Does Age Affect Master Chess

SUMMARY Data of World Championship chess matches and of the personal tournament performances of certain chess masters have been examined from the point of view of the players' ages. The author concludes that these data do not indicate that the mental capabilities of professional chess players are adversely affected by advancing age. Interpretations of the data are suggested and other considerations are mentioned. 1. THE PROBLEM THE effect of age on the capabilities of the physical sportsman is well known. Forty is an effective ceiling in most physical sports and the year by year progress of over-40 athletes is followed with interest everywhere in the world. The effect of age on the capabilities of the mental sportsman is less clear, and opinions differ as to whether the physical effects of ageing in any way affect a man's mental prowess, and if so, how. One mental sport well worth examination is chess. When a chess player reaches a certain well-recognized, excellent standard of play, he is called a "master" in the chess world. The data we shall present below in examining the question raised come from the world of "master chess". In the soccer or baseball world the equivalent standard would be "professional soccer" or "professional baseball". We shall consider two types of data: (a) the results of all matches played by the World Chess Champions against challengers 1858-1961, and the ages of the participants; (b) the performances of recognized masters, including World Champions, in tournaments throughout their lives. A portion of these data previously appeared elsewhere (Rubin, 1960). The subsequent analysis, however, like the portion of data, appears inadequate.