1. Overview
Nigel David Short (born 1 June 1965) is an English chess grandmaster, columnist, coach, and commentator. He became a grandmaster at the age of 19 and achieved a world ranking of third by FIDE from July 1988 to July 1989. In 1993, Short made history as the first English player to qualify for a World Chess Championship match, challenging Garry Kasparov in London. This match, organized independently of FIDE, resulted in a decisive victory for Kasparov. Short was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1999 for his services to chess. Since September 2022, he has served as the FIDE Director for Chess Development, continuing his significant involvement in the sport. His long and distinguished career has been marked by numerous tournament successes and international representation, though his public persona has also been shaped by controversial statements, particularly regarding gender in chess, which have drawn widespread criticism.
2. Early Life and Education
Nigel David Short was born on 1 June 1965, in Leigh, Lancashire, England. He is the second of three sons born to David and Jean Short; his father worked as a journalist, and his mother was a school secretary. Short grew up in Atherton, attending St Philip's Primary School on Bolton Old Road. He continued his education at the independent Bolton School and later at Leigh College.
Short's journey into chess began at the early age of five, after observing his father teach the game to his older brother, Martin. He became a member of the Atherton Chess Club, which his father had founded, and subsequently joined the Bolton Chess Club. Notably, the Bolton Chess Club initially rejected him when he was seven years old, deeming him too young. His parents divorced when he was 13. Short left school at 17, having completed four O-levels, to dedicate himself fully to his chess career.
3. Prodigy to Grandmaster

Nigel Short quickly emerged as a chess prodigy, largely self-taught. At the age of 10, he gained significant media attention by being the sole victor in a 31-board simultaneous exhibition in London against Viktor Korchnoi, who was then ranked second in the world. In 1977, just three days before his 12th birthday, Short became the youngest participant ever in the British Chess Championship by qualifying through the North West Zonal. In the championship itself, he achieved an impressive debut performance, scoring 5/11 and defeating ten-time British champion Jonathan Penrose.
During this period, Short dominated British youth chess, earning a Master rating after his strong showing in the 1977 British finals. He secured his first adult national title in 1978, winning the British Lightning Championship at 13 years, 5 months, and 11 days old, a title he successfully defended in 1980. In 1979, at the British Championship in Chester, Short tied for first place with John Nunn and Robert Bellin, earning his first International Master norm, though Bellin claimed the title on tiebreak. Later that year, he tied for first in the World Championship for players under 16, the World Cadet Championship, held in Belfort, France, but lost on tiebreak to Argentinian Marcello Tempone.
Short became the youngest International Master in chess history at the time, breaking Bobby Fischer's 1958 record, by scoring 8/15 in the 1979/80 Hastings Premier. He participated in four World Junior Championships between 1980 and 1983, achieving his best result in his first attempt in 1980, where he placed second to Garry Kasparov in Dortmund. Short made his international team debut representing England at the 1983 European Team finals in Plovdiv. In 1984, at the age of 19, he was awarded the grandmaster title, becoming the youngest grandmaster in the world at that time, a record later surpassed by Simen Agdestein.
4. World Championship Candidate
Nigel Short's serious pursuit of the World Chess Championship title began in 1985 when he narrowly qualified from the Biel Interzonal tournament, becoming Britain's first-ever candidate. He secured the final berth after a playoff against John van der Wiel and Eugenio Torre, following a three-way tie in regulation play. However, the subsequent Montpellier Candidates Tournament saw Short finish in 10th place with a score of 7/15.
In the next World Championship cycle, Short again qualified by winning the 1987 Subotica Interzonal, sharing first place with Jon Speelman. The Candidates stage had reverted to its traditional match format. In 1988, Short defeated Gyula Sax with a score of (+2=3) in Saint John, Canada, but then unexpectedly lost to Speelman with a score of (-2=3) in London.
Short's most successful attempt at the World Championship came in the following cycle. He qualified for the Candidates Tournament for the third successive time by defeating Mikhail Gurevich in the final round of the Manila Interzonal, finishing equal third with Viswanathan Anand, behind Vassily Ivanchuk and Boris Gelfand. In the 8/Final, he again faced Speelman in London, tying a close match (+2-2=4) before securing victory in the tie-break with a score of 1.5-0.5. The 1/4 final against Gelfand in Brussels was a hard-fought encounter, with Short ultimately prevailing (+4-2=2). In the semifinal in 1992, Short overcame former World Champion Anatoly Karpov (+4-2=4) in a match widely described as "the end of an era." The final match, held in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, saw Short defeat Dutchman Jan Timman (+5-3=5), earning him the right to challenge defending World Champion Garry Kasparov. Short's victory over Jan Timman in Tilburg in 1991, featuring a famous King walk, was later voted as one of the hundred greatest chess games by FM Graham Burgess and GMs John Nunn and John Emms.
5. World Title Match 1993
The 1993 World Chess Championship match between Nigel Short and Garry Kasparov was marked by significant controversy. Both Short and Kasparov asserted that Florencio Campomanes, the head of FIDE, the world chess governing body, had breached FIDE rules by unilaterally deciding the match location (Manchester) and the prize fund without consulting the players. According to British WIM and author Cathy Forbes in her book Nigel Short: Quest for the Crown (1993), FIDE never actually received a conforming bid for the World Championship match during the 1993 bidding process.
In response to these perceived irregularities, Short and Kasparov took an unprecedented step: they formed a rival organization, the Professional Chess Association (PCA). The resulting match, sponsored by The Times newspaper, was held under the PCA's auspices in London from September to October 1993. Kasparov ultimately won the match convincingly with a score of (+6-1=13), marking the largest margin of victory in a world title contest since Botvinnik defeated Tal in 1961.
5.1. Controversy
The rebellion led by Kasparov and Short created a profound schism in the chess world. This unprecedented move resulted in FIDE organizing a parallel World Championship cycle, culminating in a title match later in 1993 between Anatoly Karpov and Jan Timman, which Karpov won. Both Short and Kasparov were sanctioned by FIDE for their actions, and the situation led to enormous controversy and upheaval within the international chess community for several years, fundamentally altering the landscape of professional chess.
6. Major Tournament Results

Nigel Short has achieved numerous victories and high placings in a wide array of international and national chess tournaments throughout his career. He won the British Chess Championship in 1984, 1987, and 1998, and the English Chess Championship in 1991, the only year that event was held. He was also crowned Commonwealth Champion three times: in 2004 and 2006 (both in Mumbai), and in 2008 (in Nagpur). In 2006, he won the EU Individual Open Chess Championship in Liverpool and shared second place when the event was held there again in 2008.
Short has finished outright first or tied for first in dozens of other significant international tournaments. These include:
- Geneva (1979)
- Belfort, World Under 16 (1979)
- The BBC Master Game (1981)
- Amsterdam OHRA (1982)
- Baku (1983)
- Esbjerg (1984)
- British Rapidplay Chess Championship (1986)
- Wijk aan Zee (1986, 1987)
- Reykjavík (1987)
- Amsterdam VSB (1988, 1991, 1992, 1993)
- Hastings (1987/88, 1988/89)
- Pärnu (1996)
- Groningen (1996)
- Tallinn/Pärnu (1998)
- Isle of Man Monarch Assurance (1998)
- Dhaka United Insurance (1999)
- Shymkent (1999)
- Pamplona (1999/2000)
- Linares Open (2000)
- Tan Chin Nam Cup, Beijing (2000)
- Sigeman and Co. Malmö (2002, 2009, 2013, jointly with Richárd Rapport and Nils Grandelius)
- Gibraltar (2003, 2004, 2012)
- Budapest Hunguest Hotels (2003)
- Samba Cup, Skanderborg (2003)
- Taiyuan (2004)
- The Politiken Cup (2006)
- Bazna (2008)
- The Staunton Memorial (2009)
- Bangkok Chess Club Open (2011, 2012, 2015, 2017)
- Luanda (2011)
- 7th Edmonton International (2012)
- Bunratty (2012, 2016, 2017, 2020)
- RA Club Ottawa (2012)
- Pühajärve Rapid Chess Tournament (2012)
- Spicenet Tanzania Open (2013)
- PokerStars Isle of Man (2014)
- Zaw Win Lay Memorial Yangon (2014)
- The South African Open (2015)
- The 1st Stars Cup in Anzali (2016)
- The British Knockout Championship (2016)
- The Bacolod Negros Open (2017)
- The Pre-League Blitz Open in Kampala (2018)
- The GM Nigel Short Blitz in Lagos (2018)
- The Moja GM Tournament, in Kimberley (2022)
In 2013, Short won the 50th edition of the Canadian Open Chess Championship in Ottawa, edging out Canadian Grandmaster Eric Hansen on tiebreak after both finished with unbeaten scores of 7½/9. Arguably, Short's most impressive tournament performance occurred at the Amsterdam VSB tournament in 1991, where he tied for first place with Valery Salov, notably finishing ahead of both Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov.
7. Match Play
Beyond his World Championship cycle endeavors, Nigel Short has demonstrated considerable success in individual match play. In 1985, he decisively defeated US Champion Lev Alburt in Foxborough, Massachusetts, with a score of 7-1 (+6=2). Other notable match victories include:
- Utut Adianto (+3=3) in Jakarta (1995)
- Étienne Bacrot (+3-1=2) in Albert (2000)
- Hannes Stefánsson (+4-1=1) in Reykjavík (2002)
- Ehsan Ghaem Maghami (+2=4) in Tehran (2003)
- Zahar Efimenko (+2-1=3) in Mukachevo (2009)
- Hou Yifan (+2-1=3) in Hoogeveen (2016)
Short has also faced defeats and draws in other significant matches. He lost to Joel Benjamin by 2½-1½ in London (1983). He drew with Eugenio Torre (+1-1=4) in Manila (1988) and with Jan Timman (3-3) in an exhibition match at Hilversum (1989). In the PCA Candidates' quarterfinals in New York (1994), he defeated Boris Gulko in extra games. However, he lost to Gata Kamsky by 5½-1½ in the PCA semi-finals in Linares (1995). More recently, he drew with Anish Giri (+1-1=2) in Amsterdam (2010).
In March 2013, Short returned to Tehran for a second match against Iranian player Ehsan Ghaem Maghami, billed as Talking Chess. This unique contest featured four games with a classic time control, four games of rapid chess, and eight games of blitz. During the classic games, the players provided intermittent live commentary, aiming to enhance the understanding of the live and television audiences by offering insights into their thoughts and assessments. Short emerged victorious across all formats, winning the classic games (+2=2), the rapid games (+3-1), and the blitz games (+3-2=3).
8. International Team Competitions
Nigel Short has an extensive record representing England in major international team chess events, making his debut at the age of 17 in the European Team Chess Championship in Plovdiv in 1983. He notably represented England in 17 consecutive Olympiads between 1984 and 2016, a remarkable feat of consistency.
His key achievements in Olympiads include:
- Team silver medals at Thessaloniki 1984, Dubai 1986, and Thessaloniki 1988.
- An individual gold medal for the best performance on board three at the Dubai 1986 Olympiad.
- A team bronze medal at the Novi Sad Olympiad of 1990.
- Leading England to fourth-place finishes in both the 1994 (Moscow) and 1996 (Yerevan) Olympiads.
In European Team Championships, Short led the English team to victory at the 1997 Euroteams in Pula. He was also a member of the bronze-winning team in 1992 and of fourth-place teams in 1983 and 2001. He participated in three World Team Chess Championships, contributing to team bronze medals in 1985 and 1989, and a fourth-place finish in 1997.
Short's complete record when representing England in major international team events is detailed below:
Event | Year | Board | Score (+-=) | Team Result | Individual Medal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Olympiads | |||||
Thessaloniki | 1984 | 2nd reserve | 3/6 (+1-1=4) | Silver | |
Dubai | 1986 | 3 | 10/13 (+8-1=4) | Silver | Gold |
Thessaloniki | 1988 | 1 | 7/12 (+3-1=8) | Silver | |
Novi Sad | 1990 | 1 | 6/12 (+2-2=8) | Bronze | |
Manila | 1992 | 1 | 6/11 (+3-2=6) | ||
Moscow | 1994 | 1 | 8½/13 (+6-2=5) | ||
Yerevan | 1996 | 1 | 7/12 (+3-1=8) | ||
Elista | 1998 | 2 | 6½/11 (+2-0=9) | ||
Istanbul | 2000 | 2 | 7/12 (+3-1=8) | ||
Bled | 2002 | 2 | 8½/13 (+5-1=7) | ||
Calvià | 2004 | 2 | 1½/4 (+1-2=1) | ||
Turin | 2006 | 2 | 8/11 (+5-0=6) | ||
Dresden | 2008 | 2 | 7/10 (+6-2=2) | ||
Khanty-Mansiysk | 2010 | 2 | 4/8 (+2-2=4) | ||
Istanbul | 2012 | 3 | 7½/10 (+6-1=3) | ||
Tromsø | 2014 | 3 | 1½/5 (+1-3=1) | ||
Baku | 2016 | Reserve | 6½/9 (+5-1=3) | ||
European Team Championship | |||||
Plovdiv | 1983 | 7 | 4½/7 (+3-1=3) | ||
Debrecen | 1992 | 1 | 5½/8 (+4-1=3) | Bronze | Bronze |
Pula | 1997 | 1 | 4/7 (+2-1=4) | Gold | |
Batumi | 1999 | 1 | 5/8 (+3-1=4) | ||
León | 2001 | 2 | 6/9 (+3-0=6) | ||
Porto Carras | 2011 | 2 | 3/7 (+2-3=2) | ||
Warsaw | 2013 | 3 | 4½/7 (+2-0=5) | ||
Reykjavík | 2015 | 4 | 3/5 (+2-1=2) | ||
Hersonissos | 2017 | 2 | 3½/7 (+2-2=3) | ||
World Team Championship | |||||
Lucerne | 1985 | 4 | 4/8 (+1-1=6) | Bronze | |
Lucerne | 1989 | 1 | 4½/8 (+3-2=3) | Bronze | Silver |
Lucerne | 1997 | 1 | 4/8 (+0-0=8) | ||
World Senior Team Championship | |||||
Dresden | 2015 | 1 | 7/8 (+6-0=2) | Bronze | Gold |
Hersonissos | 2017 | 1 | 8/9 (+7-0=2) | Bronze | Gold |
9. Chess Style and Approach
Nigel Short is known for his dynamic and aggressive playing style, often characterized by sharp tactical play and a willingness to take risks. His opening repertoire reflects this approach, favoring complex and double-edged positions.
Most-played openings with the White pieces:
- Sicilian (561 games)
- Variations include B90, B23, B40, B33, B32
- Ruy Lopez (218 games)
- Variations include C84, C92, C78, C86, C77
- French Defense (155 games)
- Variations include C11, C18, C10, C19, C01
- Caro-Kann (113 games)
- Variations include B12, B10, B17, B11, B18
- Ruy Lopez, Closed (109 games)
- Variations include C84, C92, C86, C90, C95
- Sicilian Najdorf (106 games)
- Variations include B90, B92, B93, B91, B97
With the Black pieces, Short's preferred defenses are also active and counter-attacking:
- French Defense (233 games)
- Variations include C11, C05, C18, C03, C02
- Ruy Lopez (153 games)
- Variations include C92, C72, C69, C95, C84
- Queen's Pawn Game (124 games)
- Variations include E00, D02, A40, A46, A45
- Queen's Gambit Declined (113 games)
- Variations include D37, D35, D30, D36, D31
- Nimzo Indian (104 games)
- Variations include E34, E21, E42, E32, E41
- French Tarrasch (91 games)
- Variations include C05, C03, C07, C09, C04
10. Other Activities and Roles
Beyond his active playing career, Nigel Short has been significantly involved in various aspects of the chess world, including administration, coaching, journalism, and commentary.
In October 2018, Short was appointed as one of the Vice Presidents of the World Chess Federation (FIDE). His involvement deepened in September 2022 when he became the FIDE Director for Chess Development. He has also held administrative roles within the Commonwealth Chess Association, serving as its secretary general from August 2005 and then as president from June 2006 until January 2008. From 2009 to 2014, he was the FIDE delegate for the English Chess Federation (ECF).
Short has an extensive background in chess journalism, having written columns and book reviews for prominent British newspapers such as The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, and The Spectator. He maintained a column for The Sunday Telegraph for a decade and contributed to The Guardian from 2005 to October 2006. He also reported on the FIDE World Chess Championship 2005 in San Luis, Argentina, for the ChessBase website. From January 2011 to December 2018, he wrote a column titled "Short Stories" for New in Chess magazine. During the World Chess Championship 2013, he authored a series of articles for The Indian Express. In 2014, he began writing a column for the Financial Times, with his inaugural article featuring an interview with Sol Campbell. Short is also a highly regarded chess commentator, frequently engaged for live broadcasts of important chess events on the Internet, and has been recognized by chess historian Edward Winter as one of the top five Internet broadcasters.
As a coach, Short has worked with several young prodigies, including Pentala Harikrishna, Sergey Karjakin, David Howell, and Parimarjan Negi. He served as the national coach of the Islamic Republic of Iran from 2006 to 2007. His first assignment with the Iranian team led to an unexpected team bronze medal at the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, in 2006. Under his guidance, Iran also secured a silver and two bronze medals across nine chess events at the Asian Indoor Games in Macau in 2007.
In recognition of his contributions, Short was made an honorary Fellow of the then Bolton Institute of Higher Education in 1993 and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree by the University of Bolton in 2010. His appointment as an MBE in 1999 further acknowledged his accomplishments in chess. In his 2021 book Winning, Short revealed that it was his first personally authored book, stating that all previous books published under his name were ghost-written. In October 2021, a blog post on Chess.com suggested that the anonymous grandmaster "honestgirl" was, in fact, Nigel Short, citing similar game preferences and noting that "honestgirl" is an anagram of his name.
11. Controversies and Public Statements

Nigel Short has been involved in several public incidents and has made statements that have generated controversy throughout his career.
In 2001, Short publicly claimed in The Sunday Telegraph chess column that he believed he had been secretly playing the reclusive former World Champion Bobby Fischer in speed chess matches on the online platform Internet Chess Club. However, Fischer himself denied ownership of the account in question.
In January 2007, during an interview with the Indian newspaper DNA, Short called for an inquiry into allegations that Veselin Topalov had cheated during the World Championship in San Luis. In the same interview, he also criticized the role of members of the Appeals Committee at the 2005 and 2006 World Championships, specifically targeting FIDE Vice President Zurab Azmaiparashvili. Short accused Azmaiparashvili of having "by his own admission, cheated in winning the 2003 European Championship." Azmaiparashvili filed a formal complaint with the FIDE Ethics Commission, which convened in July 2007. While the commission dismissed the main complaints against Short, it did sanction him for a minor violation of the FIDE Code of Ethics due to his use of the word "dunderhead" in his criticisms.
Perhaps his most widely criticized public statements came in 2015, when Short asserted that men are biologically better suited to chess than women. He claimed that women possess other skills, citing his wife's superior emotional intelligence as an example. These comments drew widespread condemnation from the chess community and beyond. Despite the significant backlash, Short reaffirmed his position in subsequent interviews, stating that "it's quite easy to demonstrate there is a fairly substantial gap between men and women" in chess. He controversially dismissed his repeated defeats by female grandmaster Judit Polgar as "irrelevant," further demonstrating a dismissive stance towards evidence that contradicted his views. These remarks were widely seen as undermining efforts to promote gender equality and inclusivity in chess, highlighting a conservative viewpoint that attracted considerable negative attention.
12. Personal Life
Nigel Short resides in Greece, specifically in Athens. He married Ρέα Αργυρώ ΚαραγεωργίουRhea Argyro KarageorgiouGreek, Modern, a drama therapist, in 1987. The couple has two children. Short identifies as an atheist.
13. Works
Nigel Short has authored or co-authored several books on chess throughout his career:
- Short, Nigel (1989). Nigel Short's Chess Skills. Hamlyn.
- Short, Nigel (1993). Chess Basics. Sterling Publishing.
- Short, Nigel (2021). Winning. Quality Chess.
14. Legacy and Impact
Nigel Short's legacy in chess is multifaceted, shaped by his remarkable playing career, his pioneering role for English chess, and his later contributions as an administrator, coach, and commentator. As the first English player to challenge for the World Championship, he significantly elevated the profile of chess in the United Kingdom and inspired a generation of players. His numerous tournament victories and consistent performance at the highest levels of the game for decades underscore his formidable skill and dedication.
Beyond the board, Short's work as a national coach for Iran, where he helped achieve notable team successes, and his mentorship of young prodigies demonstrate his commitment to developing new talent. His extensive career as a chess columnist and commentator has also contributed to the public understanding and enjoyment of the game.
However, Short's legacy is also marked by his controversial public statements, particularly his views on gender in chess. These remarks, which suggested biological differences in chess aptitude between men and women, drew widespread criticism and sparked debates about inclusivity and equality within the sport. Such statements have, for some, overshadowed his significant achievements as a player and advocate for chess, presenting a complex public persona that continues to invite scrutiny and discussion regarding the social progress of the game.