AThe Province Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Thursday, May 27, 1971 - Page 35
World Chess Match - Fischer Has Russian On The Ropes by Paul RaugustBobby Fischer has moved within 1½ games of winning his world chess championship elimination match with Russia's Mark Taimanov.
Fischer defeated the Soviet grandmaster for the fourth consecutive time Wednesday afternoon in a game that displayed the American's often-touted but hitherto rarely seen brilliance at the University of B.C. It was the 28-year-old Brooklyn, N.Y., native's best game of the match.
The fifth game is scheduled to begin this afternoon and, it would not be surprising if Taimanov conceded the entire match should he lose today when he will be enjoying the advantages of white.
Wednesday's game had been continued from Tuesday. At resumption of play Fischer held only a slight edge in board strength by virtue of a bishop over a knight.
After swapping rooks on the 44th move, Fischer had Taimanov effectively pinned. Taimanov's only remaining major piece was a knight but that was left immobile as it was forced to defend the king-side pawns.
With his back against the wall, Taimanov was forced to accept Fischer's sacrifice offer of a bishop on the 62nd move. In the end the sacrifice cost Taimanov three pawns, riddling his queen-side defenses and reducing his strength to two pawns, one knight and the king. Fischer had five pawns and the king left and was threatening to regain his queen when Taimanov resigned on the 71st move.
Meanwhile, in Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Bent Larsen of Denmark and Wolfgang Uhlmann of East Germany agreed to a draw on the 44th move of their seventh game Wednesday.
The game was adjourned Tuesday on the 42nd move. Larsen now has 4½ points to Uhlmann's 2½. Winner of this match will advance against the winner of the Vancouver match.
Tigran Petrosian of the Soviet Union has already won a berth in the finals of series B by defeating Robert Huebner of West Germany. Petrosian will meet the winner of a match being played in Moscow between Russian grandmasters Yefim Geller and Viktor Korchnoi.
The seventh game in the Moscow match was adjourned Wednesday on the 41st move. Tass news agency said the game was in a complex position at adjournment.
Korchnoi leads the series by 3½ points to 2½
The over-all winner of both series will advance against world champion Boris Spassky of Russia in a match to be played in Moscow next year.
