Albéric O'Kelly de Galway
Encyclopedia
Albéric O'Kelly de Galway (17 May 1911, Brussels
– 3 October 1980, Brussels
) was a Belgian
chess
Grandmaster (1956), and an International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster
(1962), most famous for being the third ICCF World Champion in correspondence chess
between 1959 and 1962. He was also a chess writer. One of his most notable games was the draw
with Bobby Fischer
.
thirteen times between 1937 and 1959. He placed first at Beverwijk
1946. In 1947 he become one of Europe's leading players, finishing first at the 1947 European Zonal tournament
at Hilversum, tied for first place with Pirc
at Teplice Sanov, tied for second at Venice. The next year O'Kelly de Galway finished first at São Paulo ahead of Eliskases
and Rossetto
. He earned the title International Master (IM) in 1950, the first year the title was awarded. He placed first at Dortmund 1951. O'Kelly de Galway finished first at the round-robin Utrecht 1961 with 6½/9, followed by Karl Robatsch
second with 6 points and Arthur Bisguier
and Aleksandar Matanović
tied for third and fourth with 5½.
O'Kelly de Galway was made an International Arbiter
in 1962 and was the chief arbiter of the world championship
matches between Tigran Petrosian
and Boris Spassky
in 1966 and 1969. In 1974 he was the arbiter for the Moscow Karpov
–Korchnoi match.
O'Kelly de Galway was a good linguist, speaking six languages well (French, Dutch, German, English, Spanish, and Russian, and also some Italian). He published many books and articles, often in languages other than French.
He wrote the book Improve Your Chess Fast, published by Batsford. Another title was The Sicilian Flank Game, also published by Batsford.
The O'Kelly Variation in the Sicilian defence
: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 a6 is named after him.
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
– 3 October 1980, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
) was a Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
Grandmaster (1956), and an International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster
International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster
International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster is a title created by the FIDE in 1953, second only to that of world correspondence champion. Now awarded by the International Correspondence Chess Federation.-American ICCGMs:* Hans Jack Berliner, GM 1968...
(1962), most famous for being the third ICCF World Champion in correspondence chess
Correspondence chess
Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, usually through a correspondence chess server, through email or by the postal system; less common methods which have been employed include fax and homing pigeon...
between 1959 and 1962. He was also a chess writer. One of his most notable games was the draw
Draw (chess)
In chess, a draw is when a game ends in a tie. It is one of the possible outcomes of a game, along with a win for White and a win for Black . Usually, in tournaments a draw is worth a half point to each player, while a win is worth one point to the victor and none to the loser.For the most part,...
with Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer was an American chess Grandmaster and the 11th World Chess Champion. He is widely considered one of the greatest chess players of all time. Fischer was also a best-selling chess author...
.
Chess career
O'Kelly de Galway won the Belgian championshipsBelgian Chess Championship
The Belgian Chess Championship is a championship organised yearly by the Fédération Royale Belge des Echecs . The winner of the championship is awarded the title: Chess Champion of Belgium....
thirteen times between 1937 and 1959. He placed first at Beverwijk
Corus chess tournament
The Tata Steel Chess Tournament formerly called the Corus chess tournament takes place every year, usually in January, in a small town called Wijk aan Zee, part of the larger Beverwijk in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands...
1946. In 1947 he become one of Europe's leading players, finishing first at the 1947 European Zonal tournament
Interzonal
Interzonal chess tournaments were tournaments organized by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, and were a stage in the triennial World Chess Championship cycle.- Zonal tournaments :...
at Hilversum, tied for first place with Pirc
Vasja Pirc
Vasja Pirc was a leading Slovenian chess player. His name is most familiar to contemporary players as the originator of the hypermodern Pirc Defense...
at Teplice Sanov, tied for second at Venice. The next year O'Kelly de Galway finished first at São Paulo ahead of Eliskases
Erich Eliskases
Erich Gottlieb Eliskases was a chess Grandmaster of the 1930s and 1940s, who represented Austria, Germany and Argentina in international competition....
and Rossetto
Héctor Rossetto
Héctor Decio Rossetto was one of the best chess players in Argentine history.He earned the title of International Master in 1950 and the Grandmaster title in 1960....
. He earned the title International Master (IM) in 1950, the first year the title was awarded. He placed first at Dortmund 1951. O'Kelly de Galway finished first at the round-robin Utrecht 1961 with 6½/9, followed by Karl Robatsch
Karl Robatsch
Karl Robatsch was a leading Austrian chess player and a noted botanist.He moved to Graz at the age of 17 to become a student and often frequented the mountainside café, a popular meeting place for chess players...
second with 6 points and Arthur Bisguier
Arthur Bisguier
Arthur Bernard Bisguier is an American chess Grandmaster, chess promoter, and writer. Bisguier won two U.S. Junior Championships , three U.S. Open Chess Championship titles , and the 1954 United States Chess Championship title. He played for the United States in five chess Olympiads...
and Aleksandar Matanović
Aleksandar Matanovic
Aleksandar Matanović is a Serbian chess Grandmaster. He was born in Belgrade.Awarded the GM title in 1955, he was junior champion of Yugoslavia in 1948 and Yugoslav national champion in 1962 , 1969 and 1978...
tied for third and fourth with 5½.
O'Kelly de Galway was made an International Arbiter
International Arbiter
In chess, International Arbiter is a title awarded by FIDE to individuals deemed capable of acting as arbiter in important chess matches . The title was established in 1951....
in 1962 and was the chief arbiter of the world championship
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
matches between Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian grandmaster, and World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969. He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his playing style because of his almost impenetrable defence, which emphasised safety above all else...
and Boris Spassky
Boris Spassky
Boris Vasilievich Spassky is a Soviet-French chess grandmaster. He was the tenth World Chess Champion, holding the title from late 1969 to 1972...
in 1966 and 1969. In 1974 he was the arbiter for the Moscow Karpov
Anatoly Karpov
Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov is a Russian chess grandmaster and former World Champion. He was the official world champion from 1975 to 1985 when he was defeated by Garry Kasparov. He played three matches against Kasparov for the title from 1986 to 1990, before becoming FIDE World Champion once...
–Korchnoi match.
O'Kelly de Galway was a good linguist, speaking six languages well (French, Dutch, German, English, Spanish, and Russian, and also some Italian). He published many books and articles, often in languages other than French.
He wrote the book Improve Your Chess Fast, published by Batsford. Another title was The Sicilian Flank Game, also published by Batsford.
The O'Kelly Variation in the Sicilian defence
Sicilian Defence
The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the moves:The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4...
: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 a6 is named after him.
Notable games
- Alberic O'Kelly de Galway vs Arnold Denker, ? 1948, Spanish Game: Schliemann Defense, Dyckhoff Variation (C63), 1-0
- Christian Poulsen vs Alberic O'Kelly de Galway, Dubrovnik olm 1950, Sicilian Defense: O'Kelly Variation. Normal System (B28), 0-1
- Alberic O'Kelly de Galway vs Jonathan Penrose, Olympiad 1962, Sicilian Defense: Paulsen, Bastrikov Variation (B47), 1/2-1/2
External links
- O'Kelly de Galway at chessmail.com
- Biography (in Dutch)