Artur Yusupov

     Yusupov (aka Artur Jussupow) was born February 13, 1960 in Moscow, and is GM, chess writer and coach. 
     Yusupov learned to play chess at the age of six and trained at the Young Pioneers' Palace in Moscow. He won the World Junior Championship in 1977, which automatically qualified for the IM title and he was awarded the GM title in 1980. 
     He finished second in his first USSR Championship in 1979 (behind Efim Geller) and for the next 10 years he enjoyed a lot of success in international tournaments. 
     According to Chessmetrics, between March 1986 and May 1987 Yusupov was ranked number three in the world on 12 different months. 
     He reached the semi-final of the Candidates Tournament on three occasions: in 1986 (defeated by Andrei Sokolov), 1989 (defeated by Anatoly Karpov) and 1992 (defeated by Jan Timman). 
     In May of 1990 he returned to his Moscow apartment after finishing second at the SKA tournament in Munich. He was carrying a large amount of cash and shortly after arriving home armed thieves came to his apartment and proceeded to rob him of money and other valuables and although Yusopov put up no resistance, one of the thieves discharged a shotgun into his stomach. Yusopov considered himself lucky to have survived. Soon after, he decided to move to Germany, which has remained his home. 
     After that experience his (Chessmetrics) rating gradually slipped and by the early 2000s he was no longer in the world’s top twenty. 
     In 1999, Yusupov was acknowledged as the leading authority on Petrov’s Defense and his opening book on it was considered the most comprehensive available. He is also an expert on Lasker’s Defense in the QGD. 
     According to GM Alexei Suetin described Yuspov as "a player with a rational, positional style. He boasts high technical skill in the endgame and detailed knowledge of his customary opening systems. Least of all does he rely on inspiration; his every move is based on industrious study." 
     Throughout his playing career, Yusupov has been coached and mentored by Mark Dvoretsky, considered to be the world's leading chess trainers. As a result they established he Dvoretsky–Yusupov Chess School. Students of the school have included strong grandmasters Peter Svidler, Sergei Movsesian and Vadim Zvjaginsev. 
     In 2005, Yusupov was awarded the title of FIDE Senior Trainer. Yusupov has also been a frequent contributor to Dvoretsky's books and has been a second and advisor to both Viswanathan Anand and Peter Leko during their world championship campaigns. 

Watch an interesting interview with Yusupov on Youtube 

In the following game from the 1981 USSR Championship Yusupov concludes it with a surprising little tactical shot.

Final standings:
1-2 Psakhis and Beliavsky 10.5 
3-5) Balashov, Romanishin and Yusupov 10.0 
6-8) Dolmatov, Kupreichik and Kuzmin 9.5 
9-10) Tseshkovsky and Vaganian 9.0 
11-12) Rashkovsky and Vasiukov 8.5 
13) Makarichev 7.5 
14-15) Geller and Georgadze 6.5 
16-17) Lputian and Razuvaev 6.0 
18) Chekhov 5.5

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[Event "USSR Championship Frunze"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1981.12.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Artur Yusupov"]
[Black "Gennadi Kuzmin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteELO "?"]
[BlackELO "?"]

%Created by Caissa's Web PGN Editor
{Queen's Indian: Old Main Line} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 {This move avoids
the Nimzo-Indian Defense but allows the Bogo Indian 3...Bb4+ which is also a
good alternative for black.} 3... b6 {The solid Q-Indian increases black's
control over the central light squares e4 and d5 by fianchettoing the QB.} 4.
g3 Bb7 { This is known as the Old Main Line and was the most frequently played
line from the 1950s until 4...Ba6 became popular in the 1980s. Nowadays this
move is often employed as a drawing weapon.} 5. Bg2 Be7 {Usual is 6. 0-0 0-0
7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Qc2 Nxc3 9. Qxc3. White has a spatial advantage, but black has
no weaknesses.} 6. Nc3 {With this move white postpones castling in favor of
preparing action in the center with the d4-d5 and e2-e4.} 6... O-O 7. Qc2 d5
{A better line begins with 7...c5.} 8. cxd5 exd5 9. O-O Na6 10. Rd1 h6 {In
Grischuk,A (2772)-Li,Y (2456)/China CHN 2017 black unsuccessfully tried 10...
c5 and eventually lost the game.} 11. Bf4 Re8 12. a3 c5 13. Be5 {White got
nothing out of the opening after 13,dxc5 in Lerner,K (2529)-Grinshpun,E
(2410)/ Herzeliya ISR 2006.} 13... Nc7 14. Nh4 {Black has two reasonable moves
here: 14... cxd4 and 14...Rc8.} 14... Bd6 15. Bxf6 {White could have gotten
active play with 15. e4, but Yusupov prefers a more position approach.} 15...
Qxf6 16. Nf5 Rad8 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 {This slip gives white a distinct advantage.
Better was 17...Rd6 because now black's Q is in danger.} 18. dxc5 bxc5 19.
Ne4 {Had black captured on d6 with his R this move would not have been
possible.} 19... Qg6 20. Qxc5 {Here balck would have been better off to simply
play 20...dxe4 21.Qxc7} 20... Ne6 21. Qxa7 Ba8 22. Nc5 Nf4 {This looks more
dangerous than it is.} 23. gxf4 d4 24. Nb7 Rxe2 25. Rxd4 Rxd4 26. Qxa8+ Kh7
27. Nc5 Rxb2 {Kuzmin has made the best of a bad situation, but he does not
have quite enough play for equality because white's minor pieces are more
active, plus the a-Pawn can be a real danger to black.} 28. Ne4 {Black's best
chance here lies in 28...Qg4 29.Qc6 Ra2! and the R can't be taken because of
...Rd1 mate. Black could then eliminate the P on f4, but even then white keeps
the advantage.} 28... f5 29. Ng3 Qd6 {This turns out to be the losing move.
After 29...Qb6 he would have had a fighting chance.} 30. Nxf5 Rd1+ 31. Rxd1
Qxd1+ 32. Bf1 Qg4+ 33. Ng3 {The ending is lost for black after, say,
33...Qd1, but his next move loses outright to a nifty little tactical
resource. } 33... Qxf4 34. Bd3+ g6 35. Bxg6+ {Kuzmin resigned here because if
35...Kxg6 36. Qg8+ Kf6 37.Nh5+ forking the Q and K.} 1-0