- BornNovember 9, 1936, Riga, Latvia
- DiedJune 1992, Moscow
- CountrySoviet Union
- World champion1960–1961
- In the line of championsNo. 8 of 18
- Highest rating2705 (January 1980)
FIDE's official lists (from July 1971)
The road to the title
Tal rose fast. In 1957, aged 20, he won the Soviet championship, and the same year he became a grandmaster. In 1959 he won the Candidates tournament, ahead of Paul Keres among others, and in 1960 he beat Mikhail Botvinnik 12½–8½.
The title matches
| Year | Against | Result | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Mikhail Botvinnik | 12½–8½ (+6 −2 =13) Won the title | Moscow |
| 1961 | Mikhail Botvinnik | 8–13 (+5 −10 =6) Lost the title | Moscow |
How he played
Tal looked for sharp, complicated positions and gladly sacrificed pieces to get them. That was where he was at his best. He is regarded as the fiercest attacker of all the world champions.
The return match
The very next year Botvinnik had his return match, and he won it clearly, 13–8. Tal was in poor health for much of his life, and it made his career harder. Even so, he kept playing at the top.
Afterward
Tal won the Soviet championship six times, a record he shares with Botvinnik. In January 1980 he reached his highest rating, 2705. He died in Moscow in June 1992.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Mikhail Tal
- Store norske leksikon: Mikhail Nekhemjevitsj Tal
- World Chess Hall of Fame: Mikhail Tal
- Chess.com: Mikhail Tal
- Wikipedia: USSR Chess Championship
- OlimpBase: the title matches of 1960 and 1961 and FIDE's rating lists
- PGN Mentor: the title matches' games and the 1959 Candidates tournament
The facts on this page come from the sources above, checked against each other. Where the sources disagree, only what they agree on is given. The match results are also checked against the games themselves.
Updated November 8, 2026