Great champions, like politicians, are forged in defeat. Garry Kasparov's came in February 1985 at the end of a match for the world championship of chess. Kasparov's rival, Anatoly Karpov, had jumped to an early and seemingly impregnable 5-0 lead. The rules stipulated that the match would be won by the first to win six games. After a long series of draws, Kasparov clawed his way to 5-3. Then Florencio Campomanes, head of the international chess federation, intervened, claiming the players were exhausted. Kasparov, just 21, was enraged. Later that year, he defeated Karpov to win the world title, but the...
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