Alexander Alekhine vs Anatoly Karpov
Two chess prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Alexander Alekhine | Anatoly Karpov | |
| Field | Sports | Sports |
| Sub-field | Chess | Chess |
| Born | 1892 | 1951 |
| Died | 1946 | living / not documented |
| Country of birth | France | Russia |
| Star sign | Scorpio | Gemini |
Who they are
Alexander Alekhine
When Alexander Alekhine arrived in Buenos Aires in September 1927 to challenge José Raúl Capablanca for the World Championship, the chess world expected a formality. Capablanca had not lost a competitive game in eight years. Grandmasters whispered that chess had reached its apex in the Cuban — that the game, played perfectly, would always draw, and that Capablanca was the player who played perfectly. Alekhine, a Russian émigré living in France, was a fine attacking player, perhaps the best combinational talent of his generation, but attacking chess against someone who never made errors was considered…
Full biography of Alexander Alekhine →
Anatoly Karpov
In 1975, Anatoly Karpov became World Chess Champion without playing a match — a circumstance both extraordinary and deeply unsatisfying to a man who had earned the right to the title through years of flawless tournament play. Bobby Fischer, the reigning champion, refused to defend the crown under the agreed match conditions, forfeiting the title by default. Karpov, just twenty-three years old, was handed the championship. What he did with it over the next decade silenced any suggestion that he was a champion by default: he played with a suffocating, systematic brilliance that produced one…
Full biography of Anatoly Karpov →
What they share
- Both are held here under Sports.
- Same sub-field: Chess.
Where they part
- Born in different countries: France and Russia.
- 59 years separate their births (1892 and 1951).
- Their lifetimes never overlapped.
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Alexander Alekhine or Anatoly Karpov?
- Alexander Alekhine. Alexander Alekhine was born in 1892, Anatoly Karpov in 1951.
- What field is each of them in?
- Alexander Alekhine is filed under Sports (Chess). Anatoly Karpov is filed under Sports (Chess).
- Were they contemporaries?
- No - their lifetimes do not overlap.