Rainer Knaak
Encyclopedia
Rainer Fritz Albert Knaak (born March 16, 1953 in Pasewalk
, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) is a German Chess Grandmaster.
He learned the game at the age of 5 from his father, Hans Knaak. Rapid progress brought him to the pinnacle of junior chess and in 1966, 1969 and 1970, he was crowned national junior champion in his age range. Further development led to him being awarded the International Master title in 1973 and the Grandmaster title in 1975. Meanwhile, in pursuit of a career, he took up a degree course in Mathematics
in 1971 and followed this with a teaching diploma.
Prior to unification in 1990, Knaak represented East Germany (otherwise known as the German Democratic Republic) and enjoyed unbridled success in the national championship
, taking the title in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1983 and 1984, while finishing a close runner-up in 1975. Throughout the seventies and eighties he rivalled Wolfgang Uhlmann
as the nation's best player.
In team events, he played on the GDR's Chess Olympiad
team at Skopje
1972, Thessaloniki
1988 and Novi Sad
1990. At the latter event, he delivered an impressive 68% score, including a win against the strong French GM Joël Lautier
. He has also played league chess in the Chess Bundesliga
, for Porz and Werder Bremen.
In international tournaments he has achieved first places at Olomouc
1972, Leipzig
1977 (shared with Malich and Smejkal
), Halle
1978 (shared with Farago and Uhlmann
) and Cienfuegos
1984. There were some notable outright second places too, at Halle 1974 (after Tal
), Bucharest
1975 and Trnava
1980 (after Sturua). At Zinnowitz
1971, Sandomierz
1976 and Potsdam
1985, he shared second place, at Bucharest 1973 came third, and at Camagüey
1974, finished fourth.
Knaak has written a number of books and articles about chess, mostly for ChessBase
's publishing wing, where he has been a full time employee since 1994. Unlike most grandmaster offerings, his writing is not always confined to the mechanics of the game, but frequently delves into chess history, particularly relating to the famous tournaments and great champions of the past. His treatise on Paul Morphy
, co-written with Karsten Müller
, received a complimentary review from esteemed critic John Watson
, who considered the work would turn out to be more factually accurate than much that had previously been written.
In his life outside of chess, he has been married since 1977 and has two children. His elder brother Jochen is also a strong chess player.
Pasewalk
Pasewalk is a town in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. Located on the Uecker river, it is the capital of the former Uecker-Randow district, and the seat of the Uecker-Randow-Tal Amt of which it is not part.Pasewalk became a town during the 12th...
, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) is a German Chess Grandmaster.
He learned the game at the age of 5 from his father, Hans Knaak. Rapid progress brought him to the pinnacle of junior chess and in 1966, 1969 and 1970, he was crowned national junior champion in his age range. Further development led to him being awarded the International Master title in 1973 and the Grandmaster title in 1975. Meanwhile, in pursuit of a career, he took up a degree course in Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
in 1971 and followed this with a teaching diploma.
Prior to unification in 1990, Knaak represented East Germany (otherwise known as the German Democratic Republic) and enjoyed unbridled success in the national championship
German Chess Championship
The German Chess Championship has been played since 1861, and determines the national champion.Prior to 1880 three different federations organized chess activities in Germany: the Westdeutscher Schachbund , the Norddeutscher Schachbund and the Mitteldeutscher Schachbund . Each one organized its...
, taking the title in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1983 and 1984, while finishing a close runner-up in 1975. Throughout the seventies and eighties he rivalled Wolfgang Uhlmann
Wolfgang Uhlmann
Wolfgang Uhlmann is a prominent German International Grandmaster of chess. Despite being a dedicated professional chess player, and undoubtedly the GDR's most successful ever, he has also had a career in accountancy.-Chess career:...
as the nation's best player.
In team events, he played on the GDR's Chess Olympiad
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
team at Skopje
Skopje
Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
1972, Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
1988 and Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
1990. At the latter event, he delivered an impressive 68% score, including a win against the strong French GM Joël Lautier
Joel Lautier
Joël Lautier is a French chess grandmaster and FIDE Senior Trainer .Born in Canada, of French father and Japanese mother, Lautier is one of the strongest grandmasters from France. He won the 1988 World Junior Chess Championship on tiebreak at Adelaide, and the French Chess Championships in 2004...
. He has also played league chess in the Chess Bundesliga
Chess Bundesliga
The term Chess Bundesliga , normally refers to the premier league of team chess in Germany. It is arguably the strongest and longest running league of its kind, attracting many top grandmasters from Europe and beyond....
, for Porz and Werder Bremen.
In international tournaments he has achieved first places at Olomouc
Olomouc
Olomouc is a city in Moravia, in the east of the Czech Republic. The city is located on the Morava river and is the ecclesiastical metropolis and historical capital city of Moravia. Nowadays, it is an administrative centre of the Olomouc Region and sixth largest city in the Czech Republic...
1972, Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
1977 (shared with Malich and Smejkal
Jan Smejkal
Jan Smejkal is a Czech chess player and, since 1972, an International Grandmaster. In the 1970s, he was among the world chess elite...
), Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
1978 (shared with Farago and Uhlmann
Wolfgang Uhlmann
Wolfgang Uhlmann is a prominent German International Grandmaster of chess. Despite being a dedicated professional chess player, and undoubtedly the GDR's most successful ever, he has also had a career in accountancy.-Chess career:...
) and Cienfuegos
Cienfuegos
Cienfuegos is a city on the southern coast of Cuba, capital of Cienfuegos Province. It is located about from Havana, and has a population of 150,000. The city is dubbed La Perla del Sur...
1984. There were some notable outright second places too, at Halle 1974 (after Tal
Mikhail Tal
Mikhail Tal was a Soviet–Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion.Widely regarded as a creative genius, and the best attacking player of all time, he played a daring, combinatorial style. His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability....
), Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
1975 and Trnava
Trnava
Trnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...
1980 (after Sturua). At Zinnowitz
Zinnowitz
Zinnowitz is a spa town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on the northern German island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea. The town has rail connections to Wolgast and Ahlbeck.-History:...
1971, Sandomierz
Sandomierz
Sandomierz is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants . Situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Sandomierz County . Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, a major tourist attraction...
1976 and Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
1985, he shared second place, at Bucharest 1973 came third, and at Camagüey
Camagüey
Camagüey is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third largest city. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province.After almost continuous attacks from pirates the original city was moved inland in 1528.The new city was built with a confusing lay-out of winding alleys that made...
1974, finished fourth.
Knaak has written a number of books and articles about chess, mostly for ChessBase
ChessBase
ChessBase GmbH is a German company that markets chess software, maintains a chess news site, and operates a server for online chess. Set up in 1998, it maintains and sells massive databases, containing most historic games, that permit analysis that had not been possible prior to computing...
's publishing wing, where he has been a full time employee since 1994. Unlike most grandmaster offerings, his writing is not always confined to the mechanics of the game, but frequently delves into chess history, particularly relating to the famous tournaments and great champions of the past. His treatise on Paul Morphy
Paul Morphy
Paul Charles Morphy was an American chess player. He is considered to have been the greatest chess master of his era and an unofficial World Chess Champion. He was a chess prodigy...
, co-written with Karsten Müller
Karsten Müller
Dr. Karsten Müller was born November 23, 1970 in Hamburg, West Germany. He is a German chess Grandmaster. He earned the Grandmaster title in 1998 and a PhD in mathematics in 2002 at the University of Hamburg. He placed third in the 1996 German championship and second in the 1997 German...
, received a complimentary review from esteemed critic John Watson
John L. Watson
John Leonard Watson is a chess International Master and author.Watson was born in Milwaukee and grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. He was educated at Brownell-Talbot, Harvard, and the University of California at San Diego, where he took his degree in engineering...
, who considered the work would turn out to be more factually accurate than much that had previously been written.
In his life outside of chess, he has been married since 1977 and has two children. His elder brother Jochen is also a strong chess player.
Selected bibliography
- Morphy: Genius and Myth - Müller & Knaak (Chessbase CD)
- The Greatest Tournaments in the History of Chess, 1851-1986 - Knaak & Fruth (Chessbase CD)
- 1000 Opening Traps - Müller & Knaak (Chessbase CD)
- Trompowsky - Knaak (Chessbase CD)
- Mating Attack Against 0-0 - Knaak (Chessbase CD)
- 222 Opening Traps after 1.e4 - Müller & Knaak (Olms, 2008)