Alexander Alekhine vs Chinua Achebe
Two child prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Alexander Alekhine | Chinua Achebe | |
| Field | Sports | Literature |
| Sub-field | Chess | Novelist |
| Born | 1892 | 1930 |
| Died | 1946 | 2013 |
| Country of birth | France | Colonial Nigeria |
| Star sign | Scorpio | Scorpio |
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 →
Chinua Achebe
Father of African Literature · Author of Things Fall Apart 20 million copies sold · 57 languages translated · Most widely read African novel in history Born November 16, 1930 · Ogidi, Nigeria · Died March 21, 2013
Full biography of Chinua Achebe →
What they share
- Their lifetimes overlap.
- Both Scorpio.
Where they part
- Different fields: Sports for Alexander Alekhine, Literature for Chinua Achebe.
- Born in different countries: France and Colonial Nigeria.
- 38 years separate their births (1892 and 1930).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Alexander Alekhine or Chinua Achebe?
- Alexander Alekhine. Alexander Alekhine was born in 1892, Chinua Achebe in 1930.
- What field is each of them in?
- Alexander Alekhine is filed under Sports (Chess). Chinua Achebe is filed under Literature (Novelist).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.