Viacheslav Ragozin
Notable Games

Viacheslav Ragozin

14 celebrated games · 261 in the full archive
Player Index ◈ Biography 261 CURATED GAMES

Notable Games

  • 1930.11 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsNoskov, P 1-0 Sicilian Defense: French Variation, Normal 21 moves Match/TradeUnions Leningrad-Moscow gr2 Leningrad–Moscow 1930, Ragozin at nineteen and already sacrificing on sight. 12.e5 opens the centre, 14.Nxf6+ removes the defender, and 16.Rxf6 gxf6 17.Qg4+ Kf8 18.Ba3+ leaves the black king with nowhere to stand.
  • 1936.01 Levenfish, Grigory vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Grünfeld Defense: Brinckmann Attack, Grünfeld Gambit Accepted 38 moves URS-ch10 Semifinal (Leningrad-ch11) Leningrad 1936, a Grünfeld Gambit Accepted with Black against Grigory Levenfish, who would win the USSR championship the following year. Ragozin gives the c-pawn for the initiative, wins the exchange back with 24...Rxd2 25.Kxd2 Rxc4, and converts the rook ending with 38...Rxf4+.
  • 1936.04 Botvinnik, Mikhail vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Classical Variation 28 moves Match/Training Botvinnik-Ragozin +4-0=2 One of the long series of training matches Ragozin played with Mikhail Botvinnik — he was Botvinnik's principal sparring partner and second for two decades, and the games were played in earnest. Here he wins with Black: 19...Nd3 20.cxd3 Qxc1+ gives the queen for two rooks, and 27...d2 28.Qc2 Bf3 seals it.
  • 1938 Alatortsev, Vladimir vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 English Opening: Agincourt Defense 12 moves URS-ch11 Semifinal Extra Moscow Moscow 1938 — twelve moves, the shortest decisive game in the archive. Ragozin builds a Dutch set-up with the queen swinging to h5, and when Alatortsev tries to break with 12.e4, 12...f4 simply wins material on the spot.
  • 1939.01.05 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsKeres, Paul 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Closed 44 moves Leningrad & Moscow Leningrad/Moscow 1939 against Paul Keres, weeks after Keres had shared first at AVRO, the strongest tournament yet held. Ragozin wins the b-pawn with 33.Rxb4, trades into rook and bishop against rook and knight, and pushes the b-pawn through on move forty-four.
  • 1939.01.10 Smyslov, Vasily V vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense 35 moves Leningrad & Moscow Five days later in the same event, Black against an eighteen-year-old Vasily Smyslov — a future World Champion in his first strong tournament. Ragozin gives back the exchange, drives the king up the board with 33...Nd3 34.Bxd3 Qg2+ 35.Kf4, and 35...Qh2+ ends it.
  • 1940.09.18 Bondarevsky, Igor Tsakharovich vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Italian Game: Two Knights Defense 20 moves URS-ch12 Final USSR Championship final 1940, twenty moves with Black against Igor Bondarevsky, who shared first place in that very event. White wins a rook with 12.Nxh8+ and it does not help: 13...Nxc2+ 14.Kd2 Nb4, 17.Nf7 Kxf7, and by 20...Bg4 the white king is caught in the middle of the board.
  • 1941.03.14 Botvinnik, Mikhail vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Queen's Gambit Declined 30 moves Match/Training Botvinnik-Ragozin March 1941, Botvinnik again and Black again. Botvinnik throws everything at the king — 19.Nd5 exd5 20.Rxf6 gxf6 21.Qxh6+ — and Ragozin walks out of it, answering 30.gxf7 with 30...axb3 because his own queenside pawns arrive first.
  • 1942 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsBoleslavsky, Isaak 1-0 Caro-Kann Defense: Forgacs Variation 19 moves Sverdlovsk Sverdlovsk 1942 against Isaak Boleslavsky, later a Candidates finalist and Bronstein's second. Nineteen moves: 15.Bh6 Qd7 16.Bxg7 Kxg7 17.Nf5+ Kh8 18.Re4 stacks every piece against h7, and there is no defence.
  • 1945 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsBronstein, David Ionovich 1-0 Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Main Line 38 moves URS-ch14 Final USSR Championship final 1945 — an Evans Gambit against David Bronstein, who six years later would tie a World Championship match with Botvinnik. Ragozin plays 8.Bxh6 gxh6 9.Bxf7+ Kf8 in the opening and never lets the king settle, finishing 37.Rxd6 Qf7 38.Qb6+.
  • 1945 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsSmyslov, Vasily V 1-0 Slav Defense: Czech Variation 67 moves URS-ch14 Final The same championship, and this time Smyslov with Black. Sixty-seven moves ending in a queen endgame that Ragozin wins by marching his king from e6 to g8 to shelter from the checks while the f-pawn advances: 58.f6, 62.Kxh7, 63.f7.
  • 1946 Bondarevsky, Igor Tsakharovich vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Queen's Gambit Declined: Vienna Variation 16 moves Match Ragozin-Bondarevsky +7-3=2 From the 1946 match with Bondarevsky, sixteen moves with Black and not a piece sacrificed. Ragozin trades the queens off on move eleven, wins the d5 pawn back with 13...Nxc5, and after 16.c4 Rac8 the c-file pressure is already decisive.
  • 1948.12.06 Keres, Paul vsRagozin, Viacheslav 0-1 Indian Defense: Knights Variation 43 moves URS-ch16 Final USSR Championship 1948, Keres with White in the year Botvinnik took the world title. Ragozin's knight goes on a tour that decides the game — 34...Ng4, 35...Nf2, 36...Nxh3+, 40...Nd1, 43...Ne3 — and the queens come off into a won ending.
  • 1951.03.08 Ragozin, Viacheslav vsBotvinnik, Mikhail 1-0 Semi-Slav Defense: Marshall Gambit, Main Line 22 moves Match/Training Botvinnik-Ragozin March 1951, Botvinnik now reigning World Champion, and Ragozin beats him in twenty-two moves. A Marshall Gambit in the Semi-Slav: Botvinnik takes on d4, e4 and g2, and Ragozin answers with 15.Rg1 Nc6 16.Rxg7 Qxd6 17.Nxd6+ Ke7 18.Bxc6, the king stranded on e7 with the position in ruins.
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