Chess right of a deposed champion to a rematch, and the next champion, Armenian Tigran Petrosian, a player renowned for his defensive and positional skills, held the title for two cycles, 1963–1969. His successor, Boris Spassky from Russia (champion 1969–1972), won games in both positional and sharp tactical style. The next championship, the so-called Match of the Century, saw the first non-Soviet challenger since World War II, American Bobby Fischer, who defeated his Candidates opponents by unheard-of margins and clearly won the world championship match. In 1975, however, Fischer refused to defend his title against Soviet Anatoly Karpov when FIDE did
World Chess Hall of Fame career of Bobby Fischer, considered one of the greatest American chess players of all time. World Chess Hall of Fame The World Chess Hall of Fame (WCHOF) is a nonprofit, collecting institution situated in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri, United States. The WCHOF is the only institution of its kind and offers a variety of programming to explore the dynamic relationship between art and chess, including educational outreach initiatives that provide context and meaning to the game and its continued educational impact. Founded in 1984, it is run by the United States Chess Trust, a charitable