Alexander Alekhine vs Efim Bogoljubov
Two chess prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Alexander Alekhine | Efim Bogoljubov | |
| Field | Sports | Sports |
| Sub-field | Chess | Chess |
| Born | 1892 | 1889 |
| Died | 1946 | 1952 |
| Country of birth | France | Russia |
| Star sign | Scorpio | Aries |
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 →
Efim Bogoljubov
A story — possibly apocryphal, certainly too good not to record — holds that when someone asked Efim Bogoljubov why he was so confident before a particular game, he replied: "When I have White, I win because I have White. When I have Black, I win because I am Bogoljubov." The line captures the man perfectly: large ego, enormous confidence, an infectious delight in chess, and enough genuine talent to partially justify every bit of it. Bogoljubov was not quite the best chess player of his era, but he was very nearly so, and the…
Full biography of Efim Bogoljubov →
What they share
- Both are held here under Sports.
- Same sub-field: Chess.
- Near contemporaries - 3 years apart.
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- Born in different countries: France and Russia.
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Alexander Alekhine or Efim Bogoljubov?
- Efim Bogoljubov. Alexander Alekhine was born in 1892, Efim Bogoljubov in 1889.
- What field is each of them in?
- Alexander Alekhine is filed under Sports (Chess). Efim Bogoljubov is filed under Sports (Chess).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.