Tournament Diary

Master B. Naglis

On September 8, at 10:30 in the morning, the first round began in the club of the K. Marx sanatorium. Fourteen players took their places at the tables. Only Czechoslovak grandmaster Novotný was absent, as, according to the schedule, he had the bye in the first round. The chess world had already heard of him. Last year N. Rýc studied in the third year of the philosophy faculty of Moscow University, regularly playing for the MSU team.

Among the foreign chess players, great interest was aroused by the participation of the young — perhaps only in terms of experience, but not age — Hungarian grandmaster Károly Honfi. In recent years Honfi has achieved impressive successes.

Experienced international masters Victor Ciocâltea (Romania) and Stanimir Nikolić (Yugoslavia) were to fight for the grandmaster title. However, the required norm was high. Looking ahead, I shall say that only one winner of the tournament managed to achieve it.

Less well known in our country are the young masters Milorad Knežević and Petar Orev.

The sporting honor of the Soviet Union was entrusted to our international grandmasters David Bronstein, Efim Geller, Evgeny Vasiukov, Vladimir Simagin, Leonid Shamkovich — all from Moscow — and the Kyiv player Eduard Gufeld.

Moscow also delegated to the tournament the international master Abram Khasin and master Felix Ignatiev. The tenth USSR representative, replacing David Bronstein, turned out to be the nine-time Georgian champion, master Bukhuti Gurgenidze.

Thus, eight Soviet and six foreign chess players entered the tournament.

Much interest was aroused by the grandmaster duel Bronstein — Honfi. The Muscovite is famous for his Finnish spurs, while on the board he generally plays much more calmly. This time Bronstein did not change his tradition. The Hungarian grandmaster, however, was ready for battle: he very much wanted revenge for his loss at the tournament in Miskolc, Hungary. The complicated maneuvering struggle ended before the first time control with a repetition of moves.

The game Ciocâltea — Ignatiev also ended in a draw. In it the Romanian champion demonstrated the correct method of defense. Let me recall that at the XV Olympiad in Varna in 1962, Fischer lost to Ciocâltea after making many mistakes in a similar position.

Vasiukov defeated Geller in excellent style. In the Ufimtsev Defence, Black managed to seize the initiative and, sacrificing two pawns, launched a strong attack against the enemy king. By move 33 Geller was forced to resign.

Gurgenidze won very attractively against Orev, choosing Alekhine’s Defence.

The Yugoslav master Knežević already had experience in major international tournaments. However, in the game against grandmaster Simagin he played the opening somewhat weakly, allowed his opponent to take the initiative, and the Moscow grandmaster calmly and confidently carried the game to victory.

The game Shamkovich — Khasin was adjourned in a difficult position for Black, and after adjournment it ended in victory for the grandmaster.

Nikolić consistently played against Gufeld, seeking an obvious positional advantage. He gradually transformed it into a material one, and although the game remained unfinished, its result was predetermined.

Standings after round 1: Vasiukov, Gurgenidze, Nikolić, Simagin, Shamkovich — 1 point each; Bronstein, Ignatiev, Ciocâltea, Honfi — ½ point each; Geller, Gufeld, Knežević, Orev, Khasin — 0 points. Ignatiev had the bye.

Again there were only two draws and five decisive games in the round.

Especially effective was Gurgenidze’s victory over the Hungarian grandmaster Honfi. Black’s 21st move, ...Сс8!, convincingly proved that White’s king was doomed. Under threat of unavoidable mate, Honfi resigned.

Geller, ignoring all the “incidents” of misfortune, once again mastered the opening and shortly seized the initiative. A time-trouble mistake by White hastened the outcome.

Entering the tournament, Rýc gradually achieved a large advantage against Nikolić and on the day of adjournment scored his first point.

Gufeld spent the entire time looking for small miracles in the game against Shamkovich. In a strong mutual time scramble the Muscovite twice could have demanded a win on the grounds of a threefold repetition, but he mentioned it only after the control flag on his clock had fallen on move 40. “Maybe I have not overstepped after all? Check again.” said Shamkovich to the arbiter. In fairness it must be noted that with this loss on time the Moscow grandmaster merely spared himself from exhausting and futile further resistance.

Simagin for a long time maintained a sensitive positional advantage against Ciocâltea. However, the Romanian master showed great inventiveness in defence and held the half-point after adjournment.

The game Vasiukov — Bronstein was short in number of moves, but long in time. It is enough to say that Vasiukov thought for 53 minutes over his ninth move. In the concluded position, which was followed by a draw agreement, White had more of a moral advantage than real winning chances; if they could continue playing for a win, then at any rate not against Bronstein.

Standings after round 2: Gurgenidze — 2 points; Vasiukov, Simagin — 1½ each; Rýc — 1 from 1; Bronstein, Geller, Gufeld, Knežević, Nikolić, Ciocâltea, Shamkovich — 1 each; Ignatiev — ½ from 1; Honfi — ½; Orev, Khasin — 0 points.

Round 3

Bronstein always plays very successfully against Khasin, and this time too he obtained an advantage from the opening. However, in the complications that arose the grandmaster did not play in the best way and fell under a powerful time scramble. In the last 18 moves he had only two minutes left. Khasin won one pawn after another, and Bronstein resigned without playing out the adjourned position. Having begun the tournament with two consecutive defeats, Khasin scored a very important victory for himself.

In the time scramble the result of another game was decided. Having obtained a somewhat worse position from the opening, Orev began an interesting exchange combination in the game against Ciocâltea and almost equalized. However, being short of time, the Bulgarian master played far from the best way and lost.

The game Ignatiev — Simagin developed tensely. A hidden version of the Sicilian Defence led to a sharp position in which the grandmaster incautiously allowed his opponent to advance his b-pawn. The consequences were catastrophic. Seeking counterchances, Black sacrificed a rook, but when it became clear that compensation could not be obtained, Simagin congratulated the master on his victory.

Shamkovich gradually outplayed Rýc and created a decisive attack against his king. After calm maneuvering, the games Geller — Gufeld, Gurgenidze — Vasiukov and Knežević — Honfi ended in draws.

Standings after round 3: Gurgenidze — 2½; Vasiukov, Shamkovich, Nikolić — 2 each; Ignatiev — 1½ from 2; Geller, Gufeld, Knežević, Simagin — 1½ each; Ciocâltea, Rýc — 1 from 2; Bronstein, Khasin, Honfi — 1 each; Orev — 0 points.

Round 4

Rýc chose the Czech variation against Geller, a continuation rarely used by the Czechoslovak grandmaster. However, Geller, who had once lost to Hort in this line, easily equalized. Soon Rýc made a mistake. The rest, as they say, was only a matter of technique.

In the game Vasiukov — Knežević the Yugoslav master again used Alekhine’s Defence, which had been very popular at the Kislovodsk tournament. Shortly before this, in the weekly 64, there had been a note by Taimanov about interesting possibilities in one of the variations of this defence. Kislovodsk had already discussed the continuation proposed there, and Vasiukov turned out not to be aware of the latest Yugoslav findings. Knežević easily equalized, and already by move 27 the opponents began peace negotiations.

Gurgenidze likes to use rare opening continuations. Meeting Khasin, he chose one of the variations of the Old Indian Defence, connected with an early bishop sortie to b4. However, Black did not fully equalize. After lengthy maneuvering the Muscovite achieved an obvious positional advantage, then won a pawn, after which the fate of the game was decided. Gurgenidze resigned on move 31.

The dramatic game Honfi — Ciocâltea ended in a loss for White. The Hungarian grandmaster played the game very consistently, sharply sacrificed a queen and obtained a clearly won position by the adjournment. Ciocâltea’s own queen was imprisoned, but he did not begin to play out the position, as there was no chance of saving it, though he did not resign either and decided to make several more moves. After some moves, White had to resign. This unexpected defeat affected the Hungarian grandmaster so much that he could not recover from the shock until the end of the tournament.

The game Gufeld — Bronstein proved to be the longest in the tournament. Even with the postponement, White already had two extra pawns in the ending, and it seemed that victory would be achieved without special difficulty. But Gufeld played extremely unclearly and on move 90 finally lost the win. The game was then adjourned again and ended in a draw only on move 101 after eleven hours of play.

Thus, Nikolić and Shamkovich drew their game.

In the game with Orev, Ignatiev easily equalized and, sacrificing a pawn, seized the initiative. Unable to defend against numerous threats, the Bulgarian master resigned.

Standings after round 4: Ciocâltea — 3 points; Ignatiev — 2½ from 3; Vasiukov, Geller, Gurgenidze, Shamkovich — 2½ each; Gufeld, Knežević, Khasin — 2 each; Nikolić and Simagin — 1½ from 3; Bronstein — 1½; Rýc — 1 from 3; Honfi — 1; Orev — 0 points.

Round 5

Ignatiev does not dazzle his opponents with a wide variety of opening systems. Very often he plays one and the same variation of the English Opening, which he knows perfectly. Although his opponents can prepare for this system, they nevertheless almost always experience difficulties. So it was in the fifth round as well. The Hungarian grandmaster was unable to oppose anything to White’s steady and consistent play. Ignatiev carried out a beautiful combination. White won material, and in the resulting ending Honfi had to resign. Ignatiev became the sole leader of the tournament.

An English Opening also occurred in the game Geller — Nikolić. From a complicated position the grandmaster carried out an interesting queen sacrifice, obtaining in exchange a rook, bishop and pawn. Nikolić continued to play in the worst way and lost.

Bronstein played an original opening against Rýc. Skillfully luring the enemy knight into his camp, the grandmaster cut off his retreat. The loss of a piece became inevitable. Soon Rýc resigned.

After quiet play, Gurgenidze drew with Gufeld, Knežević with Khasin, and Ciocâltea with Vasiukov.

In the middlegame Orev gave Simagin a pawn and obtained some compensation, but just before adjournment he made a mistake. In the adjournment Black could still save the game, but as it turned out, Orev played only for a win. When Black decided to adjourn the game for a second time and asked the judges for an envelope, it turned out that with the next move they would get mate.

Standings after round 5: Ignatiev — 3½ from 4; Geller, Ciocâltea — 3½ each; Vasiukov, Gurgenidze — 3 each; Simagin, Shamkovich — 2½ from 4; Bronstein, Gufeld, Knežević, Khasin — 2½ each; Nikolić — 1½ from 4; Rýc — 1 from 4; Honfi — 1; Orev — 0.

Round 6

Of the seven games played, once again five were decisive. It may be confidently stated that not a single round of the representative international tournament at the Central Club passed in a sluggish or tensionless struggle. Many games lasted 70–80 moves, and the result was often decided only after the second adjournment.

The game Gufeld — Knežević was adjourned in an approximately equal ending. Everyone agreed that although White’s bishop was stronger than the enemy knight, there was no visible win. Gufeld, however, was very optimistic and claimed that he would create an adjournment masterpiece that would make the rounds of the world press. He was not wrong. The Kyiv grandmaster played the game very subtly and achieved a deserved victory.

Shamkovich, against Geller in an up-to-date variation of the Spanish Game, tried to lull White’s play, but achieved nothing concrete. Nikolić drew in similar fashion with Bronstein.

After an animated maneuvering duel, Rýc’s game with Gurgenidze was adjourned with Black’s advantage. Believing that Black had written down the strongest move, 41...hg!, Rýc resigned without playing on. However, the move written down by the Georgian champion preserved only an advantage for Black.

The sharp and tense battle Khasin — Ciocâltea led to a won position for the Romanian master, but in severe mutual time trouble he made a number of mistakes and lost by flag two moves before the end of the first time control. Simagin also blundered badly in his game with Honfi, losing two pawns. In the adjourned position the Moscow grandmaster resigned.

In a complicated struggle the game Vasiukov — Ignatiev developed. Black gave up a pawn, but in return gained the advantage of two bishops. In the adjournment, trying to break through the opponent’s defence, the grandmaster sacrificed a pawn, but gained nothing real from it. As E. Geller noted, Ignatiev only had to move his dark-squared bishop. The club champion underestimated the danger threatening him, and after 65 moves Black resigned.

Standings after round 6: Vasiukov, Geller, Gurgenidze — 4 points each; Ignatiev — 3½ from 5; Gufeld, Ciocâltea, Khasin — 3½ each; Shamkovich — 3 from 5; Bronstein — 3; Simagin — 2½ from 5; Knežević — 2½; Nikolić — 2 from 5; Honfi — 2; Rýc — 1 from 5; Orev — 0 from 5.

Round 7

The seventh round took place after a rest day devoted to an excursion to Kislovodsk. The participants got acquainted with the picturesque surroundings of the resort town and then saw the film The Taming of Fire.

Later it was observed that such walks and the fresh mountain air had an astonishing effect on master Ignatiev. The next day he asked several times: “Who will be the victim of my Felix tomorrow?” someone joked. “What are you saying, that is impossible,” replied master Khasin; “he will eat Felix himself.” But stopping Felix turned out to be truly impossible. He won easily and confidently.

An interesting theoretical duel in the Chigorin variation of the Old Indian Defence took place in the game Knežević — Rýc and brought victory to the Yugoslav master.

Vasiukov consistently and purposefully outplayed Simagin. Having won a pawn, he converted the game into a won ending and realized his advantage on the day of adjournment.

After his losses in the first five rounds, the Bulgarian master Orev announced that he would no longer lose and began a series of victories from the seventh round. Indeed, in this round he defeated the Hungarian grandmaster Honfi, who still remained under the impression of his game with Ciocâltea. True, the “series of victories” took place: Orev won four more games in a row.

Shamkovich, as is well known, knows the theory of opening traps perfectly and often serves them to his opponents. However, his “surprise” against Bronstein broke all records. In the well-known position Shamkovich suddenly offered a small exchange sacrifice, after which he remained in the ending without any compensation for the sacrificed exchange.

Gurgenidze adjourned his game against Nikolić with an extra pawn and winning chances. But in the adjournment the Yugoslav master played very precisely and obtained a draw.

Ciocâltea and Gufeld assured each other and all the participants that they would fight not for life but for death, that there would be no draw there. Indeed, the struggle in this game was exceptionally sharp, with mutual chances, but — as so often happens — precisely such games end peacefully.

Standings after round 7: Vasiukov — 5 points; Ignatiev — 4½ from 6; Gurgenidze — 4½; Geller — 4 from 6; Bronstein, Gufeld, Ciocâltea — 4 each; Knežević, Khasin — 3½ each; Shamkovich — 3 from 6; Nikolić, Simagin — 2½ each from 6; Honfi — 2; Orev, Rýc — 1 each from 6.

Round 8

“I always bow before your Spanish Game: from the bishop on b5 to c4,” said master Klávan of Czechoslovakia, addressing Vasiukov. Possibly such a bishop transfer, made by Orev from b5 to c4, was not so dangerous for Black. White made the exchange on f6 necessary, and the game ended in a draw after adjournment.

Knežević scored his second consecutive victory, forcing his compatriot Nikolić to resign.

The meeting of the two remarkable Soviet grandmasters Geller and Bronstein was very interesting and absorbing. Geller won.

Shamkovich, without any basis, as in the previous round, sacrificed material to Gurgenidze, after which he began to fight for a draw. The Georgian master played the ending accurately and won.

Grandmaster Simagin played an excellent game with Black against Khasin. He carried out a positional pawn sacrifice, obtained lasting pressure for it, seized the open lines in the centre, and on the adjournment day resumed the struggle with renewed energy, since his opponent considered his own position better and played only for a win. The grandmaster proved farsighted, despite limited material.

...with material on the board, he managed to drive the enemy king into a mating net.

Orev played the black pieces very well against Vasiukov. In this game Alekhine’s Defence appeared again, and Black once more obtained a full-fledged game. The adjourned position was fairly assessed as drawn, but Orev lost.

Standings after round 8: Vasiukov — 6 points; Gurgenidze — 5½; Geller, Ignatiev — 5 each from 7; Gufeld, Knežević, Ciocâltea — 4½ each; Bronstein — 4; Simagin — 3½ from 7; Khasin — 3½; Shamkovich — 3 from 7; Nikolić — 2½ from 7; Honfi — 2 from 7; Rýc — 1½ from 7; Orev — 1 from 7.

Round 9

The first game to finish was Orev — Khasin. The Bulgarian master blundered, and by counterplay in the centre Khasin proved that White’s initiative posed no real danger. A few moves later it became clear that Black had a decisive advantage.

In the game Knežević — Shamkovich the grandmaster’s chances seemed preferable throughout, and the result of a draw in the ending looked natural. But the Yugoslav master defended very accurately, and shortly before the adjournment a peaceful agreement was signed.

Vasiukov accepted the pawn sacrifice offered to him far too boldly, although Honfi’s attack looked very dangerous. The Muscovite had to return his acquisition quickly, but the pressure of White’s pieces remained strong. After obtaining a somewhat clearer continuation, the Hungarian grandmaster gradually brought his advantage to victory. At that moment, the Vasiukov figure had simply “fallen out” of the tournament table. It was a painful defeat. Moreover, until the ninth round Vasiukov had been the only participant without a loss.

Simagin, declining the proposed draw, won a pawn from Gufeld and, in the adjournment, stubbornly tried to realize it. Black was saved by the presence on the board of opposite-coloured bishops.

Gurgenidze achieved pressure against Geller, and during the course of the whole game he gave the grandmaster many unpleasant moments. Black had to survive being put into a mating net several times. Evidently, in time trouble the Georgian champion did not play in the best way, and in the adjourned position Geller had nothing to fear. The game was not resumed: draw.

Ignatiev played very actively against Rýc, strongly cramped his opponent’s pieces, and before the adjourned outcome of this game nobody had any doubts.

Nikolić had a good position against Ciocâltea, but, trying to exploit his opponent’s time trouble, he overlooked the loss of a pawn. In the adjournment he was unable to save the game.

Standings after round 9: Ignatiev — 6 points from 8; Vasiukov, Gurgenidze — 6 each; Geller — 5½ from 8; Ciocâltea — 5½; Gufeld, Knežević — 5 each; Khasin — 4½; Bronstein, Simagin — 4 each from 8; Shamkovich — 3½ from 8; Honfi — 3 from 8; Nikolić — 2½ from 8; Rýc — 1½ from 8; Orev — 1 from 8.

Round 10

The tournament leader, master Ignatiev, treated his game with Nikolić somewhat carelessly, but the Yugoslav master played very diligently and, using his opponent’s uncertain defence, won two pawns and with them the game.

In fine positional style Shamkovich defeated Ciocâltea. This was perhaps one of the best games of the tournament.

Knežević sacrificed an entire piece against Geller, assuming that perpetual check was at least guaranteed. But the grandmaster proved to be far-sighted. He parried Black’s attack and avoided perpetual check, after which his advantage became decisive.

Rýc obtained a promising position against Simagin, but the grandmaster managed to build a solid fortress.

Bronstein played carefully against Gurgenidze, and Orev, already in the adjournment, allowed himself to be defeated by Gufeld.

Standings after round 10: Geller — 6½ from 9; Gurgenidze — 6½; Vasiukov, Ignatiev — 6 from 9; Gufeld — 6; Ciocâltea, Khasin — 5½ each; Knežević — 5; Bronstein, Simagin, Shamkovich — 4½ each from 9; Nikolić — 3½ from 9; Honfi — 3 from 9; Rýc — 2 from 9; Orev — 1 from 9.

Round 11

In this round the Georgian master was free from play. Together with his pupil Nana Alexandria, he carefully followed the games of his rivals. In Kislovodsk Nana was resting before the forthcoming women’s championship of the country in Ashgabat and inspiring her coach. And then, at the tournament in Gurgenidze, they changed roles. Here too the result of their cooperation was excellent.

In the eleventh round the games Knežević — Bronstein and Ciocâltea — Geller ended earlier than the others. The Soviet grandmasters, playing Black, failed to obtain an advantage, and both agreed to draws.

Master Ignatiev suffered his second defeat in a row. He strove too stubbornly for a win against Shamkovich and imperceptibly crossed the boundary of acceptable risk.

Orev overlooked the loss of a piece and lost to Rýc.

The game Honfi — Gufeld was adjourned in a very interesting ending, in which, despite the extra piece, it was far from easy for Black to find the path to victory. This original and difficult ending was of theoretical interest. During adjournment analysis Gufeld found the correct plan and won. Recalling his games with Bronstein and Knežević, one can say that in Kislovodsk the Kyiv grandmaster specialized in endgames.

Simagin achieved a tangible positional advantage against Nikolić, but in the adjournment he underestimated his opponent’s hidden defensive resources. The struggle flared up again with new force. Nevertheless, the grandmaster outwitted the Yugoslav master with an original blow and won a pawn.

Vasiukov played a difficult ending against Khasin. By move 40 White had achieved nothing and, shortly before adjournment, lost a second pawn as well. Khasin skilfully conducted the ending, sacrificed a piece and promoted his pawn to a queen.

Standings after round 11: Geller — 7 points from 10; Gufeld — 7; Gurgenidze — 6½ from 10; Khasin — 6½; Vasiukov, Ignatiev — 6 each from 10; Ciocâltea — 6; Simagin, Shamkovich — 5½ each from 10; Knežević — 5½; Bronstein — 5; Nikolić — 3½ from 10; Honfi, Rýc — 3 each from 10; Orev — 1 from 10.

Round 12

The participants continued to give tribute to the Alekhine Defence, revived in Kislovodsk. Thus, Vasiukov, against Gufeld, immediately obtained a full-fledged game. Original development moves by both sides gave the Moscow grandmaster the initiative, and Gufeld fell into severe time trouble. For the remaining 26 moves he had only six minutes. Vasiukov converted his advantage reliably.

Shamkovich scored his third consecutive victory, forcing Simagin to resign.

The Bulgarian master Orev scored his second point by defeating Nikolić, who had been playing boldly and energetically.

The tournament leader, grandmaster Geller, had some advantage against Ignatiev, which he “pressed” for two days. The Moscow defender defended stubbornly and finally achieved a draw. Now Ignatiev had begun to play more soberly and cautiously. He still had only to achieve the international master norm, that is, to score the final 7½ points.

Bronstein chose an extremely sharp and interesting variation with a queen sacrifice against Ciocâltea. In the end, however, this tense battle produced a peaceful result, as did the games Gurgenidze — Knežević.

Standings after round 12: Geller — 7½ from 11; Vasiukov, Gurgenidze — 7 each from 11; Gufeld — 7; Ignatiev, Khasin, Shamkovich — 6½ each from 11; Ciocâltea — 6½; Knežević — 6; Bronstein, Simagin — 5½ each; Honfi — 4 from 11; Nikolić — 3½ from 11; Rýc — 3 from 11; Orev — 2 from 11.

Round 13

Before the start of the thirteenth round I had, with deep sorrow, to announce the untimely death of the outstanding Soviet chess player, coach and teacher, international grandmaster Vladimir Pavlovich Simagin. The participants, judges and spectators honoured their comrade, who had passed away during the tournament, with a minute of silence.

A number of games in the 13th round were played later. Only two games at the meeting were decisive. Vasiukov easily defeated Rýc, while Bronstein, in excellent positional style, sacrificed a quality piece and defeated Ignatiev.

All the remaining games ended peacefully.

Standings after round 13: Geller — 8½ from 12; Vasiukov — 8 from 12; Gurgenidze — 7½ from 12; Gufeld — 7½; Khasin, Shamkovich — 7 each from 12; Ciocâltea — 7; Bronstein, Ignatiev — 6½ each from 12; Knežević — 6 from 12; Honfi — 4 from 12; Nikolić — 4 from 12; Rýc — 3 from 12; Orev — 2½ from 12.

Round 14

The games Gurgenidze — Ignatiev and Knežević — Ciocâltea rather quickly ended peacefully. The result of Rýc — Khasin remained unclear for a long time. The Czechoslovak player had excellent winning chances and even adjourned the game in a won position. But during adjournment he squandered all his advantage.

Nikolić, using Vasiukov’s uncertain play, obtained a very promising position and cramped his opponent’s pieces. He might have decided the struggle in his favour even before the adjournment, but he did not find the finishing blow. In the adjournment the Moscow grandmaster was forced for the third time to admit defeat.

Orev quickly lost to Geller, who thereby secured first place in the tournament with that victory.

In the game against Honfi, Shamkovich reached an approximately equal position after the opening. However, a crude mistake, 23. Сb2??, immediately placed him in serious difficulties. Honfi conducted the final part of the game very accurately and, after stubborn but hopeless resistance, forced Shamkovich to resign.

Standings after round 14: Geller — 9½ from 13; Vasiukov, Gurgenidze — 8 each from 13; Bronstein, Gufeld, Khasin — 7½ each from 13; Ciocâltea — 7½; Ignatiev, Shamkovich — 7 each from 13; Knežević — 6½ from 13; Honfi — 5½ from 13; Nikolić — 5 from 13; Rýc — 3½ from 13; Orev — 2½ from 13.

Round 15

The final round was no exception to the rule: here too almost all the games were tense. Only Geller, having secured first place, soon offered Honfi a draw.

All the remaining games were adjourned for several hours, and the struggle in them continued after lunch with renewed force. Vasiukov, who had an extra pawn against Shamkovich, gradually realized his advantage. Only one pawn was also available to Gurgenidze in his game with Rýc, and in this encounter too the material advantage proved sufficient for victory. The adjournment of the remaining games dragged on until late in the evening.

Khasin did not have enough in the adjourned ending of two pawns, but his active king helped him, in the end, to draw the game with Nikolić.

Bronstein, in the game against Orev, was forced by the arbiter’s intervention to seal a move and demand a draw on account of a threefold repetition of the position.

The final result was fixed in the game Ignatiev — Knežević, in which the struggle for fulfilment of the coveted international master norm was especially tense. The advantage was on the Yugoslav’s side, but by precise defence Ignatiev managed to obtain a draw.

The tournament is over!