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World Champions (2): The Lasker Years

World Champions (2): The Lasker Years

Silman
IM Jeremy Silman
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Learn from stars of the Lasker era!

IM Jeremy Silman continues his historical trek, moving on to the games of the man whose reign as World Champion lasted longer than any other -- an amazing 27 years. Emanuel Lasker was a polymath; in addition to his chess, he was an accomplished mathematician and philosopher who was also a personal friend of Albert Einstein. Lasker believed that chess was a struggle, and was probably the first champion to take a psychological approach to chess. Start playing like Lasker today!

Here is what you will learn:

  • Learn from a World Champion's greatest games!
  • Practice calculating decisive tactics!
  • Learn about Lasker's approach to chess!

Lasker-Steinitz, New York 1894

As fate would have it, Steinitz (1836-1900) met the strongest challenger of his life at the age of 58.
5 Challenges

Possible variation from the first match game (from the first match) between Lasker-Steinitz, New Yor

White appears to be winning a pawn. Black must either find a defense against these threats or come up with a way to get adequate compensation for the pawn he is about to lose.
6 Challenges

Steinitz-Lasker, New York 1894

After winning the first game of the 1894 World Championship Match, Lasker may have felt that the aging Steinitz was not going to be a big problem.
16 Challenges

Lasker-Steinitz, Philadelphia 1894

Lasker defeated Steinitz 12-7 in their match for the World Championship.
5 Challenges

Steinitz-Lasker, Philadelphia 1894

World Champions are made of different stuff than normal grandmasters.
9 Challenges

Lasker- Steinitz, Philadelphia 1894

This position is from the ninth game of the match.
7 Challenges

Lasker-Steinitz, Moscow 1896

Though Steinitz put up a real fight in their first match, the second proved to be rather anticlimactic: it became an immediate rout.
26 Challenges

Steinitz-Lasker, Moscow 1896

After winning the title from Steinitz, Lasker was inundated by criticism from all corners of the globe; nobody really considered him to be the world's best player.
9 Challenges

Marshall-Lasker, New York 1907

For various reasons, ten years went by between Lasker's title defenses.
8 Challenges

Marshall-Lasker, Philadelphia 1907

Lasker's first title defense after his rematch with Steinitz was against an American Grandmaster named Frank Marshall.
8 Challenges

Lasker-Marshall, Philadelphia 1907

In this promising position, Marshall made a mistake and missed another chance for victory. Can you find what the great American failed to see?
8 Challenges

Lasker-Tarrasch, Dusseldorf 1908

Tarrasch (1862-1934) was fond of telling everyone and anyone that he was the greatest chessplayer on earth.
8 Challenges

Tarrasch-Lasker, Dusseldorf 1908

This match, played in Dusseldorf and Munich, almost never happened.
4 Challenges

Lasker-Janowsky, First Match (Paris) 1909

The Russian born Janowsky (who made his home in Paris) was a small, energetic man who loved to attack.
10 Challenges

Janowsky-Lasker, Second Match (Paris) 1909

The present position, from the second game of the second match between Janowsky and Lasker.
11 Challenges

Schlechter-Lasker, Vienna 1910

Carl Schlechter (1874-1918) was a Viennese player who, from 1900 until his death, ranked among the top six players in the world.
5 Challenges

Lasker-Schlechter, Vienna 1910

The position in front of you is from the tenth game of this match.
4 Challenges

Janowsky-Lasker, Third Match (Berlin) 1910

The game is imbalanced and sharp. Lasker was clearly superior to Janowsky in endgames and in positional struggles.
7 Challenges

Lasker-Janowsky, Third Match (Berlin) 1910

A third match was arranged and this time Lasker humiliated his opponent by winning nine games, losing none, and drawing just three.
10 Challenges

Lasker-Janowsky, Second Match (Paris) 1909

The first moves were: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d4 exd4 6.Qxd4 Bg4 7.Nc3 Qxd4 8.Nxd4 0-0-0 9.Be3 Bb4. We have a typical Exchange Variation of the Ruy Lopez scenario.
7 Challenges

Schlechter-Lasker, Berlin 1910

The present game is the seventh of the match between Lasker and Schlechter, when Lasker was down by one point.
8 Challenges

Lasker-Tarrasch, Berlin 1916

Lasker routed poor Tarrasch with five straight wins in a 1916 match.
7 Challenges

Corzo-Capablanca, Cuba 1902

Jose Raul Capablanca (born in Cuba: 1888-1942) was a true chess genius who liked to brag that he won the first game of chess he ever played.
7 Challenges

Capablanca-Lasker, Cuba 1921

A confident Capablanca had tried for several years to organize a match with the aging Lasker.
7 Challenges

Capablanca-Lasker, Havana 1921

In the present position (the eleventh of the match) Capablanca has built up an impressive space advantage.
12 Challenges

Variation of 10th Lasker-Capablanca match game

Many thought Lasker's career over after he lost the world title.
7 Challenges

World Champions (2): The Lasker Years

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221 Challenges
Released 11/13/2007

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