Artur Yusupov (chess player)
A chess grandmaster who survived a violent attack to become a revered trainer, shaping the minds of world champions from his adopted home in Germany.
Born 1960 (age 66)·Russian chess grandmaster·Birthday: February 13·Baby Boomers
Biography
Artur Yusupov emerged from the Soviet chess crucible, a product of the famed Botvinnik school, to become one of the world's top players in the 1980s. His career, marked by deep strategic understanding, was nearly ended in 1990 when he was shot during a burglary in Moscow. After recovering, he relocated to Germany, where his focus shifted from competition to cultivation. Yusupov reinvented himself as a premier chess trainer and author, his lucid instructional books and personal tutelage guiding a generation of elite players, including Viswanathan Anand and Peter Leko. His journey from elite grandmaster to master teacher represents a profound and lasting contribution to the game's intellectual legacy.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Artur was born in 1960, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Artur Was Born
The biggest hits of 1960
#1 Movie
Swiss Family Robinson
Best Picture
The Apartment
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Artur's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1960Born
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1965Started school
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1973Became a teenager
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Could drive
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1978Could vote
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1981Turned 21
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1990Turned 30
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 40
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 50
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 60
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 66 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Achieved a peak FIDE rating of 2680 and was ranked third in the world in 1986.
- Won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1977.
- Authored a highly influential nine-volume series of chess training books, 'Boost Your Chess' and 'Chess Evolution'.
- Served as a key trainer for former World Champion Viswanathan Anand.
Did You Know?
He was shot in the stomach during a robbery in 1990, an injury that required a long rehabilitation.
He holds dual citizenship, being both a Russian and a German national.
He defeated Garry Kasparov in a tournament game in 1983.
His father was a geophysicist.
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