Mark Bluvshtein (born 20 April 1988) is a Soviet-born Canadian
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 ...
player. He became the youngest Canadian ever to achieve the title of
Grandmaster in 2004, at the age of 16. He previously achieved the title
International Master at the age of 13.
Early life
Mark's father Ilia Bluvshtein is a Canadian National Master player himself, and taught his son how to play chess, playing countless games where Mark had
material odds. The Bluvshtein family moved from Russia to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
when Mark was five years old. They moved again, to
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Ontario, Canada, six years later, where he attended
Newtonbrook Secondary School
Newtonbrook Secondary School (Newtonbrook SS, NSS) is a high school for Grades 9 to 12 in the Newtonbrook neighborhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
History
Opened in 1964 by the then North York Board of Education to provide a closer school for ...
. Bluvshtein graduated from Newtonbrook in 2006.
Chess career
Bluvshtein was Israel under-10 champion (1998) and under-12 champion (1999).
Upon arriving in Canada, he earned a National Master ranking within a few months at age 11, making him the youngest Canadian to achieve this level. He was training during this time with Yan Teplitsky, who had studied in the famed Russian school run by
Mark Dvoretsky before moving to Canada.
Bluvshtein's first major Canadian success came in 2000, when he tied for 2nd-3rd places in the Toronto Closed Championship, with a score of 8/11 points, behind Eduardo Teodoro IV. His first full international event in Canada was the Toronto Summer International Open 2000, where he made a score of 4½/9. He claimed clear first place in the Toronto Thanksgiving Open 2000 with 5/6, ahead of several strong masters. In the Junior Canadian Championship,
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
2001, he placed clear second with 7/9, behind winner Yaacov Vaingorten. In 2001, he won the Canadian grade 7 championship and in the Canadian Youth Championship, held at
Sackville, New Brunswick, he took clear first place in the U14 group scoring 6½/7. Staying on for the
Canadian Open Chess Championship, also at Sackville, Bluvshtein tied for 3rd-7th places, with 7½/10, behind only winners
Tony Miles
Anthony John Miles (23 April 1955 – 12 November 2001) was an English chess player and the first Englishman to earn the Grandmaster title.
Early and personal life
Miles was an only child, born 23 April 1955 in Edgbaston, a suburb of Birming ...
(in his last tournament before his death a few weeks later) and
Larry Christiansen
Larry Mark Christiansen (born June 27, 1956) is an American chess player of Danish ancestry. He was awarded the title Grandmaster by FIDE in 1977. Christiansen was the U.S. champion in 1980, 1983, and 2002. He competed in the FIDE World Champ ...
.
Youngest Canadian international master
A few weeks later, Bluvshtein became the youngest
international master in Canadian history, at age 13, when he scored 6/9 at the
Zonal Closed Canadian Championship in Montreal. He tied for 3rd-4th places, behind only winners
Kevin Spraggett
Kevin Spraggett (born 10 November 1954) is a Canadian chess grandmaster. He was the fourth Canadian to earn the grandmaster title, after Abe Yanofsky, Duncan Suttles and Peter Biyiasas. Spraggett is the only Canadian to have qualified for th ...
and
Alexandre Lesiège. He won the 2001 Toronto Christmas Open with 4½/5.
In 2002, Bluvshtein won the Canadian grade 8 championship and made a perfect score of 8/8 in the Canadian Youth Championship (U14 group). Then, in the Canadian Open Championship, Montreal 2002, he tied for 4th-10th places, with 7½/10, behind only winners
Jean-Marc Degraeve
Jean-Marc Degraeve (born 26 January 1971) is a French chess player. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1998.
Career
Degraeve won the French junior championship in 1987, and had attained the title of International Master in 1991, ...
,
Pascal Charbonneau, and
Jean Hébert
Jean Hébert (born November 11, 1957 in Quebec City, Quebec) is a Canadian chess player, writer, journalist, and commentator who holds the ICCF title of Correspondence Chess Grandmaster and the FIDE title of International Master. He is the 2009 C ...
. Bluvshtein's first grandmaster
round-robin tournament was the 2002 Montreal International, where he tied for 10th-11th places scoring 4/11; the winner was Degraeve. Just a couple of weeks later, in the 2nd
Chess'n Math Association Futurity in Toronto, he tied for 1st-4th places, with 6/9, along with
Yuri Shulman,
Walter Arencibia, and
Dmitry Tyomkin, missing a
norm
Naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) and technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive materials (TENORM) consist of materials, usually industrial wastes or by-products enriched with radioactive elements found in the envi ...
for the title of
Grandmaster by half a point. In the Toronto Labour Day Open 2002, he tied for first at 5/6 with Goran Milicevic.
Youngest Canadian grandmaster
In June 2003, Bluvshtein scored his first norm for the title of Grandmaster at a round-robin tournament in
Balatonlelle, Hungary, by winning his last three games and finishing with 6½/9. He scored solidly at the 2003
Guelph
Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...
International, with 5/9, but he had a rough tournament at the Montreal International, as he could only score 3½/11 in a field which had nine grandmasters out of 12 competitors.
Bluvshtein switched trainers, working with Grandmaster
Dmitry Tyomkin for a time, with success. With funding assistance from chess patron and businessman
Sid Belzberg, Bluvshtein was able to work with Israeli Grandmaster
Alexander Huzman, and this provided the impetus for his next qualitative advance.
Bluvshtein made a Grandmaster norm at the 2004 Canadian Open Championship in
Kapuskasing
Kapuskasing is a town on the Kapuskasing River in the Cochrane District of Northern Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Hearst. The town was known as MacPherson until 1917, when the name was changed so as not to conflict with another rail ...
, where he played eight grandmasters in ten rounds, while scoring 6½/10 to tie for 13th-26th places; he beat
Vladimir Epishin
Vladimir Epishin (born 11 July 1965 in Leningrad) is a Russian chess grandmaster.
He finished third in the 58th USSR Chess Championship in 1991. He won the 1987 St. Petersburg Championship. Other tournament successes include 3rd-4th with Vladi ...
and Arencibia, and lost only one game.
The next month, at the 2004 Montreal International, he made his third and final qualifying grandmaster result with 6½/11 to place fourth; the winner was
Zahar Efimenko
Zahar Oleksandrovych Efimenko (; born 3 July 1985) is a Ukrainian chess grandmaster. He was a member of the gold medal-winning Ukrainian team at the 2010 Chess Olympiad. Efimenko competed in the FIDE World Cup in 2005, 2009 and 2011.
Chess car ...
. Then he placed third, following a tie-break playoff, at the Zonal Canadian Championship in Toronto, with 6½/9, behind co-winners Charbonneau and
Eric Lawson
Eric Lawson (born February 12, 1981) is an American mixed martial artist, who is perhaps best known for his fight stint with now-defunct promotion Strikeforce. A professional mixed martial arts since 2004, Lawson holds a record of 9–5.
Mixe ...
. A couple of months later, Bluvshtein raised his international rating above 2500, completing the requirements for the title of Grandmaster. He was awarded the title by
FIDE at age 16, during the
36th Chess Olympiad, held in
Calvià
Calvià () is a municipality on the island of Majorca, part of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. It is located in the southwestern part of the island of Majorca, between the Serra de Tramuntana and the Serra de Na Burguesa ...
, where he made a further grandmaster norm. Chess'n Math awarded Bluvshtein $7,000 for becoming a grandmaster.
Bluvshtein won the Canadian Youth Championship (Under 18 group) in 2005, and tied for first at the Canadian Open Championship at
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
2005, with a score of 8/10. He defeated
Alexei Shirov
Alexei Shirov (, lv, Aleksejs Širovs; born 4 July 1972) is a Latvian and Spanish chess player. Shirov was ranked number two in the world in 1994.
He won a match against Vladimir Kramnik in 1998 to qualify to play as challenger for the classic ...
among others.
In 2006, Bluvshtein tied for 2nd-5th places at the Zonal Canadian Championship in Toronto, with 6½/9, behind champion
Igor Zugic. Bluvshtein shared the title at the
First Saturday tournament in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
in June 2007, scoring 8/11. He scored 7/10, unbeaten, in the 2007 Canadian Open Championship in Ottawa. At
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
2007, he defeated former world championship finalist
Nigel Short
Nigel David Short (born 1 June 1965) is an English chess grandmaster, columnist, coach, and commentator, who is the vice-president of FIDE since October 2018. Short earned the Grandmaster title at the age of 19, and was ranked third in the ...
.
In June 2008 Bluvshtein won the Budapest First Saturday tournament scoring 10 points put of 13, a full point ahead of the second place. At 2008 Montreal International, he tied for second with
Hikaru Nakamura
Christopher Hikaru Nakamura[Varuzhan Akobian
Varuzhan Akobian ( hy, Վարուժան Հակոբյան, born 19 November 1983 in Yerevan, Soviet Union) is an Armenian-born American chess Grandmaster. Originally from Armenia, he now resides in St. Louis. He played on the bronze-medal-winni ...](_blank)
with 5½ of 9, behind the winner
Yuri Shulman. In the 2009 Quebec Invitational, Bluvshtein took second place with 7 of 9, half a point behind the winner
Anton Kovalyov. That same year he tied for first with 7½ of 9 in the Canadian Open at Edmonton, ahead of Alexei Shirov and
Michael Adams. Right after this Bluvshtein took second place on Canadian Zonal with 6½ of 9, undefeated. Proceeding to the strong 2009 Montreal International, he scored 5½ points out of 11, beating
Alexander Onischuk and
Alexander Moiseenko
Alexander Moiseenko ( uk, Олександр Моісеєнко, ; born 17 May 1980) is a Ukrainian chess grandmaster and the 2013 European champion. He was a member of the gold medal-winning Ukrainian team at the Chess Olympiads of 2004 and 201 ...
.
In 2010 Bluvshtein graduated from university and engaged in chess for a full year professionally. He played in 13 tournaments and matches around the world over the year. Bluvshtein tied for second in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
with 5½ of 7. He then played on the first board for team Canada at the
2010 Chess Olympiad
The 39th Chess Olympiad (russian: 39-я Шахматная олимпиада, ''39-ya Shakhmatnaya olimpiada''), organised by FIDE and comprising an open and a women's tournament, as well as several other events designed to promote the game of ch ...
, beating former world champion and world number two
Veselin Topalov
Veselin Aleksandrov Topalov (pronounced ; bg, Весели́н Александров Топа́лов; born 15 March 1975) is a Bulgarian chess grandmaster and former FIDE World Chess Champion.
Topalov became FIDE World Chess Champion by wi ...
. At 2010
Groningen Bluvshtein tied for first place with 6½/9. His next success came in the 2011
American Continental Championship, where he tied for first with 7½/9 to qualify for the 2011
FIDE World Cup
The FIDE World Cup refers to three different events over the years. Since 2000, it has been a major chess event organized by FIDE, the International Chess Federation. Since 2005, it has been a 128-player single-elimination chess tournament, form ...
. Right after this he played in the Premier group of the
Capablanca Memorial
The Capablanca Memorial is a chess tournament that has been held annually in Cuba since 1962 in honor of José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera. At the time, it was the best paid tournament in the world. Since 1974 B and C tournaments have been held ...
tournament in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. , Cuba and tied for first again, scoring 6 of 9. At the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
Bluvshtein was eliminated in the first round by
Alexander Riazantsev.
Bluvshtein was selected as the Canadian Chess Player of the Year in 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2011.
Youngest Canadian Olympian
Bluvshtein was first selected to play for the Canadian
Olympiad
An olympiad ( el, Ὀλυμπιάς, ''Olympiás'') is a period of four years, particularly those associated with the ancient and modern Olympic Games.
Although the ancient Olympics were established during Greece's Archaic Era, it was not unti ...
team at age 14 in 2002; this tied the record for the youngest Canadian male chess Olympian, first set by
Daniel Yanofsky
Daniel Abraham Yanofsky, (March 25, 1925 – March 5, 2000), commonly known as Daniel Yanofsky or Abe Yanofsky, was a Canadian chess player, chess writer, chess arbiter, and lawyer. He was Canada's first Grandmaster and an eight-time Canadian ...
in 1939. Bluvshtein was also selected in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, gradually moving up the boards and playing on board one in his last two Olympiads. His results in this Olympiad are:
*
Bled 2002: 1st reserve: 8/11, +7 =2 -2; 2553 performance
*
Calvià 2004: 3rd board: 8.5/12, +7 =3 -2; 2638 performance
*
Turin 2006: 2nd board: 7.5/11, +5 =5 -1; 2576 performance
*
Dresden 2008: 1st board: 5/9, +4 =2 -3; 2429 performance
*
Khanty-Mansiysk 2010: 1st board: 6/11, +4 =4 -3; 2576 performance
His totals for Canada in Olympiad play are: 54 games, +27 =16 -11, for a score of 64.8%.
Personal life
In September 2011 Bluvshtein retired from chess and is pursuing other career opportunities. Bluvshtein graduated from
York University
York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...
in Toronto in 2010, majoring in Science and Technology Studies. He received an MBA from the
Rotman School of Management
The Joseph L. Rotman School of Management (commonly known as the Rotman School of Management, the Rotman School or just Rotman) is the University of Toronto's graduate business school, located in Downtown Toronto. The University of Toronto has b ...
at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...
in 2016. As of August 2017, Mark was working at
Wave
In physics, mathematics, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from equilibrium) of one or more quantities. Waves can be periodic, in which case those quantities oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium (re ...
in Toronto as a Manager, Financial Services. At the same company, Bluvshtein later became Director, Business Operations.
Wave Spotlight: Mark Bluvshtein
www.waveapps.com, Sept. 12th 2019
Notable chess games
Dmitri Tyomkin vs Mark Bluvshtein, Oakham 2001, Bogo-Indian Defence (E11), 0-1
Young Mark downs a Grandmaster at just age 13.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Irina Krush, New York Generation Chess International 2003, Sicilian Defence, Richter-Rauzer Variation (B66), 1-0
Bluvshtein defeats one of the world's best young woman players.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Dmitri Tyomkin, Canadian Zonal Championship, Toronto 2004, Sicilian Defence, Kan / Taimanov Variation (B42), 1-0
Crafty maneuvering eventually explodes into tactical fireworks.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Ognjen Cvitan, Calvia Olympiad 2004, King's Indian Defence, Classical Variation (E91), 1-0
Impressive positional performance against a strong GM.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Viacheslav Dydyshko, Calvia Olympiad 2004, Nimzo-Indian Defence (E20), 1-0
Bluvshtein has played some important original games in this variation.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Normunds Meizis, Calvia Olympiad 2004
Budapest Defence, Rubinstein Variation (A52), 1-0 Bluvshtein defeats Black's sharp offbeat opening in precise positional style.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Ildar Khairullin, World Youth Championship, Boys' Under 18 Group, Belfort 2005, Benko Gambit, Fianchetto Variation (A58), 1-0
Another sharp opening is dealt with in fine fashion.
Alexei Shirov vs Mark Bluvshtein, Canadian Open, Edmonton 2005, Petroff Defence (C42), 0-1
Bluvshtein's biggest scalp to date, as Shirov is humbled when Black sacrifices two pieces.
Nigel Short vs Mark Bluvshtein, Montreal International 2007, King's Gambit Accepted (C34), 0-1
Former World Finalist Short sacrifices his Queen for strong attacking chances, but Bluvshtein defends perfectly and scores with his counterattack.
Mark Bluvshtein vs Veselin Topalov, Khanty-Mansiysk Olympiad 2010, King’s Indian Defence (E90), 1-0
Bluvshtein's biggest scalp as he beats former World Champion and current FIDE rating #2.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluvshtein, Mark
1988 births
Living people
Canadian chess players
Jewish chess players
Chess grandmasters
Israeli Jews
Russian Jews
Jewish Canadian sportspeople
Canadian people of Russian-Jewish descent
Israeli emigrants to Canada
Russian emigrants to Canada
Russian emigrants to Israel
York University alumni