 Portorož XIV Vidmar Memorial 14 II 2001 Astana Independence Tournament 20 III 2001 Monte Carlo X Melody Amber (rapid) 18 I–II 2000 Polanica Zdroj XXXVII Rubinstein Memorial 17 I 2000 Shenyang World Cup (rapid) k.o. ½ F 2000 Haifa Wydra Memorial (rapid) 16 II–III 1999 Pamplona IX Torneo Int. de Ajedrez 15 II–III 1999 Malmö Sigeman & Co 14 I 1999 Tel Aviv National Superchampionship 14 I–III 1998 Cap d'Agde World Cup (rapid) k.o. Runner Up 1998 Polanica Zdroj XXXV Rubinstein Memorial 17 I 1997 Polanica Zdroj XXXIV Rubinstein Memorial 16 II 1997 Biel XXX Biel Int. Chess Festival 17 III 1996 Groningen XXXV Int. Chess Tournament 16 II–III

YEAR COUNTRY CITY EVENT CAT. RESULT 1996 Cap d'Agde European Champ (rapid) k.o. ¼ F 1996 Tilburg Fontys 16 I–II 1996 Vienna Millenium Festival 18 I–III 1996 Dortmund XXIV Dortmunder Schachtage 18 III 1995 Belgrade Investabanka 17 I–II 1995 Biel XXVIII Biel Int. Chess Festival 15 III–IV 1994 Cap d'Agde Rencontres Internationales open I 1994 Cap d'Agde Macth vs A. Karpov (rapid) 2765 4–2 1994 Dos Hermanas VI Torneo Int. Dos Hermanas 16 I 1993 Chalkidiki Afytos, Nikiti 16 I 1993 Munich SKA – Mephisto Turnier 16 II 1992 Moscow Alekhine Memorial 18 I–II 1992 Tilburg XVI Interpolis k.o. Runner Up 1992 Munich SKA – Mephisto Turnier 15 II–III 1992 Wijk aan Zee LIV Hoogovens Schaaktoernoi 14 I–II 1991 Reggio–Emilia XXXIV Torneo di Cappodanno 18 II–III 1991 Belgrade Investabanka 15 I 1991 Munich SKA – Mephisto Turnier 14 II–V 1990 Tilburg XIV Interpolis 16 III 1990 Dortmund XVIII Dortmunder Scachtage 13 II 1990 Linares XIII Torneo Internacional 16 II 1989 Palma GMA Open open I 1989 Odessa LVI  USSR Champ 13 II–V 1989 OHRA B LVI  USSR Champ open I–III 1989 Debrecen Barcza Memorial 12 I 1988 Arnhem European Championship U20 open I–II 1988 Adelaide World Championship U20 open I–IV 1988 Vilnius USSR Championship U26 9 I–II 1987 Arnhem European Championship U20 open I 1986 Minsk Minsk International 9 II–III 1985 Yurmala USSR Championship U18 open I 1985 Minsk National Championship tt I 1984 Minsk National Championship tt I

Team results

Gelfand appeared in a total of nine Chess Olympiads, representing the Soviet Union once, Belarus twice, and Israel six times.

• In 1990, he won the team gold medal playing board two for the Soviet Union.
• In 2008, he won the team silver medal, and also an individual silver medal, playing board one for Israel.
• In 2010, he won the team bronze medal playing board one for Israel.

YEAR COUNTRY CITY EVENT TEAM RESULT 2007 Sochi Russian League Elara III 2005 St.Vincent XXI Euro Club Cup Polonia GSM Plus II 2005 Mérida Spanish League Gros Xake Taldea III 2005 Gothenburg XV Euro National Team Championship Israel II 2005 Dagomys Russian League (blitz) Termosteps Samara III 2004 Sochi Russian League (rapid) Termosteps Samara I 2003 Plovdiv XIV Euro National Team Championship Israel II 2003 Rethymnon XIX Euro Club Cup Polonia Warsaw (POL) II

YEAR COUNTRY CITY EVENT TEAM RESULT 2002 Tel Aviv Israeli League (rapid) Rishon-le-Zion I 2001 Tel Aviv Israeli League (rapid) Rishon-le-Zion I 2000 France French League Montpellier II 1999 Bugojno XV Euro Club Cup Agrouuniversal Zemun (SM) II 1999 Tel Aviv Israeli League Rishon-le-Zion II 1990 Novi Sad XXIX Olympiad USSR I 1989 Haifa IX Euro National Team Championship USSR I

Playing style

Gelfand is notable as a 1.d4 opener as White, and as a specialist in the Najdorf Sicilian, Petroff Defence, Slav Defense, and King's Indian Defence as Black. He is noted for his strong positional awareness and low proneness to mistakes.

Published works

• Gelfand, Boris (2005). My Most Memorable Games. Olms. ISBN 3-283-00453-6.

External links

• Boris Gelfand player profile and games at Chessgames.com
• Rating data
• Interview with Boris Gelfand