Bled 1931

◇A double round-robin in the Julian Alps

Bled 1931 gathered fourteen leading masters for a marathon double round-robin — every player met every other twice, twenty-six rounds and 182 games in all. The tournament was proposed by Milan Vidmar, and the entry list was strong throughout: Efim Bogoljubow, Aron Nimzowitsch, the young Salo Flohr, the American Isaac Kashdan, Vidmar himself, Gösta Stoltz, Savielly Tartakower, Rudolf Spielmann and Géza Maróczy.

Two famous names were absent. José Raúl Capablanca, still estranged from Alekhine after their 1927 title match, did not take part, and Akiba Rubinstein — who accepted his invitation too late — was replaced by Stoltz.

◇Undefeated, five and a half points clear

Alekhine set the pace from the first round and never let it slip. Over the whole double round-robin he lost not a single game, winning fifteen and drawing eleven for 20½/26. He swept both of his individual games against Nimzowitsch and against Bogoljubow, the two players who would eventually finish nearest to him.

The final table was headed by Alekhine on 20½, with Bogoljubow a distant second on 15 and Nimzowitsch third on 14. The winning margin — five and a half points — was the widest of Alekhine's championship years.

◇The top of the table

Coming so soon after his +13 =2 rout at San Remo, Bled confirmed that the early 1930s were Alekhine at his absolute strongest. He would defend his title against Bogoljubow again in 1934 before losing it, unexpectedly, to Max Euwe in 1935 — but Bled remained the tournament in which the champion's superiority over his peers was most complete.