The latest book in the Forgotten Genius series by Thinkers Publishing, The Life and Games of Dragoljub Velimirovic (Volume 2) by Georg Mohr and Ana Velimirovic-Zorica, is now available on Forward Chess.
Picking up immediately after the end of the first volume, this time we have games, stories and photographs all the way from 1976 to 2010.
It is good to be able to read and enjoy many anecdotes from those who knew the player who, despite his extremely impressive attacking flair, never quite managed to push his way up to the highest levels of chess.
According to Vlastimil Hort, Velimirovic was known to him and his Czechoslovakian teammates – in the chess Olympiads of old – as the ‘Yugoslavian Tal’. In their team meetings, it was spelled out that whoever had to face him in the team matches ‘was forbidden to play the Sicilian Defence’ due, of course, to Velimirovic’s habitual devastating attacks after 1 e4 c5.
Even Garry Kasparov – on his way to the (eventually) winning the World Chess Championship, a route paved with several ferocious Sicilian battles against Anatoly Karpov, avoided the issue in the 1982 Interzonal Tournament, when he played the Caro-Kann Defense against Velimirovic instead.
The Life and Games of Grandmaster Dragoljub Velimirovic: Volume 2
Authors: Georg Mohr and Ana Velimirovic – Zorica
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To whet the appetite, here are some snippets to show how aggressive and creative Velimirovic was over the board.
Velimirovic – Adorjan
Interzonal, Szirak, 1987
The next snippet shows Velimirovic remaining true to his style against the real Tal.
Tal – Velimirovic
USSR vs. Yugoslavia, 1979
The pawn structure makes it clear that Velimirovic has played his favourite Benoni Defense, despite the quality of the opposition. This was, perhaps, both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. No doubt he could have taken more points from the elite platers by dialling back the aggression on occasion, but that simply was not his style.
On the other hand, his completely uncompromising approach did bring notable victories, such as this one.
The problem was that more often than not, the elite players would have seen through the tricks and exploited them as errors. Additionally, top players would switch their openings to keep Velimirovic quiet. For example, Efim Geller, a great theoretician, played as White against him six times and on each occasion started with 1 Nf3!
The last game in the book – against Viktorya Cmilyte – will no doubt bring a smile to the face of chess fans; Velimirovic, true to his style until the end, played a very wild Four Pawns Attack against Alekhine’s Defence.
Velimirovic – Cmilyte
Marianske Lazne, 2010
The Life and Games of Grandmaster Dragoljub Velimirovic: Volume 2
Authors: Georg Mohr and Ana Velimirovic – Zorica
Buy Now | View Sample
This book – just like the first volume – is highly recommended to those who like to see swashbuckling chess in action.
Sean Marsh
writing for even longer.
He is the author of the best-selling Batsford’s Chess Bible and is the
chief trainer for the UK charity, Chess in Schools and Communities. Sean
is also an active player, tutor, coach, professional blogger and is the
chairperson for international conferences and quizzes.
- Dover Books are finally here! - November 20, 2024
- Book Review: Moves 3 to 10 by Nery Strasman - August 9, 2024
- The Life and Games of Dragoljub Velimirovic (Volume 2) by Georg Mohr and Ana Velimirovic-Zorica - July 23, 2024
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