Biography

Tigran Petrosian is a Soviet chess player, 9th World champion in 1963-1969, International Grandmaster (1952), chess theorist and journalist. Nine-time winner of the Chess Olympiads as part of the USSR team. He lost his parents early, and was raised by his older sister Vartush. From 1944 he worked as a janitor. He became acquainted with chess in the spring of 1941 at the Tbilisi Palace of Pioneers, where he improved for a year and a half under the guidance of Archil Ebralidze.

He achieved his first successes in the All-Union Youth Championships: at the age of 16 in 1945 - 1st-3rd place, in 1946 - 1st place; at the championships of Georgia (1945) and Armenia (1946; 1947/1948). The move to Moscow in 1950 turned out to be fateful, where his chess career began to develop rapidly. In the capital championship, he immediately demonstrated a high level, winning third place. A year later, he became the champion of Moscow, and in 1956 he repeated this success, confirming his mastery. His confident play and tactical ingenuity secured him the title of International Grandmaster, which he received in 1952. From that moment on, he became a regular participant in world championship competitions.

In 1962, Tigran won the Candidates Tournament, earning the right to a match for the World Championship with Mikhail Botvinnik. This historic match took place in Moscow and lasted almost two and a half months - from March 23 to May 20, 1963. Petrosian approached the match with full readiness, demonstrating incredible strategic endurance and skill, which brought him victory. This victory allowed Petrosian to become the ninth world champion at the age of 34, ending the long era of dominance of Botvinnik, who held the chess crown for fifteen years, starting in 1948.

The period from 1963 to 1969 was the time of two significant matches of Tigran Petrosian for the world championship against the talented chess player Boris Spassky. In 1966, Petrosian successfully defended the title. However, three years later, in 1969, Petrosian met Spassky again in a match for the world crown. This time, Spassky won, becoming the tenth world champion. This result ended Petrosian's six-year reign.

Tigran Petrosian left a bright mark in the history of chess thanks to his outstanding matches and achievements, secured his reputation as one of the greatest chess players, whose game will forever remain a model for future generations.
- IMDb mini biography by: Bazza the Beast