9:12pm: Bobby Fischer is World Chess Champion
Bobby Fischer beating Boris Spassky in
Reykjavik, Iceland, Aug. 31, 1972
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In the summer of 1972, 29-year-old U.S. chess sensation Bobby Fischer took on reigning Soviet world chess champion Boris Spassky in Reykjavik, Iceland. The Soviets had held the world chess title since 1948, and no American had ever won the world title. However, with Fischer, who at age 15 was the youngest grandmaster ever, the United States finally had a contender. After several delays caused by the famously argumentative Fischer, the "chess match of the century" got underway on July 11. The grueling championship, which was hailed as a struggle between capitalism against communism, attracted unprecedented media attention for a chess match. After a month, it was clear that Fischer was headed for victory. On August 31 Spassky was forced to concede. Fischer's victory gave the popularity of chess a tremendous boost in the United States, but the world champion himself declined to capitalize on his fame. In 1975, when by international chess rules he was forced to defend his title, he refused to meet his Soviet challenger over a petty complaint. His title was thus forfeited. He subsequently gave up professional chess and became a recluse. In 1992, he agreed to a rematch with Spassky in Yugoslavia and again defeated the Russian. Today, Fischer is believed to play an occasional, anonymous game of chess against other grandmasters on the Internet. (From The History Channel)