|
Year Book 2019-20 Contents |
Thing of the Day |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
(Click on underlined link) \/ to end of list \/
|
Atkins and Yates in the British Championship and the Art of Beating Alekhine
Fred Dewhirst Yates, the boy from Birstall, and Leicester-born Henry Ernest Atkins who came to Huddersfield in 1909, dominated the British Championship in the first 28 years from its inception in 1904, during which period there were 20 championship events held, with gaps being mainly attributable to the war.
Atkins won 9 times, Yates won 6 times, and others won 5 times. Yates’s performance is the more impressive when 5 second places are taken into account. (Atkins had only 1 second place to his credit.)
Atkins was clearly the senior partner of the duo, yet is perhaps the less well-known as he largely confined his competitive chess to home events, rarely playing in events abroad. Yates on the other hand played abroad extensively. This meant that Atkins played both Alekhine and Capablanca probably only once, losing to both of them at the London 1922 tournament. Yates on the other hand, played Alekhine at least 16 times, and Capablanca at least 11 times. Against the latter he scored 3 draws (2 of those 3 with White) and 8 losses (7 of those 8 with Black). Against Alekhine he fared better with 2 wins, 3 draws, and 11 losses.
Yates’s first win over Alekhine came in round 4 of the 1922 Hastings tournament. Click here to play through Alekhine v Yates, Hastings 1922. The second Yates defeat of Alekhine came in round 7 of the 1923 Carlsbad tournament. Click here to play through Yates v Alekhine, Carlsbad 1923.
One of the 3 draws between these players was something of a curiosity in that it featured Alekhine playing his “own” defence. Click here for Yates v Alekhine playing the Alekhine, Dresden 1926.
At the time of these three games Alekhine had yet to become World Champion, Capablanca being the then title-holder.
Even Alekhine has capable of the odd blunder – possibly due in part to immoderate alcohol intake – and he made a curious oversight in his game with Keres at the Margate 1937 tournament. Presenting positions with the caption “White to play and win” can make it easy to spot the winning move, even if the follow-through has not been adequately worked out. So, perhaps showing the position a move earlier, with the caption “Black to move and blunder” could be a better approach:
Alekhine (Black) to move and blunder. Click here to see how Black blundered. (Click here to play through the whole game.)
Further reading: (Click here for biographical details of Henry Ernest Atkins.) (Click here for biographical details of Fred Dewhirst Yates.) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
