Reggio Emilia 1971/72
Andrew Soltis — a 24-year-old reporter for the New York Post who was still years away from his international master and grandmaster titles — dominated the fourteenth Torneo di Capodanno, scoring an unbeaten 8½ from 11 to finish a full point clear of Yugoslav grandmaster Mato Damjanović.
◈Soltis runs clear
After sharing third place in the sixteen-player 1970/71 edition, Soltis came back to Reggio Emilia and left no doubt: six wins, five draws, and no losses gave him 8½ points and outright first. Damjanović, second on 7½, also went through the event undefeated — but with four wins and seven draws he could not keep pace. Switzerland's André Lombard took third on 7, ahead of Hungary's László Kovács on 6½.
The rest of the twelve-player field mixed the tournament's international reach with its Italian roots: Yugoslavia's Ljubomir Mašić and Cuba's Silvino García Martínez shared fifth on 6, while home players Tullio Trincardi and Renato Cappello filled out the lower half of the table.
◈Before the titles
The victory came early in a remarkable double career. Soltis had joined the New York Post as a news reporter in 1969 and played on the gold-medal United States team at the 1970 World Student Team Championship; FIDE named him an international master in 1974 and a grandmaster in 1980. He became at least as famous as a writer — a prolific author and a long-running Chess Life columnist — and his Reggio Emilia win stands among the notable tournament victories of his playing years.
For Damjanović, second place extended a run of consistency at the Capodanno: seventh in 1968/69, an unbeaten shared third in 1970/71, and now an unbeaten runner-up finish.
◈Final Standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soltis, Andrew E | 8½/11 | +6 -0 =5 | games → |
| 2 | Damjanovic, Mato | 7½/11 | +4 -0 =7 | games → |
| 3 | Lombard, Andre | 7/11 | +4 -1 =6 | games → |
| 4 | Kovacs, Laszlo M | 6½/11 | +5 -3 =3 | games → |
| 5 | Masic, Ljubomir | 6/11 | +3 -2 =6 | games → |
| 6 | Garcia Martinez, Silvino | 6/11 | +2 -1 =8 | games → |
| 7 | Richter, Yosef | 5/11 | +2 -3 =6 | games → |
| 8 | Klein, Manfred | 5/11 | +1 -2 =8 | games → |
| =9 | Travnicek, Peter | 4/11 | +0 -3 =8 | games → |
| =9 | Trincardi, Tullio | 4/11 | +0 -3 =8 | games → |
| 11 | Cappello, Renato | 3½/11 | +0 -4 =7 | games → |
| 12 | Skalkotas, Nikolaos | 3/11 | +1 -6 =4 | games → |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soltis, Andrew E | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Damjanovic, Mato | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Lombard, Andre | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Kovacs, Laszlo M | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 5 | Masic, Ljubomir | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 6 | Garcia Martinez, Silvino | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 7 | Richter, Yosef | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | |
| 8 | Klein, Manfred | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 9 | Travnicek, Peter | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 10 | Trincardi, Tullio | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | |
| 11 | Cappello, Renato | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 12 | Skalkotas, Nikolaos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ |
Each cell shows the row player's per-game results against the column player (in round order). ● = same player.