Lajos Steiner
Encyclopedia
Lajos Steiner was a Hungarian–born Australian chess
master.
Steiner was one of four children of Bernat Steiner, a mathematics teacher, and his wife Cecilia,(née Schwarz), and a younger brother of Endre Steiner
. He was educated at the Technical High School, Budapest
, and gained a diploma in mechanical engineering
(1926) from the Technikum Mittweida, Germany.
Both he and brother Endre started playing in master chess events in Budapest while they were schoolboys. He was granted the title of master at the age of nineteen. In the late 1920s, Steiner spent two years working as an engineer in the United States. On his return to Europe, he turned professional chess player, but made a precarious living from tournaments.
In 1923, he tied for 4-5th in Vienna. In 1925 he took 2nd, behind Sándor Takács
, in Budapest. In 1927, he won in Schandau and tied for 2nd-3rd in Kecskemét
. In 1927/28, he took 2nd. In 1929, he took 2nd in Bradley Beach. In 1931, he won in Budapest (HUN-ch
), took 5th in Vienna, and tied for 5-6th in Berlin. The event was won by Herman Steiner
. In 1932/33, he tied for 3rd-4th in Hastings
(Salo Flohr
won). In 1933, he tied for 2nd-3rd in Maehrisch-Ostrau (Ostrava
). The event was won by Ernst Grünfeld
. In 1933, he took 4th in Budapest.
In 1934, he tied for 1st-2nd with Vasja Pirc
in Maribor
(Marburg). In 1935, he tied for 1st-2nd with Erich Eliskases
in Vienna (the 18th Trebitsch Memorial). In 1935, he tied for 5-6th in Łódź (Savielly Tartakower
won) and took 4th in Tatatovaros (László Szabó
won). In 1936, he won, with Mieczysław Najdorf
, in Budapest (HUN-ch). In 1937, he took 2nd in Brno
(Brunn), and took 3rd in Zoppot (Sopot). In 1937/38, he won in Vienna (the 20th Trebitsch Memorial). In 1938, he tied for 3rd-4th in Ljubljana
(Laibach). The event was won by Borislav Kostić
. In 1938, he tied for 8-9th in Łódź where Pirc won.
Lajos Steiner played a few matches. In 1930, he lost (+3 –5 =2) to Isaac Kashdan
. In 1934, he won (+7 –3) against Pál Réthy
. In 1935, he won (+3 –1) vs Henri Grob
.
He played for Hungary in four Chess Olympiads:
He won individual bronze medal in Prague, and team gold medal and individual silver medal in Munich.
In 1936, Steiner toured Australia. Although he played in the 1936-37 Australian championship in Perth
, and won with a clean score, he was ineligible for the title. He returned to Western Australia
in the Charon on 11 March 1939, en route to settle in Sydney.
His father and brother died in Nazi concentration camps. On 19 October 1939, Steiner married Augusta Edna Kingston, who had won the New South Wales
women's chess championship six times; they remained childless. Unable to earn a living from tournament chess, he found work as a mechanical draughtsman, first with International Combustion Australasia Pty Ltd.
, and then with Electricity Meter and Allied Industries Ltd. He was naturalized as a citizen in 1944. In 1949, he was appointed a designing draughtsman at the Colonial Sugar Refining Co. Ltd's chemical factory at Lane Cove.
Lajos Steiner won the Australian Chess Championship
four times in 1945, 1946/47, 1952/53, and 1958/59. He also won nine of his ten attempts at the New South Wales
title (1940–41, 1943, 1944, 1945–46, 1953, 1955, 1958). He took 3rd in Karlovy Vary
– Mariánské Lázně
in 1948. The event was won by Jan Foltys
. He took 19th at the 1st Interzonal Tournament in Saltsjöbaden
in 1948. The event was won by David Bronstein
.
He was awarded the International Master (IM) title in 1950.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
master.
Steiner was one of four children of Bernat Steiner, a mathematics teacher, and his wife Cecilia,(née Schwarz), and a younger brother of Endre Steiner
Endre Steiner
Endre Steiner was a Hungarian chess player.Endre Steiner played for Hungary in five official and one unofficial Chess Olympiads.* In 1927, he played at first reserve board at 1st Chess Olympiad in London ....
. He was educated at the Technical High School, Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, and gained a diploma in mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
(1926) from the Technikum Mittweida, Germany.
Both he and brother Endre started playing in master chess events in Budapest while they were schoolboys. He was granted the title of master at the age of nineteen. In the late 1920s, Steiner spent two years working as an engineer in the United States. On his return to Europe, he turned professional chess player, but made a precarious living from tournaments.
In 1923, he tied for 4-5th in Vienna. In 1925 he took 2nd, behind Sándor Takács
Sándor Takács
Sándor Takács was a Hungarian chess master, born Károly Sydlauer in Miskolc, Hungary.- Career :In 1922, he took 13th in Vienna . In 1924, he took 6th in Meran . In 1925, Takacs won, ahead of Lajos Steiner, in Budapest...
, in Budapest. In 1927, he won in Schandau and tied for 2nd-3rd in Kecskemét
Kecskemét
Kecskemét is a city in the central part of Hungary. It is the 8th largest city of the country, and the county seat of Bács-Kiskun.Kecskemét lies halfway between the capital Budapest and the country's third-largest city, Szeged, 86 kilometres from both of them and almost equal distance from the two...
. In 1927/28, he took 2nd. In 1929, he took 2nd in Bradley Beach. In 1931, he won in Budapest (HUN-ch
Hungarian Chess Championship
The inaugural Hungarian Chess Championship was held in the city of Győr in 1906. Initially, there was no governing body responsible for its organisation, until the formation of the Hungarian Chess Federation. The HCF first appeared in 1911, but failed to establish itself properly until 1923...
), took 5th in Vienna, and tied for 5-6th in Berlin. The event was won by Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner was a United States chess player, organizer, and columnist.He won the U.S. Chess Championship in 1948 and became International Master in 1950....
. In 1932/33, he tied for 3rd-4th in Hastings
Hastings International Chess Congress
The Hastings International Chess Congress is an annual chess congress which takes place in Hastings, England, around the turn of the year. The main event is the Hastings Premier tournament, which was traditionally a 10 to 16 player round-robin tournament. In 2004/05 the tournament was played in the...
(Salo Flohr
Salo Flohr
Salomon Mikhailovich Flohr was a leading Czech and later Soviet chess grandmaster of the mid-20th century, who became a national hero in Czechoslovakia during the 1930s. His name was used to sell many of the luxury products of the time, including Salo Flohr cigarettes, slippers and eau-de-cologne...
won). In 1933, he tied for 2nd-3rd in Maehrisch-Ostrau (Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
). The event was won by Ernst Grünfeld
Ernst Grünfeld
----Ernst Franz Grünfeld , an Austrian grandmaster and writer specializing in opening theory, was for a brief period after the First World War one of the strongest chess players in the world....
. In 1933, he took 4th in Budapest.
In 1934, he tied for 1st-2nd with Vasja Pirc
Vasja Pirc
Vasja Pirc was a leading Slovenian chess player. His name is most familiar to contemporary players as the originator of the hypermodern Pirc Defense...
in Maribor
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
(Marburg). In 1935, he tied for 1st-2nd with Erich Eliskases
Erich Eliskases
Erich Gottlieb Eliskases was a chess Grandmaster of the 1930s and 1940s, who represented Austria, Germany and Argentina in international competition....
in Vienna (the 18th Trebitsch Memorial). In 1935, he tied for 5-6th in Łódź (Savielly Tartakower
Savielly Tartakower
Ksawery Tartakower was a leading Polish and French chess Grandmaster. He was also a leading chess journalist of the 1920s and 30s...
won) and took 4th in Tatatovaros (László Szabó
László Szabó (chess player)
László Szabó was a prominent Hungarian Grandmaster of chess.Born in Budapest, he burst onto the international chess scene in 1935, at the unusually young age of 18...
won). In 1936, he won, with Mieczysław Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf was a Polish-born Argentine chess grandmaster of Jewish origin, famous for his Najdorf Variation....
, in Budapest (HUN-ch). In 1937, he took 2nd in Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
(Brunn), and took 3rd in Zoppot (Sopot). In 1937/38, he won in Vienna (the 20th Trebitsch Memorial). In 1938, he tied for 3rd-4th in Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
(Laibach). The event was won by Borislav Kostić
Borislav Kostic
Borislav Kostić was a Serbian professional chess grandmaster from Vršac , then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire ....
. In 1938, he tied for 8-9th in Łódź where Pirc won.
Lajos Steiner played a few matches. In 1930, he lost (+3 –5 =2) to Isaac Kashdan
Isaac Kashdan
Isaac Kashdan was an American chess grandmaster and chess writer. Kashdan was one of the world's best players in the late 1920s and early 1930s. He was twice U.S. Open champion...
. In 1934, he won (+7 –3) against Pál Réthy
Pál Réthy
Pál Réthy was a Hungarian chess master.Born in Deva, Transylvania , he lived in Hungary after World War I...
. In 1935, he won (+3 –1) vs Henri Grob
Henri Grob
Henri Grob was a Swiss chess master.Grob represented Switzerland in Chess Olympiads.* In 1927, at fourth board in 1st Chess Olympiad in London ;...
.
He played for Hungary in four Chess Olympiads:
- In 1931, he played at second board at 4th Chess Olympiad4th Chess OlympiadThe 4th Chess Olympiad, organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 11 and July 26, 1931, in Prague, Czechoslovakia...
in PraguePraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
(+10 –3 =4). - In 1933, he played at second board at 5th Chess Olympiad5th Chess OlympiadThe 5th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 12 and July 23, 1933, in Folkestone, United Kingdom...
in FolkestoneFolkestoneFolkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
(+5 –4 =5). - In 1935, he played at first board at 6th Chess Olympiad6th Chess OlympiadThe 6th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 16 and August 31, 1935, in Warsaw, Poland...
in Warsaw (+7 –4 =7). - In 1936, he played at second board at 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad3rd unofficial Chess OlympiadThe 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad was held by German Chess Federation as a counterpart of the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin with reference to 1924 and 1928 events....
in MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
(+13 –2 =5).
He won individual bronze medal in Prague, and team gold medal and individual silver medal in Munich.
In 1936, Steiner toured Australia. Although he played in the 1936-37 Australian championship in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, and won with a clean score, he was ineligible for the title. He returned to Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
in the Charon on 11 March 1939, en route to settle in Sydney.
His father and brother died in Nazi concentration camps. On 19 October 1939, Steiner married Augusta Edna Kingston, who had won the New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
women's chess championship six times; they remained childless. Unable to earn a living from tournament chess, he found work as a mechanical draughtsman, first with International Combustion Australasia Pty Ltd.
International Combustion
International Combustion Limited was a major manufacturing business based in Derby offering products for the nuclear engineering industry. International Combustion Australia Limited was a separate non-affiliated company.-History:...
, and then with Electricity Meter and Allied Industries Ltd. He was naturalized as a citizen in 1944. In 1949, he was appointed a designing draughtsman at the Colonial Sugar Refining Co. Ltd's chemical factory at Lane Cove.
Lajos Steiner won the Australian Chess Championship
Australian Chess Championship
The Australian Chess Championship is a tournament organised by the Australian Chess Federation and held every two years. The tournament is usually restricted to Australian chess players, although exceptions have been made on occasion. The winner of the tournament holds the title of Australian Chess...
four times in 1945, 1946/47, 1952/53, and 1958/59. He also won nine of his ten attempts at the New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
title (1940–41, 1943, 1944, 1945–46, 1953, 1955, 1958). He took 3rd in Karlovy Vary
Karlovy Vary
Karlovy Vary is a spa city situated in western Bohemia, Czech Republic, on the confluence of the rivers Ohře and Teplá, approximately west of Prague . It is named after King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, who founded the city in 1370...
– Mariánské Lázně
Mariánské Lázne
Mariánské Lázně is a spa town in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. The town, surrounded by green mountains, is a mosaic of parks and noble houses...
in 1948. The event was won by Jan Foltys
Jan Foltys
Jan Foltys , was a Czech chess International Master.-Biography:...
. He took 19th at the 1st Interzonal Tournament in Saltsjöbaden
Saltsjöbaden
Saltsjöbaden is a locality situated in Nacka Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 8,937 inhabitants in 2005. It is located on the coast of the Baltic Sea.- History :...
in 1948. The event was won by David Bronstein
David Bronstein
David Ionovich Bronstein was a Soviet chess grandmaster, who narrowly missed becoming World Chess Champion in 1951. Bronstein was described by his peers as a creative genius and master of tactics...
.
He was awarded the International Master (IM) title in 1950.