Romanas Arlauskas

    Romanas Arlauskas (1917-2009) was a Lithuanian-born Australian Master, best known for his accomplishments in correspondence chess where he earned the ICCF Grandmaster title in 1965 after finishing third in the 4th World Correspondence Championship (1962-1965). 

    Born in Lithuania, Arlauskas grew up during Lithuania's interwar independence period (1918-1940). A self-taught player, he honed his skills during the 1920s and 1930s by studying Master games. At age 19, he represented Lithuania on sixth board in the 1936 unofficial Olympiad in Munich. He tied for first place in the 1943 Lithuanian Championship, before fleeing to the West in 1944 to escape Soviet occupation. 

    As World War II drew to a close in 1944, Arlauskas joined a group of fellow Baltic players in fleeing to western Europe to evade the advancing Soviet forces. Following his escape, Arlauskas found himself in displaced persons camps in Germany. 

    Among his companions were Latvian players Leonids Dreibergs, Lucius Endzelins, and Miervaldis Jursevskis, as well as others including Edmar Mednis, Karlis Ozols, Ortvin Sarapu, Povilas Tautvaisas, Povilas Vaitonis and Elmars Zemgalis. 

    They found refuge in Allied-occupied zones of Germany. Most of then ended up in either Australia or the United States. Arlauskas emigrated to Australia in early 1948 as part of the postwar influx of Baltic refugees. He was drawn to Australia for its opportunities for skilled migrants. 

 

    His opponent in the following game was Paul Troeger (1913-1992) of West Germany. He was a sport journalist and the 1957 West German champion.