José Raúl Capablanca
The San Sebastian tournament of 1911 was "one of the strongest five tournaments held up to that time", as all the world's leading players competed except the World Champion, Lasker, who was inactive in serious play at the time. At the beginning of the tournament, Ossip Bernstein and Aron Nimzowitsch objected to Capablanca's presence because he had not fulfilled the entry condition of winning at least third prize in two master tournaments. Capablanca won brilliantly against Bernstein in the very first round, and more simply against Nimzowitsch. He astounded the chess world by taking first place, with a score of six wins, one loss and seven draws, ahead of Akiba Rubinstein, Milan Vidmar, Frank Marshall, Carl Schlechter and Siegbert Tarrasch. His loss, against Rubinstein, was one of the most brilliant achievements of the latter's career. Capablanca was now recognized as a serious contender for the world championship.p33