80th birthday of Tigran Petrosian marked in Yerevan

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia marked the 80th birthday Tigran Petrosian on June 17. Armenian President, Prime Minister and other high ranking officials laid flowers to the monument to the legendary grandmaster.



Tigran Petrosian (June 17, 1929 - August 13, 1984) was World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969.



He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his playing style because of his almost impenetrable defense, which emphasized safety above all else. He was a Candidate for the World Championship on eight occasions (1953, 1956, 1959, 1962, 1971, 1974, 1977 and 1980). He won the world championship in 1963 (against Botvinnik), successfully defended it in 1966 (against Spassky), and lost it in 1969 (to Spassky). Thus he was the defending World Champion or a World Champion candidate in ten consecutive three-year cycles. He won the Soviet Championship four times (1959, 1961, 1969, and 1975). He was arguably the hardest player to beat in the history of chess.