The Unstoppable American: Bobby Fischer’s Road to Reykjavik - Jan Timman

In 1970 Bobby Fischer started his phenomenal run that would end two years later with the Match of the Century in Reykjavik, against World Champion Boris Spassky. He began by sweeping the field at the 23-round Palma Interzonal Tournament to qualify for the next stage of the cycle. In the Candidates Matches he first faced Mark Taimanov, in Vancouver. Fischer trounced the Soviet ace. Then, a few months later in Denver, he was up against Bent Larsen, the Great Dane. Fischer annihilated him, too. The surreal score in those two matches, twice 6-0, flabbergasted chess fans all over the world.In the ensuing Candidates Final in Buenos Aires, Fischer also made short shrift of former World Champion Tigran Petrosian, beating him 61⁄2-21⁄2. Altogether, Fischer had scored an incredible 36 points from 43 games against many of the world's best players, including a streak of 19 consecutive wins. Bobby Fischer had become not just a national hero in the US, but a household name with pop-star status all over the world.Jan Timman chronicles the full story of Fischer's sensational run and takes a fresh look at the games. The annotations are in the author's trademark lucid style, that happy mix of colourful background information and sharp, crystal-clear explanations.