On Sept. 1, 1972, American Bobby Fischer won the international chess crown in Reykjavik, Iceland, as Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union resigned before the resumption of Game 21.

The 29-year-old chess genius from Brooklyn, N.Y. brought the U.S. its first world chess title in the competition that took place from July 11 - Sept. 1, 1972. The match had the first of several controversies before it began, when it was delayed by Fischer, who demanded more money and would not travel until the winning pot was increased, and then by Spassky, who would not begin play until Fischer apologized.

Game 21 began on Aug. 31, and after being adjourned overnight, ended with Fischer amassing 12 1/2 points to the 35-year-old Spassky’s 8 1/2 points.

The following text is an excerpt from The Associated Press article, "Fischer—From Prodigy to Superstar," by Louise Cook, on Friday, Sept. 1, 1972.

When Bobby Fischer won his first U.S. chess championship at 14, the world called him a prodigy. Now that at 29 he has defeated Boris Spassky for the world title, people are calling him a superstar.

For Fischer, however, the victory over the Russian is simply what he felt he deserved. "I’m tired of being the unofficial champion," he said several months before the match in Iceland got under way.

"It’s nice to be modest, but it would be stupid if I did not tell the truth. I should have been world champion 10 years ago."

Ten years ago, Fischer finished a surprisingly poor fourth behind three Russians in the tournament playoffs. He promptly accused the Russians of cheating, insisting that they used the round-robin format to their advantage by playing easy matches to draws against each other and saving the tough stuff for him.

In 1965, the International Chess Federation scrapped the round-robin in favor of the player-to-player eliminations that led Fischer to the Reykjavik match.

The American challenger began with a victory at the internal finals in Palma de Mallorca and went on to amass an unprecedented 20 straight wins.

The Soviet Union’s Tigran Petrosian broke Fischer’s winning streak in the second game of their semifinal match in Argentina last November, but the U.S. player ultimately defeated the Russian 6 1/2 to 2 1/2 winning $7,500 in prize money and the right to meet Spassky.

The following text is an excerpt from The Associated Press article, "Fischer Wins Chess title as Spassky Resigns 21st Game," by Julie Flint, on Saturday, Sept. 2, 1972.

Bobby Fischer won the world chess championship Friday without moving a pawn. He became America's first world titleholder when Boris Spassky resigned by telephone in the 21st game, his position analyzed as hopeless.

The 29-year-old chess wizard from Brooklyn stands to win $156,000 in prize money and can count on more thousands from book royalties, public appearances and the like.

Fisher’s victory in the 21st game, adjourned overnight, gave him 12 1/2 points to the Russians 8 1/2.

Spassky, 35, will receive about $100,000. He won only three games, one on a forfeit, and Fisher seven. They drew 1 time, each draw counting half a point.

When referee Lothar Schmid stepped forward on the stage and announced that Spassky had resigned, the spectators in the jammed hall cheered. Schmid shouted “Brave Bobby“ as Fischer smiled. Fisher then left quickly and fans mobbed his car outside the hall.

Col. E.B. Edmondson, head of the American Chess Federation (stated) the victory was “entirely what we expected” and “the score was exactly what I predicted months ago.”

Tass, the Soviet news agency, said Spassky's "decision was taken after an analysis showed that further white resistance was futile." Spassky has played the opening white pieces, ordinarily an advantage.

There was a last minute fuss when the championship changed hands. Schmid had received the telephone call from Spassky at 12:50 p.m. The resumed game was to have begun at 3:30 p.m.

Schmid said he had congratulated Spassky on his sportsmanship and asked him to go to the playing hall to inform Fischer officially. Spassky did not go and the Americans, told of the telephone call, refused to accept the resignation as official.

Max Euwe, president of the International Chess Federation, ruled that Fischer would have to show up on stage to be declared the champion. When Fischer arrived, he still was not sure Spassky had resigned.

The referee said Fischer insisted on seeing if the Russian had signed his score sheet to make the resignation valid. Schmid had signed the score sheet and explained to Fischer that this was valid under federation rules.

Schmid then announced the Soviet champion’s resignation to the 2,500 Icelanders assembled in the hall.

Thus the match that had excited the imagination of the world ended in anti-climax, instead of in the killing attack by Fischer that the fans had expected.

Russians had dominated the chess world for 35 years, and the dream of Fischer’s life had been to end the domination.

The match had been dominated by controversy, first over Fischer’s demands for more money and later by his complaints about plane conditions. So relations between the American and the Russian were strained.

Euwe said he wished Spassky had shown up to congratulate Fischer but noted that the Russian "was a little bitter."

Text Excerpts

From "Fischer—From Prodigy to Superstar," by Louise Cook, published in the Oakland Tribune on Friday, Sept. 1, 1972.

From "Fischer Wins Chess Title as Spassky Resigns 21st Game," by Julie Flint, published in The Times, Saturday, Sept. 2, 1972.

Text and photo editing by Kathleen Elliott

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