View source for Boris Gelfand

{{Short description|Israeli chess grandmaster (born 1968)}}
{{Other people |Gelfand|Gelfand}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox chess player
|name = Boris Gelfand
|image = BorisGelfand12.jpg
|caption = During the [[Tata Steel Chess Tournament|Tata Steel Chess]], 2012
|birthname = Boris Abramovich Gelfand
|country = {{ubl|[[Soviet Union]] (until 1991)|[[Belarus]] (1991–1999)|[[Israel]] (since 1999)<ref name="rating_history" />}}
|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1968|6|24|df=y}}
|birth_place = [[Minsk]], [[Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic|Byelorussian SSR]], Soviet Union
|death_date = 
|death_place = 
|title = [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]] (1989)
|worldchampion = 
|rating = 
|peakrating = 2777 (November 2013)
|ranking = No. 60 (September 2020)
|peakranking   = No. 3 (July 1990)
|FideID = 2805677
|native_name=בוריס גלפנד|native_name_lang=he}}

'''Boris Abramovich Gelfand'''{{efn|{{langx|he|בוריס אברמוביץ' גלפנד}}; {{langx|be|Барыс Абрамавіч Гельфанд|Barys Abramavič Heĺfand}}; {{langx|ru|Борис Абрамович Гельфанд|Boris Abramovich Gel'fand}}.}} ({{Langx|he|בוריס אברמוביץ גלפנד}}; born 24 June 1968) is a [[Belarus|Belarusian]]-[[Israel]]i [[chess]] player. 

A six-time World Championship candidate (1991, 1994–95, 2002, 2007, 2011, 2013), he won the [[Chess World Cup 2009]] and the 2011 [[Candidates Tournament]], making him challenger for the [[World Chess Championship 2012]]. Although the match with defending champion [[Viswanathan Anand]] finished level at 6–6, Gelfand lost the deciding rapidplay tiebreak by 2½–1½.<ref>Eli Shvidler (May 30, 2012). [http://www.haaretz.com/life/sports/israeli-grandmaster-gelfand-loses-world-chess-championship-1.433386 "Israeli grandmaster Gelfand loses World Chess Championship"]. ''Haaretz''.</ref>

Gelfand has won major tournaments at [[Tata Steel Chess Tournament|Wijk aan Zee]], Tilburg, [[Tal Memorial|Moscow]], [[Linares International Chess Tournament|Linares]] and Dos Hermanas. He has competed in eleven [[Chess Olympiad]]s and held a place within the top 30 players ranked by FIDE from January 1990 to October 2017.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ratings.fide.com/top_files.phtml?id=2805677|title=Top lists records. Gelfand, Boris|website=ratings.fide.com|access-date=2017-11-27}}</ref>

== Early years ==
Boris Gelfand was born in [[Minsk]], in the [[Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic]], on 24 June 1968 to [[History of the Jews in Belarus|Belarusian Jewish]] parents. His parents, Abram and Nella, were engineers. His father bought him a book about chess, ''Journey to the Chess Kingdom'', by Averbakh and Beilin, when he was five years old.<ref>[http://www.chesspro.ru/interview/gelfand_tv_interview_english Boris Gelfand: "A person should try to achieve maximum success in his business"] ChessPro.ru Accessed 20 June 2015</ref>

Recognised as a talent, Gelfand's first coach from 1974 to 1979 was Eduard Zelkind. Soon after he studied under [[Tamara Golovey]] for two years and IM [[Albert Kapengut]] for twelve. In 1980–83, he attended the [[Tigran Petrosian]] School. Early successes included winning the Sokolsky Memorial in 1983 and consecutive [[Belarusian Chess Championship]]s in 1984 and 1985. In 1985 he won the USSR Junior Championship scoring 9/11 and came second to [[Yury Balashov]] in the 1986 Minsk International.<ref>[http://chessmetrics.com/cm/CM2/SingleEvent.asp?Params=199510SSSSS3S043038000000141100766000000010100 Minsk International 1986] Chessmetrics Accessed 27 September 2014</ref>

In his first appearance on the FIDE rating list in July 1987, Gelfand immediately almost reached the top 100.<ref name="rating_history">{{cite web|url=http://www.olimpbase.org/Elo/player/Gelfand,%20Boris.html|title=Gelfand, Boris|website=OlimpBase|access-date=September 4, 2023}}</ref> He became [[European Junior Chess Championship|European Junior Champion]] in 1987, shared second at the USSR Young Masters held in Uzhgorod and shared sixth place at a USSR Championship qualifier event in Sverdlovsk in 1987 with 10/17. Gelfand's successes saw him ranked in the world's top 40 players in July 1988.<ref name="rating_history" /> After sharing first place in the USSR Young Masters tournament of 1988 in Vilnius and the OHRA B Group in Amsterdam,<ref>[http://chessmetrics.com/cm/CM2/SingleEvent.asp?Params=199510SSSSS3S043038000000141100838600000010100 OHRA-B Amsterdam July 1988] Chessmetrics Accessed 10 October 2014</ref> he came second in the [[World Junior Chess Championship|World Junior Championship]] to [[Joël Lautier]] on tiebreaks and shared first with [[Sergey Dolmatov]] at the Klaipeda USSR Championship qualifier. Gelfand jointly won the European Junior title with [[Alexey Dreev]] in December 1988, won the Barcza Memorial held in Debrecen, Hungary, with 7/10 and led the Belarus team to third place in the USSR Juniors Team Championship at Kramatorsk.<ref>[http://chessmetrics.com/cm/CM2/SingleEvent.asp?Params=199510SSSSS3S043038000000141100845800000010100 EU U20s Championship, Arnhem 1988] Chessmetrics Accessed 10 October 2014</ref><ref>[http://chessmetrics.com/cm/CM2/SingleEvent.asp?Params=199510SSSSS3S043038000000141100894900000010100 Debrecen 1989] Chessmetrics Accessed 10 October 2014</ref>

== Rising star ==

In Gelfand's first appearance at the USSR Championship held in Odessa in 1989, he shared second place with [[Alexander Beliavsky]], Dolmatov and [[Vereslav Eingorn]], earning a prize for "greatest amount of material sacrificed in the course of a tournament".<ref>{{cite book|title=The Soviet Championships|date=1998|publisher=Cadogan Chess|isbn=1-85744-201-6|edition=1|pages=215–216}}</ref> Soon after, he won the Palma de Mallorca Open with 7½/9. He was awarded the title [[Grandmaster (chess)|Grandmaster]] by [[FIDE]] in 1989.

He received invitations to major tournaments in 1990, placing second behind [[Garry Kasparov]] with 7½/11 in Linares and Dortmund,<ref>[http://www.toledochess.org/Historic/Tournaments/Linares/Linares_1990.html Linares 1990 Crosstable] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130923123309/http://www.toledochess.org/Historic/Tournaments/Linares/Linares_1990.html |date=23 September 2013 }} Toledochess.com Accessed 10 October 2014</ref><ref>[http://www.chessfocus.com/tournament-results/1990-dortmund-sparkassen Dortmund Sparkassen Chess Meeting 1990] ChessFocus.com Accessed 10 October 2014</ref> sharing first with [[Vassily Ivanchuk]] in the Manila Interzonal and third at Tilburg.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9193$iix.htm Manila Interzonal Tournament 1990] Mark-Weeks Accessed 10 October 2014</ref> At the Candidates Matches in early 1991, Gelfand defeated [[Predrag Nikolic]] 5½-4½ but was beaten in the next round by [[Nigel Short]] 3-5.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9193$cix.htm 1991-93 Candidates Matches] Mark Weeks Accessed 10 October 2014</ref> Despite the disappointment, Gelfand claimed first place at Belgrade with 7½/11 and shared second place with Kasparov at Reggio Emilia, half a point behind [[Viswanathan Anand]].<ref>[http://www.365chess.com/tournaments/Belgrade_Investbank_1991 Belgrade Investbank 1991] 365Chess.com Accessed 10 October 2014</ref><ref>[http://www.365chess.com/tournaments/Reggio_Emilia_9192_1991/17146 Reggio Emilia 9192] 365Chess.com Accessed 10 October 2014</ref> He shared first place with [[Valery Salov]] at Wijk aan Zee in 1992, shared second place at Munich, lost in the final of Tilburg knockout to [[Michael Adams (chess player)|Michael Adams]] and shared first with Anand at the Alekhine Memorial held in Moscow.

A solid second place at Munich in 1993 preceded his biggest tournament win to this point, winning the Biel Interzonal with a score of 9/13, earning a spot in the 1994 Candidates Matches.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9496fiix.htm 1993 Biel FIDE Interzonal Tournament] Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref> Gelfand went on to defeat Adams 5-3 in the quarter-finals and [[Vladimir Kramnik]] 4½-3½ in the semi-finals, before losing to [[Anatoly Karpov]] in the Candidates Final 6-3 in 1995.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9496fcix.htm 1994-96 FIDE Candidates Matches] Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref>

Gelfand remained ever-present in the world's top 20 players, winning the 1994 editions of Dos Hermanas and Cap d'Agde, Belgrade in 1995, shared first at Tilburg and Vienna in 1996, finished third at Dortmund and shared second place at Groningen. He came third in a strong Biel tournament and second at the Rubinstein Memorial held in Polanica Zdroj. Gelfand's best result at the FIDE Knockout World Championships came in 1997, defeating [[Joël Lautier]] (4-2), [[Vladislav Tkachiev]] (3½-2½) and Dreev (2.5-1.5) before being knocked out in the semi-finals by eventual tournament winner Anand (1½-½).<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9798$cix.htm 1997 FIDE Knockout Matches] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718062318/http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/9798$cix.htm |date=18 July 2016 }} Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref>

In 1998, Gelfand won the Rubinstein Memorial, lost the Cap d'Agde knockout tournament final against Karpov after running out of time in the decisive tiebreak blitz game while having a winning position,<ref>[http://www.theweekinchess.com/html/twic208.html#4 Karpov wins the Cap D'Agde rapid tournament] TheWeekInChess Published 2 November 1998</ref> won the 1999 edition of Sigeman & Co held in Malmö and the Rubinstein Memorial in 2000. In 2001, Gelfand shared first place in the rapid section of the Melody Amber tournament (taking first place outright the next year) and came third in Astana. The next year, he shared first at the NAO Masters in Cannes, won the Cap d'Agde KO and took part in the "Russia vs World" rapid match, scoring 6/10 for the winning World team. He played in [[Dortmund Sparkassen Chess Meeting|Dortmund]], which was the Candidate Tournament for the [[Classical World Chess Championship 2004]], but only managed to finish in third place in the preliminary group, so didn't progress to the knockout stages.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a1a2esix.htm 2002 Dortmund Candidates Tournament] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401115554/http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a1a2esix.htm |date=1 April 2017 }} Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref>

[[File:Boris Gelfand.jpg|thumb|left|Corus Chess 2006]]

In 2003, he shared third place at Enghien and in 2004 won at Pamplona. Gelfand shared first in the Bermuda Invitational and Biel in 2005. He also finished in sixth place at the [[Chess World Cup 2005]], earning a place in the 2007 Candidates Matches.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a5a7$iix.htm 2005 World Cup] Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref> In 2006, Gelfand shared fifth place with [[Sergey Karjakin]] scoring 7/13 at Corus and shared third place at Dortmund.

Gelfand won his Candidates matches against [[Rustam Kasimdzhanov]] 5½-3½ and [[Gata Kamsky]] 3½-1½, to qualify for the Championship tournament, held in Mexico City.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a5a7$cix.htm 2007m Candidates Matches] Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref> Despite being ranked seventh in the [[World Chess Championship 2007]] by FIDE rating, Gelfand caused an upset in finishing joint second (third on tiebreak) with [[Vladimir Kramnik]], a point behind [[Viswanathan Anand]].<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a5a7$wix.htm 2007 Mexico City] Mark Weeks Accessed 11 October 2014</ref> He also drew a match with [[David Navara]] 2-2, reached the semi-finals of the ACP Rapid Cup in Odessa, shared first place with Shirov, Ivan Sokolov and Fridman at the Calatrava rapid and shared third place at the [[Tal Memorial]].<ref>[http://www.chessninja.com/dailydirt/2007/04/4-mas-rapido-in-calatrava.htm 4 Mas rapido in Calatrava] ChessNinja Published 11 April 2007</ref> He competed for Israel at the [[2009 Maccabiah Games]] in Israel.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://reports.chessdom.com/news-2009/maccabiah-games-2009-r4 |title=Evgeniy Najer and Ian Nepomniachtchi lead Maccabiah International Chess Festival 2009 &#124; Chessdom Chess |access-date=28 July 2017 |archive-date=29 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729021852/http://reports.chessdom.com/news-2009/maccabiah-games-2009-r4 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== World Championship 2012 ==

In the [[Chess World Cup 2009]], Gelfand was the top seed, and defeated [[Judit Polgár]], reigning World Junior Champion [[Maxime Vachier-Lagrave]], [[Dmitry Jakovenko]], and [[Sergey Karjakin]] to reach the final.  He then faced former FIDE World Champion [[Ruslan Ponomariov]] for the championship, and won the match 7–5 in a playoff.<ref>[http://en.chessbase.com/post/world-cup-final-gelfand-beats-ponomariov-to-win-the-cup Gelfand beats Ponomariov to win the Cup] Chessbase Published 14 December 2009</ref> By winning the Chess World Cup 2009, Gelfand qualified for the [[World Chess Championship 2012]] [[Candidates Tournament]].

In May 2011, Gelfand participated in the Candidates Matches in Kazan, Russia where he was seeded fourth. In the quarterfinals, he won a complex struggle on the black side of the Najdorf Defense in game three to defeat [[Shakhriyar Mamedyarov]] 2½–1½ and advance to the semifinals, where he faced American [[Gata Kamsky]]. After splitting the first four games 2–2, Kamsky won game three in the rapid playoff to go ahead 2–1, forcing Gelfand to win with black in the final rapid game in order to avoid elimination.  Gelfand was up to the task, and then won the blitz playoff 2–0 to advance to the final. In the final, he faced [[Alexander Grischuk]]. After drawing the first five games, Gelfand won the sixth and final game on the white side of a [[Grünfeld Defence]] to win the match and the tournament 3½–2½.<ref>[http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a8b0$cix.htm 2011 Candidates Event] Mark Weeks 11 October 2014</ref>

As winner of the Candidates Tournament, Gelfand faced Anand for the 2012 World Championship.<ref>[http://moscow2012.fide.com/ Official FIDE World Championship 2012 Site] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120531020848/http://moscow2012.fide.com/ |date=31 May 2012 }}</ref> Gelfand's victory in game seven gave him the lead in the match, but he lost game 8 in a 17-move [[Glossary_of_chess#miniature|miniature]], the shortest decisive game in World Championship history. The match after its conclusion was level at 6 points each, but Anand won the rapid playoff 2½–1½ to retain the title.

== Career after Moscow ==

Soon after the match, Gelfand shared first place with [[Veselin Topalov]] and Mamedyarov at the FIDE Grand Prix event held in London, with a last round win over Kasimdzhanov, scoring 7/11. He played in the [[World Chess Championship 2013#Candidates Tournament|2013 Candidates Tournament]], which took place in [[London]], from 15 March to 1 April. He finished fifth, with 6½/14.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://london2013.fide.com/en/component/turnuva/?task=fileview&kid=2|title=Tournament standings|publisher=FIDE|access-date=6 April 2013}}</ref>

[[File:Guelfand face à Adams 2013.JPG|right|thumbnail|Gelfand-Adams, Alekhine Memorial 2013]]

In the 2013 [[Alekhine Memorial]] tournament, held from 20 April to 1 May, Gelfand shared first place with Aronian, who edged him out on the second tiebreak (number of wins). He scored 5½/9.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130505142628/http://www.chessbase.com/Home/TabId/211/PostId/4009694/aronian-and-gelfand-win-alekhine-memorial-2013-020513.aspx Aronian and Gelfand win Alekhine Memorial 2013] ChessBase. Published 1 May 2013. Archived from [http://www.chessbase.com/Home/TabId/211/PostId/4009694/aronian-and-gelfand-win-alekhine-memorial-2013-020513.aspx the original] on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2014.</ref>

In June 2013, Gelfand won the [[Tal Memorial]] beating [[Alexander Morozevich]], [[Fabiano Caruana]] and [[Hikaru Nakamura]], scoring 6/9, half a point ahead of [[Magnus Carlsen]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130625005511/http://www.chessbase.com/Home/TabId/211/PostId/4010255/tal-final-gelfand-wins-carlsen-clear-second-230613.aspx Tal Final: Gelfand wins, Carlsen clear second] ChessBase. Published 23 June 2013. Archived from [http://www.chessbase.com/Home/TabId/211/PostId/4010255/tal-final-gelfand-wins-carlsen-clear-second-230613.aspx the original] on 25 June 2013. Retrieved on 13 October 2014</ref> He gained 18 rating points and achieved his then highest FIDE rating of 2773.<ref>[http://chess-news.ru/en/node/12581 July 2013 FIDE Rating List: Caruana and Gelfand with Personal Records] chess-news.ru Published 30 June 2013</ref> Gelfand bounced back from a fourth-round exit from the World Cup to [[Maxime Vachier-Lagrave]] by sharing first with Caruana in the final FIDE Grand Prix in Paris. He gained 11.9 rating points and again achieved a record personal rating of 2777. He finished fourth in the Grand Prix overall standings with 325 points missing out on a Candidates place due to his weak results in the Tashkent and Beijing events. He shared first with Caruana at the next FIDE Grand Prix event held in Baku.

== Team results ==

=== Chess Olympiads ===

Gelfand appeared in a total of eleven [[Chess Olympiad]]s, representing the Soviet Union once in 1990, Belarus twice in 1994 and 1996, and Israel eight times from 2000–14.<ref>[http://www.olimpbase.org/players/gs80e0ie.html Men's Chess Olympiads: Boris Gelfand] OlimpBase Accessed 27 March 2011]</ref> He has scored a total of 62½ points from 105 games (+26 =73 -6).

:{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
|-
! Olympiad
! Individual result
! Team result
|-
| [[29th Chess Olympiad|Novi Sad 1990]] || 6/9 (10th) || Gold
|-
| [[31st Chess Olympiad|Moscow 1994]] || 6/11 (45th) || 12th
|-
| [[32nd Chess Olympiad|Yerevan 1996]] || 6/10 (24th) || 33rd
|-
| [[34th Chess Olympiad|Istanbul 2000]] || 7/11 (18th) || 5th
|-
| [[35th Chess Olympiad|Bled 2002]] || 5/8 || 9th
|-
| [[36th Chess Olympiad|Calvia 2004]] || 6/11 (43rd) || 5th
|-
| [[37th Chess Olympiad|Turin 2006]] || 5/9 (46th) || 4th
|-
| [[38th Chess Olympiad|Dresden 2008]] || 7½/10 (Silver) || Silver
|-
| [[39th Chess Olympiad|Khanty-Mansiysk 2010]] || 4½/9 (19th) || Bronze
|-
| [[40th Chess Olympiad|Istanbul 2012]] || 4½/8 (15th) || 26th
|-
| [[41st Chess Olympiad|Tromso 2014]] || 5/9 (22nd) || 9th
|}

=== Other international team results ===

Along with Chess Olympiads, Gelfand has competed twice at the invitational [[World Team Chess Championship]] (Israel), five times in [[European Team Chess Championship]] (Soviet Union 1989, Israel 1999-2005) and the Soviet Team Championship once (Belarus), winning a team gold and two team silvers in the ETCC:

:{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
|-
! Team Event
! Individual result
! Team result
|-
| 1986 Soviet Team Championship || 6/9 || 7th
|-
| 1989 European Team Championship || 4/6 (8th) || Gold
|-
| 1999 European Team Championship || 2½/7 (32nd) || 7th
|-
| 2001 European Team Championship || 5/8 (4th) || 6th
|-
| 2003 European Team Championship || 5½/9 (8th) || Silver
|-
| 2005 European Team Championship || 4½/8 (12th) || Silver
|-
| 2005 World Team Championship || 3½/7 (5th) || 6th
|-
| 2010 World Team Championship || 3/7 (6th) || 7th
|}

== Personal life ==
In 1998, Gelfand emigrated to Israel and settled in [[Rishon LeZion]], where he became Israel's top ranking chess player. He is married to Maya.<ref>[http://www.indianexpress.com/news/wife-backs-boris-gelfand-to-win-against-anand/952361/ Wife backs Boris Gelfand to win against Anand]. Indianexpress.com Published 22 May 2012</ref> He has two children, a daughter and a son.<ref>{{Cite web |last=mishanp |title=Boris Gelfand: A completely happy man |url=https://www.chessintranslation.com/2011/05/boris-gelfand-a-completely-happy-man/ |access-date=2024-05-16 |language=en-US}}</ref> He is a [[association football|football]] fan and is a fan of [[FC Barcelona]].<ref>[http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4426142,00.html Boris Gelfand - "hope to play until the age of 75"] (in Hebrew) Tomer Ganor, Ynet.co.il Accessed 19 October 2013</ref>

== Playing style ==
{{algebraic notation|pos=secright}}
{{Quote box
|quote  = I’ve tried to learn from all players but, no doubt, I was most impressed by Yury Razuvaev and Valery Myrachvery’s "Akiba Rubinstein"...The striving to play deeply in the opening, and the so-called "long plan", that is when a game’s played from the beginning to the end in one key… That’s what I like in chess, and it comes from Akiba.
|source = Boris Gelfand, ''Crestbook interview'', Part One.<ref>[http://www.crestbook.com/?q=node/1180 KC-Conference with Boris Gelfand, Part One] Crestbook.com (Chess in Translation) Published 5 May 2010</ref>
|width  = 50%
|align  = right
}}
Gelfand is noted for his strong [[chess terminology#P|positional]] awareness and precise strategic play. In Gelfand's autobiography ''My Most Memorable Games'', Kramnik wrote in the preface, "He is not only - and this is accessible only to a few - a highly universal player, capable of playing equally well in the most varied types of positions...This inexorable consistency in the realisation of his strategic conceptions is, in my view, the main trait of Boris Gelfand the chess player."<ref>{{Cite book|title=My Most Memorable Games|last=Gelfand|first=Boris|publisher=Edition Olms|year=2005|isbn=3-283-00453-6|pages=7}}</ref> Jacob Aagaard commented "But Gelfand is not a natural attacker; instead he is a deep strategic player who likes to get into the logic of a position - and to keep control".<ref>{{cite book|title=Grandmaster Preparation - Attack & Defence|publisher=Quality Chess|isbn= 9781907982699|page=67|date=7 October 2014}}<!--|access-date=21 June 2015--></ref>

Gelfand is noted for opening as White with [[Queen's Pawn Game|1.d4]]<ref>[http://www.chessintranslation.com/2010/06/gelfand-at-crestbook-part-ii/ Gelfand at Crestbook II] Chess in Translation Published 20 June 2010</ref> and as a specialist in the [[Sicilian Defence, Najdorf Variation|Najdorf Sicilian]], [[Petroff Defence]], [[Slav Defense]], and [[King's Indian Defence]] as Black. During the World Championship Match in 2012, the Anand team noted his abrupt change from the expected Sicilian Najdorf and Petroff openings to the Sicilian Sveshnikov and the Grunfeld.<ref>[http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2912/stories/20120629291202400.htm "The toughest so far"] Frontline.in Published June 2012</ref>

At the Tigran Petrosian school, he met the former world champion in person and received advice: 'I remember Tigran Petrosian saying to me: "Never make a move without there being an idea behind it, even when playing blitz. Always think!"'.<ref>{{Cite book|title=My most memorable games|last=Gelfand|first=Boris|date=2005|publisher=Edition Olms|isbn=3283004536|location=Zurick, Switzerland|oclc=63265569}}</ref>

==Published works==
*{{cite book | title=My Most Memorable Games | publisher=Edition Olms | year=2005 | isbn=3-283-00453-6| author=Gelfand, Boris }}
*{{cite book|last1=Gelfand|first1=Boris|last2=Aagaard|first2=Jacob|author-link2=Jacob Aagaard|title=Positional Decision Making in Chess|url=https://archive.org/details/positionaldecisionmakinginchess|date=17 June 2015|publisher=Quality Chess|isbn=978-1-78483-006-9}}
*{{cite book|last1=Gelfand|first1=Boris|last2=Aagaard|first2=Jacob|author-link2=Jacob Aagaard|title=Dynamic Decision Making in Chess|date=7 October 2017|publisher=Quality Chess|isbn=978-1784830120}}
*{{cite book | title=Decision Making in Major Piece Endings | publisher=Quality Chess | year=2021 | isbn=9781784831394| author=Gelfand, Boris }}
*{{cite book | title=Technical Decision Making in Chess| publisher=Quality Chess | year=2021 | isbn=9781784830649| author=Gelfand, Boris }}

==See also==
* [[List of Jewish chess players]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Boris Gelfand}}
* {{FIDE}}
* {{Chess.com player|boris-gelfand}}
* {{Chessgames.com player|13847}}
* [http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=4216 Interview with Boris Gelfand]
* [http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/modern.html Edward Winter's "Books about Leading Modern Chessplayers" (Chess Notes Feature Article)]

{{World Chess Championships}}
{{Chess World Cups}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gelfand, Boris}}
[[Category:1968 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Chess players from Minsk]]
[[Category:Belarusian emigrants to Israel]]
[[Category:Belarusian Jews]]
[[Category:Chess Grandmasters]]
[[Category:Chess Olympiad competitors]]
[[Category:Maccabiah Games chess players]]
[[Category:Israeli chess writers]]
[[Category:Israeli chess players]]
[[Category:Israeli Jews]]
[[Category:Israeli non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Jewish chess players]]
[[Category:Maccabiah Games competitors for Israel]]
[[Category:Competitors at the 2009 Maccabiah Games]]
[[Category:Naturalized citizens of Israel]]
[[Category:Soviet chess players]]
[[Category:Soviet emigrants to Israel]]
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