Bobby Fischer vs Boris Gelfand
Two chess prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Bobby Fischer | Boris Gelfand | |
| Field | Sports | Sports |
| Sub-field | Chess | Chess |
| Born | 1943 | 1968 |
| Died | 2008 | living / not documented |
| Country of birth | - | Israel |
| Star sign | Pisces | Gemini |
Who they are
Bobby Fischer
On a July evening in 1972, in a stark hall in Reykjavik, Iceland, two men sat down to play chess with the eyes of the world upon them. One represented the Soviet Union, the dominant chess power that had held the World Championship for twenty-four consecutive years. The other was a twenty-nine-year-old from Brooklyn who had learned the game from a pamphlet at age six, who had barely slept in weeks, who had already threatened to withdraw from the match twice, and who was now the most famous chess player on earth. Robert James Fischer…
Full biography of Bobby Fischer →
Boris Gelfand
Boris Gelfand is one of the most remarkable figures in the history of chess — a grandmaster who achieved the elite level under the Soviet system, survived the collapse of the USSR, rebuilt his career representing Israel, and at the age of forty-three competed for the World Chess Championship against Viswanathan Anand in one of the most dramatic title matches of the modern era. Born on June 24, 1968, in Minsk, in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, he grew up in a chess culture of extraordinary depth and rigor, and carried that foundation across political…
Full biography of Boris Gelfand →
What they share
- Both are held here under Sports.
- Same sub-field: Chess.
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- 25 years separate their births (1943 and 1968).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Bobby Fischer or Boris Gelfand?
- Bobby Fischer. Bobby Fischer was born in 1943, Boris Gelfand in 1968.
- What field is each of them in?
- Bobby Fischer is filed under Sports (Chess). Boris Gelfand is filed under Sports (Chess).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.