Home » Games » Board Games » Chess & Abstract Strategy Games » At a 1976 Amsterdam chess tournament, Soviet grandmaster Viktor Korchnoi politely asked an English competitor how to spell the words “political asylum.” He then went straight to a police station and announced that he wished to defect.

At a 1976 Amsterdam chess tournament, Soviet grandmaster Viktor Korchnoi politely asked an English competitor how to spell the words “political asylum.” He then went straight to a police station and announced that he wished to defect.

Viktor Korchnoi

In this Eastern Slavic name, the patronymic is Lvovich and the family name is Korchnoi.

Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi (Russian: Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й, IPA: [vʲiktər lʲvovʲɪtɕ kɐrtɕˈnoj]; 23 March 1931 – 6 June 2016) was a Soviet (before 1976) and Swiss (after 1980) chess grandmaster and writer. He is considered one of the strongest players never to have become World Chess Champion.

Born in Leningrad, Soviet Union, Korchnoi defected to the Netherlands in 1976, and resided in Switzerland from 1978, becoming a Swiss citizen. Korchnoi played four matches, three of which were official, against GM Anatoly Karpov. In 1974, he lost the Candidates final to Karpov, who was declared World Champion in 1975 when GM Bobby Fischer refused to defend … Continue Reading (19 minute read)

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