Izak (Izhak, Itzchak) Aloni (Schächter) ( he, יצחק אלוני; born 5 April 1905 – died 2 June 1985) was an Israeli

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

master.

Biography

Aloni, born Schächter in

Buchach Buchach ( uk, Бучач; pl, Buczacz; yi, בעטשאָטש, Betshotsh or (Bitshotsh); he, בוצ'אץ' ''Buch'ach''; german: Butschatsch; tr, Bucaş) is a city located on the Strypa River (a tributary of the Dniester) in Chortkiv Raion of T ...

, Galicia (then

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

), was twice Lvov (Lemberg, Lwów, Lviv) champion (1936, 1939), and four-times Lvov sub-champion (1931, 1932, 1933, 1938). He played twice in Polish championships. In 1935, he tied for 12-14th in Warsaw (3rd POL-ch;

Savielly Tartakower Savielly Tartakower (also known as ''Xavier'' or ''Ksawery'' ''Tartakower'', less often ''Tartacover'' or ''Tartakover''; 21 February 1887 – 4 February 1956) was a Polish and French chess player. He was awarded the title of International Grandm ...

won). In 1937, he took 19th in Jurata (4th POL-ch; Tartakower won). In 1938, he won in Kraków (POL-ch elim.). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he played in Lviv (then in

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

); took 9th in March 1940 ("West Ukrainian" championship,

Abram Khavin Abram Leonidovich Khavin (1914 – January 19, 1974, Kiev) was a Ukrainian chess master. In 1937, he took 6th in Kiev (9th UKR-ch, Fedor Bogatyrchuk won). In 1938, he tied for 4-6th in Kiev (10th UKR-ch, Isaac Boleslavsky won). During World War ...

won), tied for 3rd-5th in August 1940 ("Spartak" Club,

Edward Gerstenfeld Edward (Eduard) Issakovich Gerstenfeld (January 1915 in Lemberg – December 1943 (?) in Rostov-on-Don, USSR) was a Polish chess master. Born into a Jewish family in Lviv, Galicia (then Austria-Hungary), he came 3rd, behind Henryk Friedman and ...

won), and tied for 4-5th in the Lviv City championship in March 1941 (Gerstenfeld won). In June 1941, when the

German-Soviet War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sout ...

broke out, he as a former Soviet militiaman was sent to Kazakhstan. On September 15, 1941, he was recruited to the 13th Infantry Regiment of the 8th Infantry Division of the Polish Army (commander General

Władysław Anders ) , birth_name = Władysław Albert Anders , birth_date = , birth_place = Krośniewice-Błonie, Warsaw Governorate, Congress Poland, Russian Empire , death_date = , death_place = London, England, United Kingdom , serviceyear ...

). In August 1942,

Anders Army Anders' Army was the informal yet common name of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in the 1941–42 period, in recognition of its commander Władysław Anders. The army was created in the Soviet Union but, in March 1942, based on an understand ...

was evacuated to Iran. He served in the

Polish Armed Forces in the East The Polish Armed Forces in the East ( pl, Polskie Siły Zbrojne na Wschodzie), also called Polish Army in the USSR, were the Polish Armed Forces, Polish military forces established in the Soviet Union during World War II. Two armies were formed ...

(Iran, Iraq, Palestine) till January 25, 1945. Finally, he settled in Palestine. After the war, he was Israeli champion in 1945, 1961, and 1965. He also played several times in the Tel Aviv City championships. He took 2nd in 1951, and tied for 2nd-4th in 1952, both after Menachem Oren. Aloni played for Israel in six

Chess Olympiad The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams representing nations of the world compete. FIDE organises the tournament and selects the host nation. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, FIDE held an Online Chess Olympiad in 2020 an ...

s. * In 1952, on fourth board at the

10th Chess Olympiad The 10th Chess Olympiad ( fi, 10. Shakkiolympialaiset; sv, Den 10:e Schackolympiad), organized by the FIDE and comprising an openAlthough commonly referred to as the ''men's division'', this section is open to both male and female players. team t ...

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

(+6 –3 =1). * In 1954, on fourth board at the

11th Chess Olympiad The 11th Chess Olympiad ( nl, De 11e Schaakolympiade), organized by the FIDE and comprising an openAlthough commonly referred to as the ''men's division'', this section is open to both male and female players. team tournament, as well as several o ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

(+9 –3 =5). * In 1956, on third board at the 12th Chess Olympiad in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

(+8 –5 =4). * In 1958, on third board at the 13th Chess Olympiad in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

(+6 –5 =4). * In 1960, on third board at the 14th Chess Olympiad in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

(+7 –4 =4). * In 1962, on second board at the

15th Chess Olympiad The 15th Chess Olympiad ( bg, 15-ата Шахматна олимпиада, ''15-ata Shahmatna olimpiada''), organized by FIDE and comprising an openAlthough commonly referred to as the ''men's division'', this section is open to both male and fe ...

in Varna (+3 –6 =5). In international tournaments, he tied for 4-5th at Haifa 1958 (

Samuel Reshevsky Samuel Herman Reshevsky (born Szmul Rzeszewski; November 26, 1911 – April 4, 1992) was a Polish chess prodigy and later a leading American chess grandmaster. He was a contender for the World Chess Championship from the mid-1930s to the mid-196 ...

won), shared 2nd at Tel Aviv 1960, took 9th in Netanya 1961 (

Milan Matulović Milan Matulović (10 June 1935 – 9 October 2013) was a chess grandmaster who was the second or third strongest Yugoslav player for much of the 1960s and 1970s behind Svetozar Gligorić and possibly Borislav Ivkov. He was primarily active befor ...

, Petar Trifunović and

Moshe Czerniak Moshe Czerniak (born Moizes Czerniak, also knowns as Miguel Czerniak; he, משה צ'רניאק; 3 February 1910 – 31 August 1984) was a Polish-Israeli chess player. He was awarded the title of International Master (IM) by FIDE in 1952. Biog ...

won), tied for 6-8th at Tel Aviv 1964, took 10th at Netanya 1964, won at Tel Aviv 1965, tied for 11-14th in Tel Aviv 1966 (

Svetozar Gligorić Svetozar Gligorić (Serbian Cyrillic: Светозар Глигорић, 2 February 1923 – 14 August 2012) was a Serbian and Yugoslav chess grandmaster and musician. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is consider ...

won), and tied for 12-13th in Netanya 1968 (

Robert James Fischer Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and the eleventh World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, he won his first of a record eight US Championships at the age of 14. In 1964, he won with an 1 ...

won).

Notable chess games

Gerhard Pfeiffer vs Izak Aloni, Munich 1958, 13th Olympiad, Semi-Slav Defense, Chigorin Variation, D46, 0-1Bogdan Śliwa vs Izak Aloni, Tel Aviv 1966, English Opening, Symmetrical Variation, A30, 0-1

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aloni, Izak 1905 births 1985 deaths People from Buchach People from the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Ukrainian Jews Jews from Galicia (Eastern Europe) Polish military personnel of World War II Polish emigrants to Mandatory Palestine 20th-century Israeli Jews Israeli people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Polish chess players Israeli chess players Jewish chess players Chess Olympiad competitors 20th-century chess players