fizzy wrote:
I think the "fighter" is also better suited to Lasker, who may have
been a philospher away from the board, but who extolled "chess is a
struggle" at the board.

True, and I think that was on my shortlist when I was putting the
nicknames together. I really like "the fighter" for Kasparov though.
Along the same lines and maybe even better for Lasker is "the battler"
or "the survivor".

I don't think if Karpov as a technician. I like themetaphor I once
heard Spassky use for him, which was the player Karpov is like
playing
a python -- he just keeps squeezing your position until you have
nothing contructive to do. So I'd nickname Karpov the "constrictor."

That's really good, but it doesn't stand alone without the analogy I
think.

I don't know that Fischer was any more of a genius than any other
great
champion. In fact, Capablanca might have been a greater chess
genius.
But Fischer was capable of both incredibly great chess and incredibly
unpredictable behavior. I'd nickname him the "mercurial".

Yea, he's been referred to as "the fanatic" which is fitting, but I
thought it had too much of a negative connotation. "the genius" sort of
implies the problems away from the board, like a 'troubled genius'.

The "tactician" underestimates Alekhine's greatness. Yes, he was an
attacking player, but I'd rather describe him as the "brilliant".

I wanna stay with nouns though. The tactician, especially under that
very sharp picture of him, does him justice I think.

As for Kasparov, I see him as combining tremendous natural talent
with
tremendous fighting spirit over the board and tremendous dedication
to
analysis away from the board. I can't think of a one-word nickname
for
this combination. What's a combination of a genius, fighter, and
scientist? Perhaps we should call him the "pinnacle".

Thanks to everyone who responded!
Very good suggestions... I really like the pinnacle, the benchmark, and
especially "the greatest", but I don't want to be disrespectful of the
other greats. "The fighter" might be best... but I'll probably just
leave it as a question mark for now. Looking at the current chess
scene, and the FIDE mess, I do see him as possibly the last in a line
of great champions.