Yuri Balashov

Yuri Sergeyevich Balashov (Russian Юрий Сергеевич Балашов; born 12 March 1949 in Schadrinsk ( Kurgan Oblast ) ) is a Russian chess player.

Successes as a player

In 1967, Balashov won a heavily occupied junior tournament in Riga. In 1970 he became master of Moscow and in the same year he won the FIDE title of International Master. Since 1973 he is the Grand Master. In 1976 he came second behind Anatoly Karpov at the USSR Championships.

Balashov was in the 1970s and 1980s, a successful tournament player, inter alia, with good finishes in the tradition tournaments of Hastings and Wijk aan Zee. On German soil Balashov won tournaments in Halle ( 1976), was co-winner in 1979 in Munich and won the 1987 Dortmund Chess Days.

1980 belonged Balashov the Soviet team at the Chess Olympiad in Valletta. With the team and as the best substitute ( 7.5 points from 10 games) he won the gold medal.

His current Elo rating is 2450 (as of August 2012).

Activity as Sekundant

In the thesis of his chess coach - his studies, Balashov busy with the games of Bobby Fischer and was nominated for the Candidates final between Petrosian and Fischer 1971 in Buenos Aires in the secondary Dante Staff of the Armenian. In the 1970s and 1980s, his enormous chess knowledge Balashov made ​​her a sought-after coach and secondary Danten. He supported Anatoly Karpov from 1978 to 1984 with his world championship matches against Viktor Korchnoi and Kasparov. In 1992, he helped Boris Spasskis during the new edition of the "Match of the Century" against Robert James Fischer.