Bucharest 1976
Bucharest's biggest 1970s field — sixteen players, several of them grandmasters — assembled in 1976, and it was won not by one of the visiting GMs but by Romania's own International Master Theodor Ghițescu. He finished on 10/15, a full point clear of a seven-way tie for second.
◈A crowded, grandmaster-heavy field
The 1976 tournament was the largest of these Bucharest editions, a sixteen-player round-robin whose entry list included grandmasters Evgeny Sveshnikov of the Soviet Union and Leif Ogaard of Norway — the two highest-rated men in the field — alongside Hungary's Jozsef Pinter, Yugoslavia's Janez Barle and a strong Romanian contingent.
Theodor Ghițescu, an International Master from Bucharest and a former Romanian champion, was not the favourite on rating, but he proved the steadiest scorer across the fifteen rounds.
◈One point clear of a seven-way pack
Ghițescu finished on 10 points from 15 games. Behind him the tournament bunched dramatically: seven players tied for second on 9 — Constantin Radovici, Leif Ogaard, Mircea Pavlov, Jozsef Pinter, Valentin Stoica, Evgeny Sveshnikov and Janez Barle.
That Ghițescu finished ahead of both Sveshnikov and Ogaard — each rated well above him — made this one of the standout results of his career.
◈Final Standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ghitescu, Theodor | 10/15 | +6 -1 =8 | games → |
| 2 | Radovici, Corvin | 9/15 | +6 -3 =6 | games → |
| =3 | Ogaard, Leif | 9/15 | +5 -2 =8 | games → |
| =3 | Pavlov, Mircea Sergiu | 9/15 | +5 -2 =8 | games → |
| =5 | Pinter, Jozsef | 9/15 | +4 -1 =10 | games → |
| =5 | Stoica, Valentin | 9/15 | +4 -1 =10 | games → |
| =5 | Sveshnikov, Evgeny | 9/15 | +4 -1 =10 | games → |
| 8 | Barle, Janez | 9/15 | +3 -0 =12 | games → |
| 9 | Ungureanu, Emil | 8/15 | +4 -3 =8 | games → |
| =10 | Augustin, Josef | 7½/15 | +3 -3 =9 | games → |
| =10 | Suba, Mihai | 7½/15 | +3 -3 =9 | games → |
| =12 | Moehring, Guenther | 6/15 | +3 -6 =6 | games → |
| =12 | Stanciu, Traian | 6/15 | +3 -6 =6 | games → |
| 14 | Atanasov, Gospodin | 6/15 | +2 -5 =8 | games → |
| 15 | Diaz Diaz, Joaquin Carlos | 3½/15 | +0 -8 =7 | games → |
| 16 | Hammer, Peter | 2½/15 | +0 -10 =5 | games → |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ghitescu, Theodor | 1 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | |
| 2 | Radovici, Corvin | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Ogaard, Leif | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Pavlov, Mircea Sergiu | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 5 | Pinter, Jozsef | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 6 | Stoica, Valentin | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | |
| 7 | Sveshnikov, Evgeny | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 8 | Barle, Janez | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 9 | Ungureanu, Emil | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 10 | Augustin, Josef | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 11 | Suba, Mihai | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 12 | Moehring, Guenther | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 13 | Stanciu, Traian | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 14 | Atanasov, Gospodin | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 15 | Diaz Diaz, Joaquin Carlos | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | |
| 16 | Hammer, Peter | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ |
Each cell shows the row player's per-game results against the column player (in round order). ● = same player.
“His tournament successes include … the Bucharest International tournament of 1976 (ahead of Jozsef Pinter and Evgeny Sveshnikov).”