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Happened Today in the Chess World - Apr 19, 2024

EL GRAN CANAL

Cocquio Trevisago, Italy, late seventies: GM Esteban Canal
Source: soloscacchi.altervista.org

Today, we remember the Great Master Esteban Canal, born in Chiclayo, Perù, on April 19, 1896. The protagonist of an adventurous life that led him to meet literary giants such as Hemingway, Garcia Lorca, and Thomas Mann, he left his native Peru and embarked for Europe at the age of fourteen. Canal participated in numerous international tournaments, always performing well, especially in Hungary and Italy, a country he remained attached to, choosing his residence in Cocquio Trevisago, in the province of Varese. He participated in only one Olympiad, playing on board one for Peru in Dubrovnik in 1950. In his career, he defeated players of the caliber of Euwe, Bogoljubow, Gligoric, Spielmann, Lilienthal, Bernstein, and Eliskases. The well-deserved title of GM was conferred on him honoris causa only in 1977. Gifted with a formidable talent for drawing, he painted portraits of world champions for the most well-known Italian magazines. He wrote a work, "Outpost Strategy," which still deserves to be known today. His contribution to the field of openings was remarkable, from the Four Knights to the Sicilian, from the Italian to the Slav, with lines linked to his name. The following famous combination is known as the "Peruvian Immortal."

Esteban Canal-NN, Budapest (simultaneous exhibition) 1934
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