A CHESS CHAMPION.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 211, 5 September 1924, Page 10

A CHESS CHAMPION.

VISIT OF MR. BORIS KOSTICH,

The cheßs players of Auckland will be pleased" to have in their midst Mr. Boris Kostich, who arrives from Hamilton to-morrow in order to complete his two months' tour of New Zealand in this city. During his stay in Auckland Mr. Kostich is the guest of Mr. J. C. Grierson, who is well-known in chess circles, having won the Dominion Chan?pionship twice and the Auckland title eleven times. Our distinguished visitor, who is 37 years of age, has equal claims with Messrs. Reti, Rubinstein, Tartakower and one or two others for rung four on the world's ladder. He is the first chess master to visit the Dominion. Since gaining the championship of Buda Pest in 1000, Mr. Kostich has put up a fine record of successes in a number of matches and tournaments. Tn 1919 he came second to" J. R. Capablanca (the world's champion), in the Victory Tournament at Hastings, without losing a game. He has played five tournament games against Capablanca, each of which ended in a. draw. -A year ago he annexed the championship of Jugoslavia (his native country), by defating M. Vidmar, another famous expert. During his recent tour of Australia Mr. Kostich defeated Messrs. \V. S. Viner (champion), and G. "Watson (ex-champion), in specially arranged matches. In the course of his simultaneous and blindfold displays in New Zealand he had, at latest advices, played 354 games, scoring 304 wins, 45 draws, and only 5 losses. Like other noted masters, Mr. Kostich can play twenty or more games at a time in his blindfold displays, but such a prodigious feat requires a session of about eight or nine hours, consequently he is limiting the number of boards to six at a time during his Australasian tour. His "blindfold" record in-New Zealand is 23 wins and one draw.- One of his six victims at Oamaru was Mr. J. B. Dunlop who won the Dominion championship in 1921, 1922 arid 1923. Mr. Kostich, who speaks nine lan-, •mages, is a very interesting.personality quite apart from chess, having travelled a good deal. -He holds the rank of Captain in the Serhian Army, and has fought against the Turks and Bulgarians. In various centres of New Zealand he lias been invited to Rotary Club luncheons, and has given interesting' talks" .on conditions in Eastern Europe. , Auckland's "Kostich Week" commences on Monday.