Garry Kasparov about his wife and children: “I lead an extremely exemplary lifestyle.” Garry Kasparov, chess player: biography, photo, nationality

In the chess world, Garry Kasparov was never called anything other than “The Great and Terrible”. The famous champion left the sport at the peak of his fame. Some are convinced that it is in vain, while others say that it is on time. Nevertheless, the great grandmaster has something to tell about himself, because Garry Kasparov’s biography, personal life and children are of interest to many of his admirers. And today’s activities of the champion cause a lot of talk in society.

Today, the former chess player has devoted himself almost entirely to politics and is a prominent positionator, accusing the Russian government of unleashing an armed conflict in the Donbass and annexing the Crimean Peninsula. But first things first.

So, below is the biography of Garry Kasparov: personal life, children, sporting achievements and other interesting moments from the life of the great grandmaster.

Childhood

The future champion was born in Baku on April 13, 1963. The boy's parents were intelligent people and kept themselves apart from the lower, so to speak, working class. As for the nationality of Garry Kasparov, this point caused a lot of controversy in sports circles.

The fact is that the chess player’s father (Kim Moiseevich) is Jewish, and his mother (Klara Shagenovna) is Armenian. Both he and the other were purebred almost to the fifth generation. Therefore, in the sports community, both Jews and Armenians, as they say, each pulled the blanket over themselves, disputing the nationality of Garry Kasparov in their favor. However, in the Soviet Union he was considered an Armenian and simply a Soviet citizen.

The parents of the future grandmaster worked as engineers and staged chess battles almost every evening. It was thanks to them that Garry Kasparov became so passionate about this sport. Starting at the age of five, he began to master the basics of chess art. And this absorbed him so much that he did not need any toys, or the street, or other yard delights. Only chess, books and newspapers.

Youth

At the age of twelve, a turning point occurred in the biography of Garry Kasparov: the young prodigy became the champion of the Soviet Union in chess among youths. Since then, this sport has become the meaning of his whole life for him.

By the age of seventeen, Garry Kasparov (photos presented in the article) received the title of Master of Sports. At the same time, the chess player graduated from school, with a gold medal, and then entered the local pedagogical university in the department of foreign languages. Harry was accepted into the institute after passing one single exam, which, by the way, he passed with a solid five points.

In 1980, Garry Kasparov, already known throughout the Union, was awarded the title of grandmaster.

After his father's death in 1970, the talented chess player's mother became more than a parent to him. She was his coach, mentor and devoted herself entirely to her son and his career. Klara Shagenovna was with him almost everywhere. Championships were held not only in the Union, but also abroad, and Garry Kasparov’s mother followed her son everywhere and solved all his problems, from domestic ones to some kind of professional friction.

It was then that she decided to radically change the grandmaster’s image, changing not only Harry’s nationality, but also his last name. So after 1980, he ceased to be the Jewish chess player Weinstein, but turned into the Armenian Kasparov.

Career

The career of Kasparov Garry Kimovich is replete with victories and all sorts of awards. The venerable grandmaster took first places in various championships and chess competitions for 13 years. At that time, Harry’s Elo rating reached 2800 points, and this is an exceptionally highly professional level.

After unpleasant events in 1990, when brutal reprisals against Armenians began in his homeland, he was forced to leave Azerbaijan and moved to the capital of the USSR. A little later, in 1993, Harry left the International Chess Federation, while creating its analogue - the Professional Chess Association.

Later, in 1996, the grandmaster organized a virtual sports organization - the Kasparov Club. The resource gained popularity year by year, and already in 1999, the famous chess player beat all users on the Internet in a match organized by Microsoft. At that time, this game with all non-professional chess players, which lasted almost four months, was watched by more than 3 million users of the World Wide Web. This indicator still cannot be beaten by any virtual chess resource.

Kasparov vs Deep Blue

In 1996, the leading corporation at the time, IBM, challenged Kasparov, inviting him to oppose their most advanced computer, Deep Blue. The designers assured users that the machine was capable of processing up to 200 million moves per second and making decisions with proper competence.

Kasparov won the competition with a good score - 4:2, but lost to a computer opponent in the first game.

The next time Deep Blue and the great grandmaster met was a year later - in 1997. The game was difficult and tense for Kasparov. And on move 46, the famous chess player admitted defeat and surrendered to the computer. After the game, Harry asked for detailed logs of the game, suspecting human interference in the process, but the company refused him, citing trade secrets.

Champion

In 1985, the chess player officially became the thirteenth world champion. Sports experts called the game of Karpov and Kasparov enchanting. But the previous champion was unable to retain his title and lost it to the newcomer. Kasparov managed to cleverly play the little-used Nemtsovich Defense and win the first game. Neither one nor the other gave in and held on until the end, reducing the pieces to a draw. But by the end of the 16th game, Harry won a spectacular victory and won the World Championship.

Kasparov became the youngest grandmaster. During the game with Karpov he was 22 years old. Only the athlete from Norway Magnus Carlsen, who also turned 22 when he took the champion title, was able to win such a “youth” record.

End of career

In 2005, the grandmaster decided for himself that he had achieved everything he wanted in chess and told his fans that he was leaving this sport. As an alternative to the board and pieces, Harry preferred politics, declaring that in Russia there are a dime a dozen colonels and generals, but too little intelligence.

It was precisely the latter that he decided to compensate with his presence, deciding, with the help of his talent for comprehensive and including strategic thinking, to change the Motherland for the better and contribute to its development. Some perceived such impulses very enthusiastically, but a good half of the grandmaster’s fans, as well as politicians, were quite skeptical about this.

Over the next years, the chess player devoted himself almost day and night to the opposition movement “United Civil Front” that he created. The main policy of the party was aimed at counteracting the current leadership of the Russian Federation. The serious political life of the famous chess player began with this movement.

Together with his comrades in the movement, Karpov opposed the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his team. Garry Kimovich organized marches of dissent under his banners wherever possible, for which he was detained by law enforcement more than once.

A little later, in 2008, Kasparov created a new democratic movement and called it Solidarity. The latter, again, was aimed at fighting the current government, where the main priority was the resignation of the president.

Not everyone liked the chess player’s radical plans and ideas, so he did not receive support from the media. He also did not become a member of the Opposition Coordination Council. Alexey Navalny was ahead of Garry Kimovich by a fairly large margin.

After all these ups and downs, the chess player moved with his family to America and settled in New York. In 2013, he stated that he was not going to return to the Russian Federation and would fight the Russian authorities where he lived. Garry Kasparov continues to fight “Kremlin crimes” from abroad at the international level. It is also worth noting that in 2014, the chess player’s main website was blocked by Roskomnadzor for calls for extremist actions.

After the events in Ukraine in 2014, Kasparov openly supported the leadership in Kyiv and, using all available means, accused Russia of seizing the Crimean Peninsula and supporting the military militia in the Donbass.

Kasparov strongly calls on Europe and the United States to increase pressure on the Russian President with the help of sanctions and other political instruments. Then, in 2014, Harry Kimovich repeatedly visited the capital of Ukraine and gave a simultaneous game to everyone in support of the authorities.

A year later, Kasparov wrote a book where he presents to readers his vision of the situation in the world and the problems of modern Russia in particular. In his publication, the chess player speaks extremely negatively about the current government in the Russian Federation and specifically about Vladimir Putin. Kasparov assigned one of the key roles in modern history to Ronald Reagan, who in the 1980s did a lot to put an end to the “Evil Empire.”

Personal life of Garry Kasparov

The children of the great chess player are much more willing to talk about their father, while he himself tries to avoid uncomfortable questions about his personal life. As such, the grandmaster's personal life began when he turned 21.

The already famous chess player met a popular actress, Marina Neelova, at one of the social events. For many, she remained the capricious little princess from the “Old, Old Fairy Tale.” The actress differed from other stage personalities with her diminutive size, plump lips and delicate taste.

Marina Neelova

The young chess player was not at a loss and invited the “princess” to take a walk. This is how the romance between Garry Kasparov and Marina Neyolova began. Literally the entire inner circle of both the chess player and the actress took such a relationship with hostility. The fact is that Kasparov was 21 years old, and Neelova was 37 years old.

The mother of the future grandmaster was obsessed with her son and his victories and, naturally, she did not even want to see any actress, much less 16 years older than him. Nevertheless, Garry Kasparov still carved out several hours and even days from his busy schedule for his personal life and devoted them entirely to Marina.

The actress introduced the future grandmaster into the highest circles of Soviet bohemian youth. At social events he was introduced to the most talented people. Thanks to great games and similar acquaintances, the chess player’s name began to appear not only in specialized media.

But as mentioned above, Kasparov’s mother was categorically against such a relationship, and soon the romance between the actress and the chess player came to naught. Marina Neelova gave birth to a daughter some time later and named her Nika. But the strict mother forbade her son to recognize the child, even though Nika was like two peas in a pod like a chess player.

Maria Arapova

In 1989, Garry Kimovich officially signed with Maria Arapova. She worked as a guide-translator at the Intourist hotel complex. A little later, in 1992, they had a daughter, Polina. A year later, Kasparov's marriage began to fall apart, and the couple decided to separate. The divorce proceedings lasted a full year and a half. The chess player’s ex-wife and her daughter decided to leave Russia and settled for permanent residence in America.

Yulia Vovk

Kasparov’s next chosen one was 18-year-old student Yulia Vovk. From her, the chess player has a son, Vadim, born in 1996. The couple lived together for 9 years, after which the marriage began to crack and subsequently broke up.

Daria Tarasova

But the grandmaster, after a relatively quick divorce, again became entangled in Cupid’s net. And this time Kasparov again got a bride noticeably younger than himself. The age difference with socialite Daria Tarasova was almost 20 years. They got married in 2005, and a year later the couple had a daughter, Aida. In the summer of 2015, there was a replenishment; Tarasova made her husband happy with her son Nikolai.

The children of Garry Kasparov have no connection with the world of chess and do not even consider this sport as a hobby. But the great grandmaster himself does not insist on this, believing that everyone should choose their calling independently and without the guardianship of parents.

These days

The former world champion is still actively involved in politics. The chess player’s position, thoughts, some conclusions and other information can be found on Twitter. There he shares the latest news with his subscribers and comments on what is happening in the world and in Russia.

Kasparov invariably follows the previously chosen political course and believes that “the Russian Federation must return to the European family of nations.” A good half of his compatriots criticize the chess player’s ideas, plans and position regarding Russia.

Kasparov, in addition to housing in New York, also has real estate in St. Petersburg, Moscow and Croatia. He visits the latter very often and lives for months in the town of Makarska with his wife and children. The former champion's main sources of income are chess master classes and thematic lectures. This also includes literary activity. Political prose is not so in demand among readers, but they are ready to buy professional works related to the sport of chess, and in decent quantities.

Since 2002 and to this day, Garry Kasparov has been making his own, and considerable, contribution to the development of the chess field throughout the world. The ex-champion is trying to introduce chess as a sports discipline into the educational systems of different countries, on a par with physical education. Over the past ten years, Harry Kimovich has organized an impressive network of cooperation with hundreds of schools in Europe, Asia and the United States.

The daughter of the chess king and Marina Neyolova charmed the director of the London gallery

The daughter of the chess king and Marina Neyolova charmed the director of the London gallery

The 13th world chess champion Garry KASPAROV recently gave birth to a son. It is probably no coincidence that the boy was named in the American manner - Nicholas. Three years ago, Harry Kimovich, having finally chosen the profession of a political prostitute, left Russia and settled in the United States.

Kasparov bought a three-bedroom apartment with an area of ​​160 square meters in Manhattan in New York. m. For this family nest, where his young wife lives Daria Tarasova, their 9-year-old daughter Aida and the chess player himself, the fugitive laid out $3.4 million. Now we have to make room a little - there are four of them.
The 52-year-old former world champion knows a lot about female beauty. Daria is 20 years younger than him, and some Americans, seeing them together, mistakenly think that she is his daughter. When the romance between Kasparov and Tarasova, a student at the St. Petersburg Humanitarian University of Trade Unions, was in full swing, Dasha was once asked how she related to the great chess player. The spectacular brunette, without blinking an eye, answered: “I am his wife.” Although Kasparov at that moment was married to a completely different young lady - Yulia Vovk! But Tarasova achieved her goal. In 2006, she actually married a chess genius.
As a student, Daria practiced in Washington under a program supported by the US government. She opened her own store in St. Petersburg, and Valery Leontyev even dedicated one of his songs to her. In general, this lady also knew her worth.

“I have a boyfriend, we live together in London,” Nika admitted several years ago. - He is Italian, he also works here. Not an artist or a sculptor. Maybe this is for the best - the two of us are not bored.
However, Nika never decided to introduce that same Italian to the public. Later he went to his homeland, and the couple broke up. Meanwhile, Neelova Jr. literally charmed the director of the London gallery “Charlie Smith” Zavier Ellis. First, using his extensive connections, he helped Nika show her works in the capital of England, then in Berlin, Amsterdam and other European cities. Outwardly, everything looked quite ordinary: a patron of art was helping a young talent pave the way to success. But when at an exhibition in London's Somerset House, where works by leading British artists and sculptors were shown, suddenly the creations of Nika Neelova, the only foreigner, appeared, many wondered: why would this be? She undoubtedly has talent, but without high patronage you won’t get into the cohort of the chosen so quickly. This vernissage, by the way, was supervised by Zavier.

Stole a girl from Short

In 1986, friends introduced Harry to a pretty blonde Maria Arapova. A graduate of the Faculty of Philology of Moscow State University worked as a translator at Intourist. It is curious that her dad was well acquainted with Karpov, the 12th world champion and Kasparov’s sworn rival, but Klara Shagenovna found out about this too late. Otherwise, perhaps she would not have given her blessing for the marriage. Three years after the wedding, Maria gave her husband a daughter, who was named Polina. Arapova decided to give birth in Finland, where her parents lived at that time. And Kasparov remained in Moscow, with his mother. They say that Klara Shagenovna was seriously offended by her daughter-in-law. When Harry was planning to buy a new home for his family in the center of Moscow, Masha cautiously suggested moving out her mother-in-law and buying her an apartment in the building next door. The imperious Klara Shagenovna, accustomed to living with her son under the same roof, could not tolerate such treachery.

Kasparov's wife and daughter spent several months in Finland, but Harry visited them very rarely. And then he went to London for a match for the chess crown with an Englishman Nigel Short. The duel lasted two whole months, but Maria never appeared in London. It became clear that the spouses had lost interest in each other. And it soon became clear that Kasparov dealt a double blow to Short: he won the match against him and stole Nigel’s girlfriend, a chess player. Virginia More. The relationship with this young French woman lasted two years.
Maria Arapova did not remain silent. In one interview she said:
“Probably something has changed for Harry personally.” Returning from London, he declared that he was ready for a divorce. I tried to talk to him, but he doesn’t want to come back... They are putting pressure on me. If I do not agree to its terms, I will be deprived of my credit card. He fights us as if he were his chess players or political opponents. But we are just talking about a woman with your own child. I'm disappointed in Harry. God will be his judge.

It got to the point that the spouses began to communicate only through lawyers. The divorce and division of property lasted for a year and a half. As a result, Maria and her daughter left for permanent residence in the United States - Kasparov bought them an apartment in New Jersey. By court decision, he received the right to take the child with him for two months every year. But the ex-wife never let Polina go to her father. However, when the passions subsided and the girl grew up, normal communication improved. Polina did not inherit her father’s love of chess, but she did gymnastics for several years. Now that Harry Kimovich lives in New York, he has the opportunity to see his daughter much more often.
Kasparov and Arapova had a family secret that they hid for a long time. The fact is that first Mary gave birth to her husband’s son. But the boy was barely saved, and a few days later he still died. Harry took this as a bad sign. Even then, he slowly began to move away from Maria.

In '95 at the Memorial Mikhail Tal in Riga, Kasparov drew attention to the slender and sexy beauty Yulia Vovk. A classmate invited her to a banquet on the occasion of the closing of the tournament, and, as it turned out, the girl came there for a reason. A romance immediately broke out between the 32-year-old “king of chess” and the 18-year-old student. Many of Kasparov's colleagues believed that this relationship would last five to six months. Well, at least a year. And they were wrong. Julia managed to please not only Harry, but also, most importantly, his mother. Klara Shagenovna gave the go-ahead for the wedding.
When Julia was seven months pregnant, a very unpleasant incident occurred. Harry and his young wife were kayaking in the Adriatic Sea. Suddenly the wind blew, a lot of water filled the kayak, and it capsized. All this happened not far from a small island - the stunned couple managed to swim to it. Fortunately, the chief pilot was not far from the disaster site Boris Yeltsin and commander of the 235th government detachment Alexander Larin. He took the couple from that island.
Despite the shock, Julia gave birth to a healthy child. Note that Klara Shagenovna was present at the birth, but Harry was not there. But Kasparov certainly loves his son Vadim. For example, when the boy was five years old, dad, as promised, took him to Paris, to EuroDisneyland. Vadik was in seventh heaven. In 2004, having become the Russian champion, after the award ceremony Kasparov took off the gold medal and hung it around the neck of his eight-year-old son. It was very important for the famous chess player that his son be proud of him.

Alas, a year later Kasparov’s second marriage broke up. His ex-wife Yulia still lives in Riga, and Vadim has already reached two meters in height and now weighs 120 kilograms. To the disappointment of the father, the son is absolutely indifferent to chess, but he enjoys lifting iron. Vadim became a weightlifter and participated in the Latvian deadlift championship. When his father was arrested in Moscow in 2007 (Kasparov organized an unauthorized march of Russophobes), the guy was shocked. And Harry Kimovich himself did not believe that he would be sent to prison.
“They gave me five days, although they could have given me 15,” the chess player who became an enemy of the people later whined. - We decided to teach you a lesson. I was placed in a cell for three: three beds screwed to the floor, the passage between them was literally a meter. But there were also concessions. For example, I could walk as much as I wanted, but only in a cage about three meters by five, on the top floor. The lights were not turned on at six in the morning. I managed to take a bar of chocolate and a bottle of water with me (they let me into the cell with this!). I was wondering how long this supply would last me - I refused the prison gruel. However, you can survive five days without food.

Apparently, after this incident, Kasparov decided to flee to the West. He tried to obtain Latvian citizenship, but was refused. But the Croats met halfway. But Harry Kimovich prefers to live in the USA. He once admitted that he sometimes plays chess on the Internet under a pseudonym. And he experiences great pleasure when his virtual opponents are amazed at the quality of his play. In general, the rogue likes America much more than Russia, and work for the benefit of the United States is paid very generously. In his own words, Kasparov now publishes books, gives lectures in different cities of America and abroad, earning quite decently - almost the same as he did during his sports career. But he does not serve the country that raised him and glorified him throughout the world. Kasparov was not on the same path with Russia.

And there was another case
* Garry Kasparov really liked the famous German figure skater Katharina Witt. One day he managed to meet her in Germany, and mutual sympathy already arose between the young people. However, the mother of the Olympic champion, seeing a guy with a Caucasian appearance, categorically told her daughter: “We don’t need someone like that!” Harry was hurt and offended.

Garry Kasparov's childhood

It is unknown when exactly young Kasparov mastered the ancient game. History only mentions that at the age of five, unexpectedly for his parents, he suggested to his father the solution to a sketch published in the newspaper. Seeing such remarkable abilities in the kid, Garik was sent to the chess section of the Baku Palace of Pioneers. In 1970, the future grandmaster’s father died of lymphosarcoma. The mother completely devoted her life to raising her son.

In the first year of studying chess, the boy won 3rd category. And already in 1972 he took part in an international youth tournament that took place in France. Of course, the family ties of the Kasparov family played an important role here, but the merits of the young prodigy should not be underestimated either.

The first successes and failures of chess player Garry Kasparov

Even then, Botvinnik noted the unique analytical abilities of the young talent. And the sixth world champion was never wrong in such matters.

By the way, Garik became Kasparov, not Weinstein, only in 1974. Then his mother, for the sake of her son’s chess career, changed not only his nationality, but also his surname. Since then, the young Jewish chess player became an Armenian. In the same year, Garry Kimovich participated for the first time in the all-Union tournament between the palaces of pioneers. And already in 1975 he was the leader in the USSR championship among youths. True, an unsuccessful finish threw him far away, to seventh place. But given the young man’s age and the strong composition of the tournament, it was a sensation.

In 1976, at the age of 12, the Baku resident finally won this tournament. Then they started talking about him seriously in the highest chess circles of the Land of Soviets. The country that occupied the unconditional leadership in the chess world.

Eight-year-old prodigy vs. Garry Kasparov

In 1978, after much controversy, the young KMS was allowed into a tournament with the participation of grandmasters. Garik won the Sokolsky Memorial ahead of schedule. And this despite the fact that 5 rounds before the finish he had already achieved a master’s standard. That same year, the future champion won the qualifying tournament for the country's top chess league.

In 1979 he won a fairly strong international tournament in Banja Luka.

True, he got to this tournament only thanks to the indisputable authority of the patriarch of Soviet chess. Without Botvinnik's recommendations, Garik might not have been able to travel abroad.

At the same tournament, the young master exceeded the norm for an international grandmaster. For such achievements, Heydar Aliyev himself, the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, took him under his wing. And the chess genius did not let him down. He brought home a bronze medal from the USSR Championship, the strongest tournament in the world.

Garry Kasparov - grandmaster

Having won matches against Viktor Korchnoi and Vasily Smyslov, in 1984 Garry Kimovich Kasparov became the main contender for the chess crown.

The young talent had victories and not only at the chessboard. The year 1984 was memorable in the life of the 21-year-old chess player for his acquaintance with 37-year-old Marina Neyolova, who, after a three-year relationship with the champion, gave birth to a daughter, Nika. He did not recognize paternity then.

The Great Controversy

It was decided to hold a repeat match next year.

Is Garry Kasparov afraid of Russia?

On November 9, 1985, with the score 13:11, Garry Kimovich Kasparov was declared the 13th chess king. Anatoly Karpov tried three more times to regain the chess throne, but to no avail. The Great and the Terrible has firmly established himself on the throne of chess Olympus.

Personal life of Garry Kasparov

The divorce proceedings were not easy, and hit the “chess king” well in the pocket. It is worth noting at least the purchase of an apartment for the ex-wife in the USA. And real estate there was very, very expensive.

In 1995, the heart of the Great and Terrible was again wounded by Cupid's arrow. This time the chosen one of the chess idol was young Yulia Vovk. The eighteen-year-old student became the legal wife of the genius in 1996, at the same time she gave him a son, Vadim, officially the second child of the chess luminary. The marriage between Garik and Yulia lasted 9 years.

Kasparov - politician

In 1990, he left the CPSU and took a direct part in the creation of the Democratic Party of Russia, but already in the same year he created an internal party faction with Murashov, which actually split the DPR. Some of the members of which subsequently transferred to the “Liberal Union”, organized by a Baku resident in 1991.

In 1993, Garry Kimovich Kasparov left FIDE and organized the PCA, destroying order in the chess world for many years. The consequences of this split were eliminated only 20 years later.

Chess player and information technology

Garry Kasparov now

After winning Linares 2005, the Thirteenth World Champion, winner of dozens of tournaments, the man of the era, the Great and the Terrible, announced that he was leaving his professional chess career.

Now the chess player is one of the leaders of the opposition to President Vladimir Putin. He fights in the political arena just as he fought at the chessboard. And yet, history may not remember Kasparov’s politics. But the thirteenth world chess champion will remain in people’s memory forever.

The Caucasus has given the world many great and respected people. These are real warriors, famous scientists, and popular artists. And, of course, the world chess champion, grandmaster - Garry Kasparov. This genius deservedly became:

• eleven-time winner of the chess Oscar;
• eight-time winner of the World Chess Olympiad;
• champion of the USSR;
• Honored Master of Sports of the USSR;
• champion of Russia.

Some experts believe that Garry Kimovich Kasparov is generally the best chess player of all time. When the talent of this genius appeared and how it developed, how the champion’s personal life developed will be described below.

Biography of Garry Kasparov

A boy was born in 1963 in Baku in the family of a Jew, Kim Moiseevich Weinstein, and an Armenian woman, Klara Shagenovna Kasparova. And until the age of 12, he bore his father’s surname, but because of the anti-Semitism that flourished in the USSR, the mother, with the consent of all relatives, changed her son’s surname. This is how Garry Kasparov changed his nationality, turning from a Jewish boy into an Armenian.

By that time, the child’s father was no longer alive - he died of lymphosarcoma in 1970. But Kim Moiseevich managed to find out about his son’s talent - at the age of 5, the child suggested to his father the correct solution to a chess study published in the newspaper. It was then that Dad began to seriously study with Harry.

At the age of 7, the boy, as expected, became a first grader. At the same time, he began attending a chess club at the Baku House of Pioneers, where the child’s unique abilities were immediately noted by his first coach, Oleg Privorotsky. Already at the age of 10, the boy participated in serious youth competitions. And one day fate smiled on Harry - the famous master Alexander Nikitin saw his play.

Under the leadership of this coach, young Kasparov’s athletic growth continued. It was Nikitin’s encouragement that the young chess player ended up in the school of Mikhail Botvinnik, whose name was heard everywhere at the time. The ex-world chess champion accepted the young talent into his family.

And Harry did not let his mentors down. His success was so significant that Botvinnik personally “knocked out” a scholarship for Kasparov and ensured that the young man study according to an individual program.

The formation of a future chess player

The efforts of the coaches and the student exceeded all expectations. Soon, chess player Garry Kasparov became known far beyond the borders of Azerbaijan and the Soviet Union. In 1976, he won the USSR Youth Chess Championship. And this at the age of 12! Two years later, already having the title of candidate master of sports, Kasparov ahead of schedule wins the Sokolsky Memorial tournament, in which famous grandmasters participate. And receives the title of master.

A year later, Harry visited Europe and became the winner of the international tournament in Banja Luka, simultaneously exceeding the norm for an international grandmaster. The stunning success was made possible, of course, thanks to:

1. Analytical mind.
2. Work hard.
3. Clear instructions from the coach.

The mentor ensured that the young talent was abroad for the first time. And he himself, who in those years was the first secretary of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, undertook to support the talented young man - his tutelage helped Kasparov more than once. After all, the KGB at that time could not be called a loyal organization, and the biography of Garry Kasparov, the one that dates back to his childhood, was slightly “confused” by his caring mother.

Achievements

In 1980, Harry graduates from high school and is a gold medalist. As for his sports career, by this time he already had a very solid track record and the title of international grandmaster. Having entered the Azerbaijan Pedagogical Institute at the Faculty of Foreign Languages, he continues to intensively study chess.

It was as if victories over Viktor Korchnoi and Vasily Smyslov came naturally. And then a confrontation began, which the entire chess world watched for 10 years. Karpov and Kasparov “collided” at the board - two of the strongest athletes who fought for the title of world champion.

Paying tribute to his coach Mikhail Botvinnik, who was the 6th world chess champion, Harry wanted to prove that their joint efforts were not in vain. And here it is – victory! 1985 announced to the whole world that the chess crown had been placed on Kasparov’s head. He was thirteenth! They called him the Great and the Terrible! And after that, Karpov tried more than once to “throw” the Armenian off the pedestal, but to no avail.

Sports, politics, charity

It is difficult to humiliate a proud man and bring him to his knees. Likewise, Kasparov, when his opinion was undeservedly “bypassed”, demonstratively left the international chess players organization FIDE. This happened in 1993. Now he played under the auspices of the PSA. For this, Kasparov was stripped of the FIDE world champion title. But that didn't stop him from playing.

In 2000, the Great and Terrible, alas, lost the match for the world championship and gave the crown to Vladimir Kramnik. But the eminent chess player continued to participate in world tournaments and win. Being not only an excellent athlete, but also a good politician, he openly acts in the ranks of the opposition and even heads the United Civic Duty movement. And he quietly moves away from the world of sports. And in 2005 he officially announced that he was leaving his career as a chess player.

Today Kasparov appears on one or another political horizon, but this did not stop him from running for FIDE president in 2014. True, the attempt was unsuccessful. Since 1987, Harry Kimovich has been involved in charitable activities. As befits a real man, he does not shout about it, but simply does his duty. Refugees and single pensioners, as well as war veterans - these are the people to whom he has already provided assistance from his personal Fund in an amount exceeding $1 million.

Family and personal life

Well, what kind of biography can there be of Garry Kasparov without his personal life?

Officially, he was married twice. But while still a student I met M. Nelova. The woman was 16 years older than the young talent, which did not prevent them from dating for a three-year period. As a result, Marina gave birth to a girl, Nika, but Harry did not recognize paternity.

But meeting the guide-translator in 1986 was fateful. They dated for 2 years and then made their relationship official. After another 3 years, Harry became the father of a beautiful girl, Polina. But the marriage did not last. They say that Kasparov’s mother played an important role here, who categorically did not want the young family to live separately. As a result, the son, to whom Klara Shagenovna devoted her entire life, remained in Russia, and for his ex-wife and daughter he had to buy an apartment in the USA - so the court decided.

But life went on, and in 1996 Kasparov married again. His companion was young Yulia Vovk, who was 15 years younger than the chess king. This marriage lasted 9 years, and a son, Vadim, was immediately born. Today Garry Kimovich is in excellent sports shape, he loves football, swimming, gymnastics, but never forgets his favorite chess.

Remember how in 1998 he created the Kasparov Club website, and how this Internet resource gained unprecedented popularity. And a year later, Microsoft invited the world community to play against the Great and the Terrible. The success of the site was amazing - 3 million visits in 4 months! And this is chess. Let's be honest, today and in 100 years, for everyone, he will be, first of all, a world-famous chess player, and then a politician, husband, father, etc.

“Former world chess champion and now opposition politician” Garry Kasparov left Russia, but intends to “continue to annoy [Russian President] Vladimir Putin to the best of his ability,” although now the main goal of his life is to become president of the World Chess Federation (FIDE ). He spoke about this and much more in an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, the Friday supplement to the Bavarian newspaper of the same name.

In Russia, according to the grandmaster, he would hardly face imprisonment, but his international passport could be taken away, as “happens with many opposition politicians in Moscow,” and this would mean for Kasparov “the collapse of his entire life,” since the main source of his earnings - “reports on logical thinking and success strategies”, which he usually reads abroad. “I come to Russia only to fight the regime and defend human rights,” Kasparov described his lifestyle in recent years.

Kasparov has not been in Russia since February 22, 2013 - shortly before that, his mother received a call from the Investigative Committee with a request to ensure his appearance to testify. “Because of this challenge, I decided that it was not worth returning,” he explained his decision. “I don’t want to risk the prospect of being stuck in Moscow any longer. I would willingly take this risk if I was left to my own devices, but next year I I am running for the presidency of FIDE. To do this, I will need to travel around the world to introduce myself to various national associations. Taking high risks as a politician would be dishonest on my part towards those who finance my candidacy in the world of chess. In addition, Moreover, from abroad I can cause much more trouble than from Moscow. A won trial in Strasbourg will help opposition politicians more than me being locked up in Moscow." Kasparov believes that his October victory in this court has “symbolic” significance and “will one day help numerous prisoners in Russian prisons.” However, “Putin doesn’t care about reactions from abroad,” he admitted.

Now Kasparov lives in New York with his wife and youngest daughter, his eldest daughter is also there, but his son and mother remained in Moscow - he travels to Tallinn to meet with them (“not far from Moscow, and people speak Russians,” explained the oppositionist). Living in the USA is “convenient,” Kasparov admitted, but he misses his homeland and the Russian language.

The head of the United Civil Front said that during his last arrest after another protest, he was injured: “Because of this, my elbow still hurts when I write or lift my bag to put it on the luggage rack on the plane. ". At the request of the correspondent, the interlocutor of Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin briefly spoke about his only administrative arrest, noting that his experience is “ridiculous” compared to the situation in which, for example, Mikhail Khodorkovsky finds himself.

In 2005, the oppositionist hired bodyguards - the reason for this was an incident during one of the last chess events with his participation: “A man approached me with a chessboard. At first I thought that he wanted to ask me for an autograph, but then I had a bad feeling premonition. I was surprised by the smell emanating from the board, it was brand new, and who would sign an autograph on a board they had just bought? Usually they bring an old one... He hit me on the head with it... The man was young, they must have hoped "That I would fight back, that's why two cameras were installed there. This incident became a warning for me. The very next day I hired professional bodyguards."

The ex-champion rejected the assumption that he is running for FIDE president because he is bored with the political struggle: “I will continue to fight injustice... Putin is a problem not only for Russia. Any dictator poisons the lives of neighboring countries. But Putin is much more worse than the Belarusian Lukashenko: Putin is everywhere, he controls more money than anyone in the history of mankind, and does not hesitate to bribe the sympathy of entrepreneurs and politicians. He supports the most brutal regimes around the world. Without him, Assad would not have been able to kill tens of thousands of his fellow citizens. "Putin is a problem, and the problem is growing because every dictator wants to spread his power. Putin is becoming more defiant because he sees no one who can stop him."