Vladas Mikėnas
Notable Games

Vladas Mikėnas

16 celebrated games · 257 in the full archive
Player Index ◈ Biography 257 CURATED GAMES

Notable Games

  • 1931.07.16 Vidmar, Milan Sr vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Slav Defense: Czech Variation 36 moves Olympiad-04 Prague Olympiad 1931, his first, on top board for Lithuania at twenty-one, against Milan Vidmar. 8...Bxe4 9.fxe4 Nxe4 gives up a bishop for the centre, the white king is driven to b1 — 15...Rd8+ 16.Kc2 Rd2+ 17.Kb3 Rxb2+ 18.Kxb2 Bxc3+ — and the queen checks finish it at move 36.
  • 1933.06.17 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsFlohr, Salo 1-0 Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation 20 moves Olympiad-05 Folkestone Olympiad 1933 against Salo Flohr, then among the best players in the world. Twenty moves: 8.d5, 15.Bf4 and 16.Nb5 aim everything at the black king on c8, and 19.Nxa7+ Bxa7 20.Qa3 ends it.
  • 1936.08.23 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsKeres, Paul 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Steinitz Deferred 69 moves Munich Schach-Olympia (No FIDE event) The unofficial Olympiad at Munich 1936 against Paul Keres, soon one of the strongest players in the world. A Ruy Lopez that goes to 69 moves: 35.e6+ Kxe6 36.Re1 turns the ending, and White's rooks take over the seventh rank.
  • 1937.06.20 Alekhine, Alexander vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Neo-Grünfeld Defense: Delayed Exchange Variation 64 moves Kemeri International-01 Kemeri 1937 with Black against Alexander Alekhine, who would win back the world title from Max Euwe at the end of the year. Mikėnas missed a mate in three along the way, and Alekhine told him so; he won the ending anyway, at move 64.
  • 1940.09.25 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsBotvinnik, Mikhail 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Noa Variation 73 moves URS-ch12 Final The 1940 USSR Championship final, his first, against Mikhail Botvinnik, the reigning Soviet champion. A Nimzo-Indian that becomes a queen ending, and Mikėnas wins it on move 73 with the b-pawn running.
  • 1941 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsLebedev, N 1-0 Queen's Gambit Declined 28 moves GEO-ch Georgian championship, Kutaisi 1941. 23.Rxf6 gives up the exchange, and the black king is marched into the centre and mated: 25.h4 Kxf6 26.Ng4+ hxg4 27.Be5+ Kxe5 28.Qd4#.
  • 1942 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsSmyslov, Vasily V 1-0 Old Indian Defense 33 moves Kuibyshev Kuibyshev 1942 against Vasily Smyslov, the future World Champion. An Old Indian: 18.d5, 21.Rb1 and 22.Nb5 open the queenside, 27.Rb7 plants a rook on the seventh, and the game is over in 33 moves.
  • 1944.06.11 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsBronstein, David Ionovich 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation 64 moves URS-ch13 Final The 1944 USSR Championship final against David Bronstein, who would draw a World Championship match with Botvinnik seven years later. 25.Nxd5 breaks the centre open, and in the ending the d-pawn runs to d7.
  • 1948 Nezhmetdinov, Rashid vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Alekhine Defense: Hunt Variation, Mikenas Gambit 13 moves Match Nezhmetdinov-Mikenas Kazan 1948, a match with Rashid Nezhmetdinov, a study player here and one of the great attackers. Mikėnas with Black in the Alekhine Defence: after 9.Bxf7+ Kxf7 10.cxd6 Be6 11.f4 Bxd6 12.exd6 Re8 13.Kf2 Qxd6 White resigned in 13 moves.
  • 1949.10.17 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsKotov, Alexander 1-0 Dutch Defense: Staunton Gambit 42 moves URS-ch17 Final The 1949 USSR Championship final against Alexander Kotov. The Staunton Gambit against the Dutch: 10.Nxg6 offers a knight at once, 22.Rf6 Bxf6 23.exf6 gives up the exchange, and the passed a- and h-pawns finish it on move 42.
  • 1950.11.15 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsPetrosian, Tigran V 1-0 King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Classical Variation 41 moves URS-ch18 Final The 1950 USSR Championship final against Tigran Petrosian, the future World Champion. Petrosian sacrifices a knight with 29...Nxg5 30.fxg5 Bxg5; Mikėnas answers 31.Ndf5 and 32.Bxc5, and the rooks on the g- and f-files decide in 41 moves.
  • 1955.03.04 Keres, Paul vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation 51 moves URS-ch22 Final The 1955 USSR Championship final with Black against Paul Keres. 19...Bxg2 strips the white king, and in the queen-and-knight ending it is chased up the board: 47...Qc4+ 48.Kb6 Nd5+ 49.Ka7.
  • 1957.02.06 Korchnoi, Viktor Lvovich vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Queen's Gambit Accepted: Classical Defense, Alekhine System 34 moves URS-ch24 Final The 1957 USSR Championship final with Black against Viktor Korchnoi. 27...Bh1 28.Kf1 Qg2+ 29.Ke2 Nd5 30.Rxh1 Nxe3 wins the white queen, and the game is over at move 34.
  • 1958.07 Taimanov, Mark E vsMikenas, Vladas Ivanovich 0-1 Tarrasch Defense 19 moves URS-chT Republics 05th final A Soviet team championship, Vilnius 1958, with Black against Mark Taimanov, a study player here and a future Candidate. Nineteen moves: White takes the b7 pawn and his king stays in the centre, 17...Nd3 18.Nc6 Nxb2+ 19.Ke1 Qc5.
  • 1959.12.16 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsTal, Mikhail 1-0 Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation 60 moves Riga International Riga 1959 against Mikhail Tal, a year before Tal became World Champion. Tal takes the poisoned pawn with 9...Qxb2 and the queens come off at move 12; Mikėnas wins the ending with the f-pawn. He finished second in the tournament, half a point behind Boris Spassky and ahead of Tal.
  • 1962.11.28 Mikenas, Vladas Ivanovich vsTal, Mikhail 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Spielmann Variation, Romanovsky Gambit 48 moves URS-ch30 Final The 1962 USSR Championship final in Yerevan, against Tal again, at fifty-two. 22.Qxc5 and 23.Qxa7 win two pawns, and the b-pawn walks to b7 before White breaks through on the kingside.
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