Vasilios Kotronias ( el, Βασίλειος Κοτρωνιάς; first name sometimes spelled ''Vassilios''; born 25 August 1964) is a Greek
chess player and writer. He is a ten-time
Greek champion (1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 2006, 2010, 2014). Kotronias was awarded the titles of
International Master
FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...
in 1986 and
Grandmaster in 1990 by
FIDE
The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( Fédération Internationale des Échecs), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national c ...
.
Between 1998 and 2004, he represented
Cyprus, but has since switched federations to become a Greek national player once again.
International tournament record
*1st 1988 Athens (
Acropolis International)
*1st 1993 Komotini
*1st 1993 Corfu
*1st 1994 Gausdal
*1st 1995 Gausdal
*1st 1996 Rishon le Zion
*1st 1998 Panormo
* 1st 2003
Gibraltar Chess Festival
The Gibraltar International Chess Festival is a chess tournament held annually at the Caleta Hotel in Gibraltar. Its eleven days of competition usually run from late January to early February. The inaugural edition, then known as the ''Gibtelecom ...
(jointly with
Nigel Short)
* equal 1st 2003/04
Hastings International Chess Congress
* equal first at 2008
Cappelle-la-Grande Open
* 1st 2020 Ikaros Chess Festival
Most played openings
Team events
In team chess, he has participated in many
Chess Olympiads since 1984, including eight on top board, with an overall score of +63 −29 = 62 (61%). In seven appearances at the
European Team Chess Championships, all played at board one, he made a score of +19 −13 = 26. At
León, in 2001, he earned an individual silver medal for his score of 5½/8. He also earned a bronze medal for his performance on the second board at the Dresden Olympiad 2008 and a gold medal for his performance on the reserve board at the European Team Championship 2013 in Warsaw.
Politics
He was a candidate for the
European Parliament with
The River, in the elections of 25 May 2014.
After leaving the River, Kotronias joined
Syriza
The Coalition of the Radical Left – Progressive Alliance ( el, Συνασπισμός Ριζοσπαστικής Αριστεράς – Προοδευτική Συμμαχία, Synaspismós Rizospastikís Aristerás – Proodeftikí Simachía), ...
and was a candidate in the 2019 general elections. He failed to get elected, as he finished last amongst the 18 candidates of his party.
Notable games
Vasilios Kotronias vs Evgeny Tomashevsky, European Individual Championships (2013), Spanish Game: Morphy Defense. Steinitz Deferred (C79), 1-0Vasilios Kotronias vs Hikaru NakamuraGibtelecom (2009), Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation. Main lines (B18), 1-0Peter Heine Nielsen vs Vasilios Kotronias, Hastings 2004, King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Classical System Neo-Classical Line (E98), 0-1Vasilios Kotronias vs Nikolaos Skalkotas, 34th Greek Teams Championship 2005, Spanish Game: Closed Variations, Chigorin Defense (C99), 1-0Laurent Fressinet vs Vasilios Kotronias, 12th European Individual Championship (2011), King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation. Gligoric-Taimanov System (E92), 0-1
Publications
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kotronias, Vasilios
1964 births
Living people
Chess grandmasters
Greek chess players
Greek non-fiction writers
Chess writers
Chess Olympiad competitors
Politicians from Athens
Sportspeople from Athens
Writers from Athens
20th-century Greek people