Wilhelm Steinitz vs Bobby Fischer
Two chess prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
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The record, side by side
| Wilhelm Steinitz | Bobby Fischer | |
| Field | Sports | Sports |
| Sub-field | Chess | Chess |
| Born | 1836 | 1943 |
| Died | 1900 | 2008 |
| Country of birth | United States | - |
| Star sign | Aries | Pisces |
Who they are
Wilhelm Steinitz
In the chess world of the mid-nineteenth century, the game was governed by a simple and thrilling philosophy: attack at all costs, sacrifice liberally, and trust that beauty and boldness would prevail over caution. Into this world stepped a small, combative man from Prague who would overturn nearly everything his contemporaries believed about chess, endure years of ridicule for doing so, and ultimately be vindicated so completely that the principles he articulated now form the unquestioned foundation of how the game is taught, played, and understood across the entire world.
Full biography of Wilhelm Steinitz →
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 →
What they share
- Both are held here under Sports.
- Same sub-field: Chess.
Where they part
- 107 years separate their births (1836 and 1943).
- Their lifetimes never overlapped.
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Wilhelm Steinitz or Bobby Fischer?
- Wilhelm Steinitz. Wilhelm Steinitz was born in 1836, Bobby Fischer in 1943.
- What field is each of them in?
- Wilhelm Steinitz is filed under Sports (Chess). Bobby Fischer is filed under Sports (Chess).
- Were they contemporaries?
- No - their lifetimes do not overlap.