Vassily Ivanchuk – "Planet Ivanchuk"

Vassily Ivanchuk (born 1969) is a Ukrainian chess legend. For over 30 years, he has been one of the strongest and most feared players in the world due to his universal understanding of chess.

He is a Universal player in the truest sense. He can play boring technical endgames like Capablanca one day, and wild sacrificial attacks like Tal the next. He is impossible to prepare against.

Fans love him for his pure passion. He has been known to play chess for 10 hours straight, analyze all night, and play Checkers during tournaments to relax. He simply loves the game.

Yes, he has defeated every World Champion from Karpov to Carlsen. He famously crushed Kasparov at Linares 1991, winning the tournament ahead of both Kasparov and Karpov.

At age 47, he shocked the world by winning the World Rapid Championship in Doha, defeating Magnus Carlsen and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.

He dominated the World Blitz Championship in Moscow, finishing ahead of Anand and Kramnik.

In one of the strongest tournaments in history, Ivanchuk finished 1st, beating Garry Kasparov in a famous game where Kasparov missed a mate.

Kasparov often cited Ivanchuk as the only player whose understanding of chess equaled his own, though he noted Ivanchuk's nerves sometimes failed him.

He led the Soviet Union (twice) and Ukraine (twice) to Gold Medals at the Chess Olympiad (1988, 1990, 2004, 2010).

He reached the final of the FIDE World Championship Knockout, but lost to compatriot Ruslan Ponomariov in a tragic upset.

Ivanchuk has a knack for beating World Champions. He famously defeated Carlsen at the 2015 Tata Steel tournament and the 2016 Rapid Worlds.

He is one of the few elite players to play the King's Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.f4) in serious tournament games, simply for the love of the game.

During elite chess tournaments, he has been seen analyzing Checkers (Draughts) games on the side, claiming it helps his calculation.

At the 2010 Olympiad, after missing a mate-in-one, he was so angry at himself that he stormed out of the hall and refused to give a urine sample for doping control (he was later cleared).

In 2007, he reached his peak rating of 2787, ranking as World No. 2.

He won this super-tournament in Sofia with a massive score of 8/10, playing some of the best chess of his life.

Unlike most GMs who specialize, Ivanchuk plays the Sicilian, French, Caro-Kann, Ruy Lopez, King's Indian, Grunfeld, and Nimzo-Indian equally well.

Against Anand in the Grand Prix final, he missed a simple mate in one that would have won the tournament, a moment that highlights his tragic brilliance.

He won the Gibraltar Chess Festival in 2011 with a stunning score of 9/10.

He is a factory of new ideas. He famously introduced a Queen sacrifice line in the Sicilian that took years to refute.

When asked who the most talented player was, Judit Polgar and Anand both pointed to Ivanchuk.

He has remained a 2700+ player for over 30 years, adapting to the engine era without losing his human creativity.

He has won the Capablanca Memorial tournament in Cuba a record 8 times.

He once played a rapid tournament, won it, and then immediately sat down to play blitz with spectators because he "just wanted to play."