How did Alekhine die?
Peter Thiesen
Three causes of death I have heard are:
1) choking on his food
2) suicide
3) shock at the news that he was offered a title match against
Botvinnik
And while we're at it, what is the correct pronunciation of his name?
My guess is "al-YOK-hin."
--
Peter Thiesen
thi...@cs.stanford.edu
Nasser Abbasi
In article <1993Nov10....@CSD-NewsHost.Stanford.EDU>, thi...@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Peter Thiesen) writes...
>How did former world champion Alexander Alekhine die?
>Three causes of death I have heard are:
> 1) choking on his food
> 2) suicide
> 3) shock at the news that he was offered a title match against
> Botvinnik
>
for enjoying to eat using both hands and without pretention, he liked
to eat meat, his eating habits was said to be messy, he chocked on a bone
and no one was around to help him. there is a picture of him when he was found
where he is on the table with his dinner on.
he spend most of his final years alone in Spain (during the war befor leaving
back to France just after the war was just over.
this is all from top of my head from reading about him a while back.
\nasser
Anders Thulin
>And while we're at it, what is the correct pronunciation of his name?
>My guess is "al-YOK-hin."
What makes a pronounciation correct?
Your guess is probably OK if the correct pronounciation is in Russian.
But since Alekhine was a French citizen from ... 1927 or thereabouts,
it might equally well be pronounced in French.
--
Anders Thulin a...@linkoping.trab.se 013-23 55 32
Telia Research AB, Teknikringen 2B, S-583 30 Linkoping, Sweden
lars venoe jakobsen
> How did former world champion Alexander Alekhine die?
> Three causes of death I have heard are:
> 1) choking on his food
> 2) suicide
> 3) shock at the news that he was offered a title match against
> Botvinnik
>
Alekhine choked to death on a piece of meat in Estoril in Portugal in 1946, and, if my somewhat shaky memory is correct, he was the Worldchampion at the time.
(Therefore, 3) cannot be the correct answer :) .. but, yes, I have seen speculations
of suicide or even murder before. But an autopsy showed the cause of death to be 1))
Alekhine spent his last years in Portugal. He was very poor and he was *not* the
strong chessplayer he used to be. He lost a lot of games to unknown players
on account of alcohol and old age.
(Al this is quoted from memory from the danish `Lademans Skakleksikon`. Maybe I`m wrong)
Lars
Aalborg, Denmark
Matthew L. Housholder
>
> Aalborg, Denmark
Hmmmmm... that's really interesting, because the Oxford Chess Companion (Or
whatever, it's like a mini-chess encyclopedia) said that he died of a heart
attack..... Beats me, I wasn't there!
-Matty
John Saba, University of Arizona
>>Three causes of death I have heard are:
>> 1) choking on his food
>> 2) suicide
>> 3) shock at the news that he was offered a title match against Botvinnik
>>
> it is number 1. he died alone in his hotel room while eating, Alekhine was
> known for enjoying to eat using both hands and without pretention, he liked
> to eat meat, his eating habits was said to be messy, he chocked on a bone
> and no one was around to help him. there is a picture of him when he was found
> where he is on the table with his dinner on.
For what it's worth, another version from Alexander Kotov, author of a
biography of Alekhin. Kotov spoke with the Belgian violinist and tutor
M. Neumen, who lived in the room next to Alekhin in the Park Hotel in Estoril,
Portugal, and was friendly with him. Neumen relates hearing of Alekhin's
death from a waiter bringing breakfast:
"Senor Professor, it was terrible! I was taking him breakfast.... He was
sitting at the table.... Yesterday's supper had not been touched, although
his serviette was already tucked in. He was dead!"
From 1943 until his death in 1946, Alekhin's health was not good. On top of
his overweight and drinking problems, he got a serious case of scarlet fever in
1943. Later, the Portuguese champion, Lupi, a friend of his, reported that
Alekhin's doctor had told him (Lupi) that Alekhin had high blood pressure, was
taking too much sympathin and had already suffered a stroke.
> he spend most of his final years alone in Spain (during the war befor leaving
> back to France just after the war was just over.
When Alekhin left the hospital in Prague, in 1943, he went first to Spain for
a about a year, and then took up residence in Portugal, where he passed his
last days in poverty. He only returned to France in death; his ashes are
buried in the Montparnasse cemetery in Paris.
To end on a happier note, after Alekhin took first place in three tournaments
in Paris, Berne, and Baden-Baden (the latter by +12 =8 -0) in 1925, Tartakower
noted: "Capablanca has the title, Lasker has the results, but only Alekhin has
the style of a real world champion." Two years later, Alekhin was champion.
--
John Saba
sa...@ccit.arizona.edu
saba@arizvms
g...@cthulhu.semi.harris.com
report listed finding a 3 inch piece of meat lodged in
the throat, and gave choking as the cause of death.
Perhaps because of Alekine's personality and lifestyle
rumors were started, circulated, and quoted, but no
one has challenged the autopsy report as being anything
other than fully accurate.
--
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M.D.Crowther
: From 1943 until his death in 1946, Alekhin's health was not good. On top of
: his overweight and drinking problems, he got a serious case of scarlet fever in
: 1943. Later, the Portuguese champion, Lupi, a friend of his, reported that
: Alekhin's doctor had told him (Lupi) that Alekhin had high blood pressure, was
: taking too much sympathin and had already suffered a stroke.
: When Alekhin left the hospital in Prague, in 1943, he went first to Spain for
: a about a year, and then took up residence in Portugal, where he passed his
: last days in poverty.
Alekine was a supersticious man, one wonders what he made of the fact that
the hospital to which he was admitted with scarlet fever was the same one
in which Reti died.... of scarlet fever in 1929.
In 1946 when he died Alekhine was probably not even amongst the Worlds
best 50 players, his decline was absolute in the last 2 years of his life.
For his reputation it was best that he didn't face Botwinnik in 1946.
Mark Crowther 12/11/93
Dmitry Y Apresian
>Alekine was a supersticious man, one wonders what he made of the fact that
>the hospital to which he was admitted with scarlet fever was the same one
>in which Reti died.... of scarlet fever in 1929.
That's very true, Alekhine was a supersticious man. Dr. Max Euwe wrote
in his book about their two matches for the world championship that Ale-
khine was bringing in his cat for some of the game claiming that cat gives
him luck.
>In 1946 when he died Alekhine was probably not even amongst the Worlds
>best 50 players, his decline was absolute in the last 2 years of his life.
>For his reputation it was best that he didn't face Botwinnik in 1946.
I don't remember, when exactly the AVRO-tournament was held, but that
was the beginning of Alekhine's "sunset" neither at that tournament nor
later he has shown his real brilliant chess genius.
--
============================================================================
# Dmitry Y. Apresian # "When you are in it up to you ears, #
# a...@shell.portal.com # keep your mouth shut." #
============================================================================
Ralf W. Stephan
> That's very true, Alekhine was a supersticious man. Dr. Max Euwe wrote
> in his book about their two matches for the world championship that Ale-
> khine was bringing in his cat for some of the game claiming that cat gives
> him luck.
Um, I've heard that the reason for bringing the cat was that he knew
that Euwe hated cats.
--
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