There are many people in our life we fail to give the credit they deserve:

– Your opponent who just checkmated you with a brilliant sacrifice

– A fellow student who earned you an A by doing an entire group project on his own

– Your mother

However, we as chess players most often fail to give the credit to strong grandmasters working for other grandmasters.

Chess seconds.

One such name that definitely deserves wider recognition is the name of Sergey Dolmatov – Kasparov’s second in two matches against Karpov and one of the early Kramnik’s trainers.

Dolmatov himself was a very gifted youngster. He was the World Junior Champion, he became Grandmaster at the age of 23 and he won several tournaments in the early 80s. Back in the day, his star shone as bright as Kasparov’s.

Alas, his example shows us how difficult it is to climb the very chess heights. Dolmatov seemed to lack that little something that would allow him to go from a very strong player to one of the very best.

Still, who knows how Kasparov’s matches would finish if Dolmatov never lives. We think his name is worth mentioning.

Happy birthday Sergey!

(If you like posts as these, check our complete list of Chess Birthdays )