Lothar Schmid
Encyclopedia
Lothar Maximilian Lorenz Schmid (born 10 May 1928) is a German chess
grandmaster who was born in Dresden
. He is best known as the arbiter
of several World Chess Championship
matches. Also a collector of chess books and paraphernalia, he owns the largest known private chess library
in the world and has a renowned collection of chess art masterpieces and chess boards and pieces from all around the globe.
in Wiessenfels (SBZ-ch). In April 1948, he tied for second/third place in Celle (Carl Ahues
won). In September 1948, he tied for fourth/fifth place at the full German Chess Championship
(12th GER-ch) in Essen. The event was won by Wolfgang Unzicker
. In May 1949, he took third in Bad Pyrmont (13th GER-ch). The event was won by Efim Bogoljubow
. In August 1949, he tied for first in Grossröhrsdorf. In 1950, he drew (4 : 4) a match with Wade in Bamberg. In 1951, he won in Travemünde. In 1951/52, he took third in Hastings (Svetozar Gligorić
won). In 1953, he tied for second/third place, behind Esteban Canal
, in Venice. In 1954, he won in Zürich. In March 1955, he won in Nuremberg. In October 1955, he took second, behind Klaus Darga
, in Hoechst (third FRG-ch). In 1956, he won in Göteborg. In 1957, he took fourth in Dublin (zonal). The event was won by Luděk Pachman
. In October 1959, he took second, behind Unzicker, in Nuremberg (5th FRG-ch). In 1963, he tied for first in Malaga. In 1964, he won in Wilderness. In 1964, he tied for fourth/fifth in Zürich. In 1968 in his home town of Bamberg
, he tied for second place with Tigran Petrosian
(who was world champion at the time), behind Paul Keres
, an outcome described by the Oxford Companion to Chess as Schmid's greatest playing achievement. In 1970, he won in Mar del Plata
. In 1971, he tied for second/fourth in Adelaida. In 1979, he tied for third/fourth in Lugano.
Lothar Schmid played for West Germany at eleven Chess Olympiad
s.
He won four individual silver medals (1950, 1952, 1968, 1970) and two team bronze medals (1950, 1964).
Schmid played for FRG team at twelve Clare Benedict Cup. He won nine gold, one silver, and two bronze medals in 1957–1973.
He won first German Correspondence Championship (1950–1952), won first Eduard Dyckhoff
Memorial (1954–1956), and came second with Lucius Endzelins, behind Viacheslav Ragozin
, in the second World Correspondence Championship in (1956–1959).
Schmid was awarded the IM title in 1951, and the GM and GMC titles in 1959.
(IA) title in 1975. He was the arbiter for the Fischer–Spassky 1972, Karpov–Korchnoi 1978
, Kasparov–Karpov 1986
World Championship matches, and also Fischer–Spassky 1992 (the 'Revenge Match').
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...
grandmaster who was born in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
. He is best known as the arbiter
International Arbiter
In chess, International Arbiter is a title awarded by FIDE to individuals deemed capable of acting as arbiter in important chess matches . The title was established in 1951....
of several World Chess Championship
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
matches. Also a collector of chess books and paraphernalia, he owns the largest known private chess library
Chess libraries
Chess libraries are library collections of books and periodicals on the game of chess.Chess has a very extensive literature, probably exceeding that of all other games combined....
in the world and has a renowned collection of chess art masterpieces and chess boards and pieces from all around the globe.
Playing career
In 1941, at the beginning of his career, Schmid won the Dresden Championship. In 1943, he took second in Vienna (German Juniors Championship). In June 1947, he tied for first with Gerhard PfeifferGerhard Pfeiffer
Gerhard Pfeiffer was a German chess master and chess problemist.He tied for 5-7th at Bad Oeynhausen 1941 ; shared 1st with Lothar Schmid at Wiessenfels 1947 ; shared 10th at Bad Pyrmont 1949 ; took 2nd, behind Rudolf Teschner,...
in Wiessenfels (SBZ-ch). In April 1948, he tied for second/third place in Celle (Carl Ahues
Carl Ahues
Carl Oscar Ahues was a German chess International Master.He was Berlin champion in 1910. He was German Champion in 1929 winning the 26th DSB Congress in Duisburg. In 1930, he took 6th in San Remo , tied for 4-5th in Scarborough , and tied for 3-5th in Liege...
won). In September 1948, he tied for fourth/fifth place at the full German Chess Championship
German Chess Championship
The German Chess Championship has been played since 1861, and determines the national champion.Prior to 1880 three different federations organized chess activities in Germany: the Westdeutscher Schachbund , the Norddeutscher Schachbund and the Mitteldeutscher Schachbund . Each one organized its...
(12th GER-ch) in Essen. The event was won by Wolfgang Unzicker
Wolfgang Unzicker
Wolfgang Unzicker was one of the strongest German chess Grandmasters from 1945 to about 1970.He decided against making chess his profession, choosing law instead....
. In May 1949, he took third in Bad Pyrmont (13th GER-ch). The event was won by Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Dmitriyevich Bogolyubov was a Russo-German chess grandmaster who won numerous events and played two matches with Alexander Alekhine for the world championship.-Early career:...
. In August 1949, he tied for first in Grossröhrsdorf. In 1950, he drew (4 : 4) a match with Wade in Bamberg. In 1951, he won in Travemünde. In 1951/52, he took third in Hastings (Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
won). In 1953, he tied for second/third place, behind Esteban Canal
Esteban Canal
Esteban Canal was a leading Peruvian chess player who had his best tournament results in the 1920s and 1930s.-Birth and life:Born in Chiclayo, Peru, he moved to Italy in the 1920s and remained there.-As a chess player:...
, in Venice. In 1954, he won in Zürich. In March 1955, he won in Nuremberg. In October 1955, he took second, behind Klaus Darga
Klaus Darga
Klaus Viktor Darga is a German Grandmaster chess player.In 1951 Darga became German Junior Champion after winning the national under-20 championship. He also proved his strength as a young chessplayer by sharing first place in the World Junior Championship of 1953, with Oscar Panno of Argentina...
, in Hoechst (third FRG-ch). In 1956, he won in Göteborg. In 1957, he took fourth in Dublin (zonal). The event was won by Luděk Pachman
Ludek Pachman
Luděk Pachman was a Czechoslovak-German chess grandmaster, chess writer, and political activist. In 1972, after being imprisoned and tortured almost to death by the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia, he was allowed to emigrate to West Germany...
. In October 1959, he took second, behind Unzicker, in Nuremberg (5th FRG-ch). In 1963, he tied for first in Malaga. In 1964, he won in Wilderness. In 1964, he tied for fourth/fifth in Zürich. In 1968 in his home town of Bamberg
Bamberg
Bamberg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Upper Franconia on the river Regnitz, close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed by World War II bombings because of a nearby Artillery Factory that prevented planes from...
, he tied for second place with Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian grandmaster, and World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969. He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his playing style because of his almost impenetrable defence, which emphasised safety above all else...
(who was world champion at the time), behind Paul Keres
Paul Keres
Paul Keres , was an Estonian chess grandmaster, and a renowned chess writer. He was among the world's top players from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s....
, an outcome described by the Oxford Companion to Chess as Schmid's greatest playing achievement. In 1970, he won in Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata chess tournament
Mar del Plata has a rich history of chess tournaments, most notably their international chess tournament and open tournament.There is also an annual city tournament, which had its first edition in 1946, and reached its 62nd edition in 2007....
. In 1971, he tied for second/fourth in Adelaida. In 1979, he tied for third/fourth in Lugano.
Lothar Schmid played for West Germany at eleven Chess Olympiad
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
s.
- In 1950, at second board at the 9th Olympiad9th Chess OlympiadThe 9th 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 20 and September 11, 1950, in Dubrovnik, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia .The final results were as follows:-Final :The...
in DubrovnikDubrovnikDubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
(+7 −1 =4). - In 1952, at second board at the 10th Olympiad10th Chess OlympiadThe 10th 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 9 and August 31, 1952, in Helsinki, Finland.-References:* OlimpBase...
in HelsinkiHelsinkiHelsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
(+7 −1 =4). - In 1954, at second board at the 11th Olympiad11th Chess OlympiadThe 11th 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 September 4 and September 25, 1954, in Amsterdam, Netherlands...
in AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
(+6 −4 =3). - In 1956, at second board at the 12th Olympiad12th Chess OlympiadThe 12th 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 31 and September 25, 1956, in Moscow, Soviet Union.-References:...
in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
(+4 −2 =7). - In 1958, at third board at the 13th Olympiad13th Chess OlympiadThe 13th 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 September 30 and October 23, 1958, in Munich, West Germany.-References:...
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...
(+6 −3 =4). - In 1960, at second board at the 14th Olympiad14th Chess OlympiadThe 14th 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 October 26 and November 9, 1960, in Leipzig, East Germany.-References:...
in LeipzigLeipzigLeipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
(+7 −2 =5). - In 1962, at third board at the 15th Olympiad15th Chess OlympiadThe 15th 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 September 15 and October 10, 1962, in Varna, Bulgaria.-References:* OlimpBase...
in VarnaVarnaVarna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
(+4 −2 =2). - In 1964, at third board in at the 16th Olympiad16th Chess OlympiadThe 16th 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 November 2 and November 25, 1964, in Tel Aviv, Israel.-References:* OlimpBase...
Tel AvivTel AvivTel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
(+7 −2 =5). - In 1968, at second board in at the 18th Olympiad18th Chess OlympiadThe 18th 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 October 17 and November 7, 1968, in Lugano, Switzerland.-References:* OlimpBase...
LuganoLuganoLugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy...
(+6 −0 =6). - In 1970, at second board in at the 19th Olympiad19th Chess OlympiadThe 19th Chess Olympiad, comprising an open team tournament and the Annual Congress of the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, took place between September 5 and September 27, 1970, in the small town of Siegen, West Germany.-Tournament report:...
SiegenSiegenSiegen is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia.It is located in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the Arnsberg region...
(+7 −1 =4). - In 1974, at first board in at the 21st Olympiad21st Chess OlympiadThe 21st 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 June 6 and June 30, 1974, in Nice, France.-References:* OlimpBase...
NiceNiceNice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
(+5 −3 =7).
He won four individual silver medals (1950, 1952, 1968, 1970) and two team bronze medals (1950, 1964).
Schmid played for FRG team at twelve Clare Benedict Cup. He won nine gold, one silver, and two bronze medals in 1957–1973.
He won first German Correspondence Championship (1950–1952), won first Eduard Dyckhoff
Eduard Dyckhoff
Eduard Dyckhoff was a German doctor of law and chess player. He won the Bavarian Chess Championship in 1913 and again in 1942, and is often considered an important figure in the development of correspondence chess in the early 20th century. Dyckhoff was born in Augsburg and died in Bad...
Memorial (1954–1956), and came second with Lucius Endzelins, behind Viacheslav Ragozin
Viacheslav Ragozin
Viacheslav Vasilyevich Ragozin was a Soviet chess Grandmaster, an International Arbiter of chess, and a World Correspondence Chess Champion. He was also a chess writer and editor.- Biography :...
, in the second World Correspondence Championship in (1956–1959).
Schmid was awarded the IM title in 1951, and the GM and GMC titles in 1959.
Arbiter
Schmid is also a well known chess arbiter, awarded the International ArbiterInternational Arbiter
In chess, International Arbiter is a title awarded by FIDE to individuals deemed capable of acting as arbiter in important chess matches . The title was established in 1951....
(IA) title in 1975. He was the arbiter for the Fischer–Spassky 1972, Karpov–Korchnoi 1978
World Chess Championship 1978
The 1978 World Chess Championship was played between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi in Baguio City, Philippines from July 18 to October 18, 1978. Karpov won.- Qualification :...
, Kasparov–Karpov 1986
World Chess Championship 1986
The 1986 World Chess Championship was played between Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov in London and Leningrad from July 28 to October 8, 1986. Kasparov won. Anatoly Karpov was already assured of this rematch during his previous year's match which was won by Garry Kasparov.-Results:The match was...
World Championship matches, and also Fischer–Spassky 1992 (the 'Revenge Match').
Notable chess games
- Lothar Schmid vs Walter Sahlmann, Essen 1948, 12th GER-ch, Sicilian, Chameleon, B20, 1-0
- Efim Bogoljubow vs Lothar Schmid, Bad Pyrmont 1949, 13th GER-ch, Scotch Game, Schmid Gambit, C47, 0-1 Desperado pieceDesperado pieceIn chess, a desperado piece is a piece that seems determined to give itself up, typically either to sell itself as dearly as possible in a situation where both sides have hanging pieces or to bring about stalemate if it is captured...
! - Lothar Schmid vs Herman Steiner (USA), Dubrovnik 1950, 9th Olympiad, Sicilian, O'Kelly Variation, B28, 1-0
- Juan Carlos Gonzales Zamora (CUB) vs Lothar Schmid, Helsinki 1952, 10th Olympiad, English Opening, King's English Variation, Reversed Sicilian, A21, 0-1 Classical ending mastery.
- Lothar Schmid vs Paul Keres (URS), Tel Aviv 1964, 16th Olympiad, Ruy Lopez, Closed, C92, 1-0 After long and exhausting battle White broke down Black's resistance.
- Grantel Gibbs (HKG) vs Lothar Schmid, Lugano 1968, 18th Olympiad, Alekhine's Defense, B02, 0-1 Shortest decisive game of the OlympiadChess OlympiadThe Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
. - Lothar Schmid vs Bent Larsen, San Juan 1969, Sicilian, Richter-Rauzer Variation, B60, 1-0
- Lothar Schmid vs Anton Kinzel (AUT), Siegen 1970, 19th Olympiad, Russian Game, Modern Attack, C43, 1-0 Best game prize !