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MatPlus.Net Forum General Obituaries
 
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(101) Posted by Jacques Rotenberg [Wednesday, Jun 11, 2014 19:43]

Uri Avner died this night
 
   
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(102) Posted by Frank Richter [Wednesday, Jun 11, 2014 19:57]

Puh, I hoped that this "translation" was wrong ...
Terrible to read, what a big loss.
 
 
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(103) Posted by seetharaman kalyan [Wednesday, Jun 11, 2014 20:14]

Oh.... sad news. Such a talented and versatile composer. Big loss to the problem community and to Israel. Missed his problems in the book on Israel Chess Compositions which I bought recently. Will a collection appear later?
 
   
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(104) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Thursday, Jun 12, 2014 11:23]; edited by Sarah Hornecker [14-06-12]

Sad news indeed.


EDIT:
Obituary by Paz Einat:
 QUOTE 
Uri Avner (13-01-1941 – 10-06-2014)

GM Uri Avner passed away on the 10th of June, 2014, at the age of 73, after a long battle with a severe disease. His funeral will take place on June, 12th.

Uri was born on January 13, 1941 and was a clinical psychologist in profession. He started composing at an early age (in the last issue of Variantim, is quoted a problem he composed when he was 13!!) and for many years was at the center of Israeli Chess Problem composition. He organized in Israel three congresses and edited initially HAPROBLEMAI and its successor, Variantim, until just 3 years ago. He edited and published several books and booklets. For many years he led the Israeli chess composition society, represented Israel in the WCCC and was certainly the best Israeli composer ever. Uri was always involved in various sub-committees and was the President of the PCCC from 2006 to 2010 during its transition to WFCC. Uri’s contribution to international chess composition was immense: he was involved in WCCT, FIDE Albums, solving events and almost in every aspect of our art. (by Paz Einat, 11-12.06.2014)

http://juliasfairies.com/uri-avner-13011941-10062014/
 
   
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(105) Posted by Darko Šaljić [Thursday, Jun 12, 2014 12:26]

Condolences to all the friends in Israel and all over the World.
We've lost one of the most remarkable persons, a great man.
 
   
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(106) Posted by Jacques Rotenberg [Friday, Jun 13, 2014 15:56]

a few words to complete

"...For many years he led the Israeli chess composition society..." He was its engine, and its central energy.

"...and was the President of the PCCC from 2006 to 2010 during its transition to WFCC..." He negociated this transition with the FIDE with a great success.

Also he was a very strong OTB player.

Two historical achievements in selfmate - that was his favorite stipulation - :

Uri Avner
2nd WCCT 1980-1983
1st place
(= 12+15 )
S3#

1.Bg7! [2.Sc3+ d×c3 3.R×e3+ S×e3‡]
1…Sb1 2.S×f2+ e×f2 3.Sd2+ S×d2‡
1…S×c2 2.R×d4+ S×d4 3.Q×e3+ S×e3‡
1…R×h5 2.Sd6+ Kd5 3.S×e3+ S×e3‡
1…B×c4 2.Bf5+ Kd5 3.S×e3+ S×e3‡
1…R×c1 2.Bf5+ Kd5 3.Sc×e3+ S×e3‡
1…Sg~ 2.Sd2+ e×d2 3.S×f2+ R×f2,B×f2‡

Two half-pins with a collection of double pin mates

Uri Avner
Shachmat 1981
Israel Ring Tourney 1st Prize
(= 14+11 )
S3#

1…R×b3 a 2.Rd6+ A Kf5 3.Se3+ R×e3‡
1…Rc2 b 2.Qc3+ B b×c3 3.f8=Q/R+
1…S×b3 c 2.Se4+ C Ke6 3.Sc5+ S×c5‡
1…Sc2 d 2.Ra6+ D Ke7 3.Q×b4+ R×b4,S×b4,B×b4‡

1.Qc2! block
1…Rb3 a 2.Qc3+ B b×c3 3.f8=Q/R+
1…R×c2 b 2.Se4+ C Ke6 3.Sc5+ R×c5‡
1…Sb3 c 2.Ra6+ D Ke7 3.Qc5+ S×c5‡
1…S×c2 d 2.Rd6+ A Kf5 3.Se3+ S×e3‡
1…Bd~ 2.Qc3+ b×c3 3.f8=Q/R+

1st 4-fold Lacny in selfmate, and a great one !
 
   
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(107) Posted by Kevin Begley [Saturday, Jun 14, 2014 03:25]; edited by Kevin Begley [14-06-14]

Like Frank, I also wanted to believe that this news must be somebody's mistake.
In fact, I was unusually reluctant to open this thread, not wanting to face the possibility that a new post would deliver the worst kind of news.
Then, I bargained with myself: I would forgive whomever had originally made this terrible transcription error, providing they promptly retract the statement.
How much I wanted to hear Uri's charming denial...

How much I wanted another opportunity to personally thank Uri Avner for all the honesty, intelligence, and courage that he volunteered, to improve the problem chess community, for everybody involved... and for so many wonderful problems he shared.

Gradually, I became aware of myself, fumbling through the stages of grief.

My condolences to his family, to his personal friends, to Israeli problemists, and to his many admirers whom, like me, found it difficult to lose a beloved artist, and captain.
 
 
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(108) Posted by shankar ram [Friday, Jul 4, 2014 18:09]

Came to know about this only now..
Deeply saddened..
Paul was a great source of encouragement to me when I started composing R#2s in the 1980s..
His S# and R# section in the problemist published most of my R# output.. got me a lot of prizes too..
Was always a prompt and courteous responder to my letters.. no email yet in those days..
....
After many years, finally wrote him an email in 2010..
As usual he responded immediately.. saying he still remembered my R#2s..
Our last mail exchange was in 2012.. when he mentioned he was attending the Kobe WFCC meeting..
....
All the problem related sources announcing his passing were very scanty with regard to his life outside of chess problems..
Did a little searching and located the following: http://www.leeds.ac.uk/secretariat/obituaries/2014/valois_paul.html
Also carries a photo of a younger Paul..
May his kind and gentle soul rest in peace..
 
   
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(109) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Thursday, Aug 7, 2014 14:03]; edited by Sarah Hornecker [14-08-08]

Sad news from Germany: Honorary Master Dr. Hermann Weißauer (born 4.x.1920) has died last weekend in the hospital from an infection he got there while being treated for pain, at the age of 93. (Sources: Franz Pachl, Dr. Morgenthaler)

Articles are in preparation for Die Schwalbe and the German magazine Europa Rochade where Weißauer worked for a long time.

Weißauer was known internationally for the Weißauer-Bahnung, an example can be seen on his de-Wikipedia article.
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann_Wei%C3%9Fauer#Die_Wei.C3.9Fauer-Bahnung
The Weißauer-Bahnung, according to Milan's encyclopedia, p.462:
"Black clears a line for White after a capture on this very line" (diagram of Weißauer's 1.hm Deutsche Schachzeitung 1978 given [see de-wp article]; Weissauer Theme; aliases: Weißauer-Bahnung, Weissauer Clearance)
 
   
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(110) Posted by Wilfried Neef [Sunday, Aug 17, 2014 13:30]

An obituary for Hermann (in German)has been published on www.schachbund.de at 17.08.2014
 
   
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(111) Posted by Ralf Krätschmer [Saturday, Sep 6, 2014 19:53]

Hans Selb the author of "Ästhetik und Ornamentik im Schachproblem" passed away
http://www.berlinthema.de/selb.htm
 
   
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(112) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Tuesday, Apr 28, 2015 17:52]

The talented composer Yuri Roslov, who worked with Mitrofanov, has passed away two months ago, according to eg 200 of April 2015.
9i1963 - 28ii2015
 
   
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(113) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Sunday, May 10, 2015 00:00]

According to http://chess.hu/blog/?p=8976 Ervin Jánosi has died. Here is a nice early study of him:

(= 7+3 )

Ervin Jánosi
Magyar Sakkélet 1957, 2nd honorable mention (correction: 06/1958)
White wins

1.b8S+! Kd5 2.f7 Qe1+ 3.Kb5 Qf1+ 4.K:a5 Q:f7 5.Sc6! Q:e6 6.g8B! Q:g8 7.Se7+ wins
 
   
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(114) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Monday, Jun 22, 2015 12:51]

While more a propagandist than a composer, it is of note that Anatoly Matsukevich (Anatoli Mazukewitsch, Анатолий Александрович Мацукевич) has died. He has written several books, available in German via the Sportverlag Berlin back in my day.

http://ruchess.ru/news/all/ushel_iz_zhizni_anatolij_aleksandrovich_matsukevich/

His few compositions were didactic in nature, not artistic, such as the following one that demonstrates the "zwickmühle" but from an artistic standpoint would be full of duals and even in the end, 20.K:a1 instead 20.Rg7+! Kh8 21.K:a1 would win by the computer.

(= 3+14 )

White to move and win
Bulletin of the Cental Chess Club of the USSR 1989
 
   
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(115) Posted by Sarah Hornecker [Sunday, Jul 19, 2015 02:16]; edited by Sarah Hornecker [15-07-19]

We have sad news from Germany: The first grandmaster of composing of our country has died the previous Saturday in a hospital in Bremen at the age of 93. I got independent confirmation of Thomas Brand and Mirko Degenkolbe, as well as in an article on the internet based on information by Michael Woltmann: http://www.chess-international.de/Archive/41441#more-41441

Herbert Ahues (2.iii.1922 - 11.vii.2015)

I did not know Ahues personally, but the name, as son of the great Carl Ahues, always for me was of a man who deserved deep respect. I knew he composed mainly twomovers but rarely saw one of his compositions in the magazines I have. As such, the following zwo paragraphs' information is taken from Wikipedia. From what I see the article there is probably based on the book "Meine besten Schachprobleme" in the second edition of 2006.

According to this, Ahues composed around 3,500 problems, 410 got prizes. IMCC 1976, GMCC 1989, IJCC 1962.
Currently there are 460 problems on the Schwalbe PDB server:
http://pdb.dieschwalbe.de/search.jsp?expression=A=%27Ahues%27%20and%20FIRSTNAME=%27%25Herbert%27

Ahues wrote his parents first met in the Berliner Schachgesellschaft. A few years after Ahues' birth, his father Carl had become champion of Germany as well as an internationally known player.
In the eastern German city of Königsberg in Preußen (today Kaliningrad in the Russian exclave Oblast Kaliningrad) Ahues was studying law. At the age of 19 he was involuntarily drafted into the Wehrmacht. After World War II, he became a teacher in Bremen (where he remained then, according to the German article by Stolze/Woltmann linked above).

There is a lawyer named Rainer Ahues in Bremen whom I have contacted but who told he is not related to Herbert Ahues. So currently I have no further information about family members or what will become of his legacy.

There will most likely be an article about Ahues in Die Schwalbe in October 2015. The message reached us too close to the press date, so there will be only a short notice in the August issue.

[edited because of misunderstanding about who will write the Schwalbe article]
 
   
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(116) Posted by Darko Šaljić [Sunday, Jul 19, 2015 08:50]; edited by Darko Šaljić [15-07-19]

Ahues, name that has marked a century of chess and chess composition..
 
   
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(117) Posted by Thomas Brand [Sunday, Jul 19, 2015 09:34]

@ Siegfried
Indeed, that was a misunderstanding...
For long time I admire Ahues and his extraordinary work, but by far I'm not the twomover expert to write about him and his work in an appropriate, competent way. Personally I remember his kindness and humour when we met a few times at Schwalbe meetings -- the first time just 30 years ago, when I organised this meeting in 1985 at Hagen.
A tremendous loss!
 
   
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(118) Posted by Ian Shanahan [Monday, Jul 20, 2015 05:17]; edited by Ian Shanahan [15-07-21]

I'm just amazed at how prolific he continued to be, despite his advanced age, while still maintaining a high standard. There are two original #2s in the latest issue of "Springaren", for example.
 
   
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(119) Posted by Marjan Kovačević [Monday, Jul 20, 2015 17:22]

My condolences to German composers and solvers who enjoyed Herbert's originals in magazines all over the world. I'm sure many of his #2s are still waiting to be published, such was his enormous pleasure in composing. In the respects of longevity, pleasure and elegance involved in his work, Ahues may perhaps be compared with Mansfield, no matter how different their thematic interests were.
 
   
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(120) Posted by Hauke Reddmann [Tuesday, Jul 21, 2015 22:25]

I once had to judge a SCHWALBE 2# informal. "Neutralizing"
didn't work 100% - I just needed one look to know "This problem
is by Ahues!" And I was right. His style was unmistakable.
 
   
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