Alois Wotawa

Alois Wotawa was an Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

n composer of chess problem

Chess problem

A chess problem, also called a chess composition, is a puzzle set by somebody using chess pieces on a chess board, that presents the solver with a particular task to be achieved. For instance, a position might be given with the instruction that White is to move first, and checkmate Black in two...

s and endgame studies

Endgame study

An endgame study, or just study, is a composed chess position—that is, one that has been made up rather than one from an actual game—presented as a sort of puzzle, in which the aim of the solver is to find a way for one side to win or draw, as stipulated, against any moves the other side...

. He was born and died in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

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Composition career

Wotawa composed more than 350 endgame studies, which were published particularly in the German-speaking countries. Wotawa also composed some problems, which he called "bungled endgames".

In 1966, FIDE honored Wotawa as an international master of chess composition.

Example endgame study

In the following study, White finds an amazing move to force a 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,...

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Solution:

1. Sf7-e5 Td7-d2+

2. Kf2-e3 Td2-e2+

3. Ke3-d4 Te2xe5

4. Tf1-f6!! Forks

Fork (chess)

In chess, a fork is a tactic that uses a single piece to attack multiple pieces at the same time. The attacker usually hopes to gain material by capturing one of the opponent's pieces. The defender often finds himself in a difficult position in which he cannot counter all threats. The attacking...

 the bishop and rook. If Black protects both with 4...Ra5, 5.Rg6 wins the pawn and draws. There remains only 4...g7xf6 stalemate

Stalemate

Stalemate is a situation in chess where the player whose turn it is to move is not in check but has no legal moves. A stalemate ends the game in a draw. Stalemate is covered in the rules of chess....

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Works

• Alois Wotawa: Auf Spurensuche mit Schachfiguren - 150 Endspielstudien [German language]. Vienna, 1965