Igor-Alexandre Nataf

{{short description|French chess grandmaster (born 1978)}}

{{Infobox chess biography

| name = Igor-Alexandre Nataf

| image = Igor nataf.JPG

| caption = Nataf in 2008

| full_name =

| country = France

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1978|05|02|df=y}}

| birth_place = Paris, France

| death_date =

| death_place =

| title = Grandmaster (1998), Senior International Correspondence Chess Master (2017)

| worldchampion =

| womensworldchampion =

| ICCFworldchampion =

| rating =

| peakrating = 2596 (April 2007)

| ranking =

| peakranking = No. 161 (July 2006){{cite web|title=Nataf, Igor-Alexandre|url=http://www.benoni.de/schach/elo/his_e.html?id=605492|publisher=benoni.de|access-date=2013-11-26|archive-date=2013-12-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202223433/http://www.benoni.de/schach/elo/his_e.html?id=605492|url-status=dead}}

| FideID = 605492

}}

Igor-Alexandre Nataf (born 2 May 1978) is a French chess grandmaster. He received the FIDE title of Grandmaster in 1998.

Chess career

Nataf represented France at the European Team Chess Championship in 1999{{cite web|title=Nataf, Igor-Alexandre; European Men's Team Chess Championship|url=http://www.olimpbase.org/playerse/ki4msi6l.html|publisher=OlimpBase}} and at Olympiads in 2000 and 2004.{{cite web|title=Nataf, Igor-Alexandre; Men's Chess Olympiads|url=http://www.olimpbase.org/players/ki4msi6l.html|publisher=OlimpBase}} In the 2000 FIDE World Championship, he beat Emil Sutovsky and Nigel Short before losing to the Brazilian grandmaster Rafael Leitão in round 3.{{cite web|title=World Chess Championship 2000 FIDE Knockout Matches|url=http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a0a1$wix.htm|publisher=Mark Weeks}} He was less successful in the 2001–02 World Championship, beating Viktor Bologan in round 1 but losing to Konstantin Sakaev in round 2.{{cite web|title=World Chess Championship 2001-02 FIDE Knockout Matches|url=http://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/a1a2$wix.htm|publisher=Mark Weeks}}

Notable games

{{algebraic notation|pos=secleft}}

Nataf's win against John Nunn at the 1999 French Team championship was voted best game in Chess Informant 76 in 1999.

{{Chess diagram

| tleft

| Nunn vs. Nataf, 1999

|rd| |bd|qd| |rd|kd|

| |pd| | |bd| |pd|pd

|pd| |nd|pd| | | |

| | | | | | | |

| | |pl| |pl| |nd|

|nl| |nl| | | |bl|

|pl|pl| | |bl|pl| |pl

|rl| | |ql|kl| | |rl

| Position after 14.Be2

|reverse=true

}}


Sicilian Defence, Kalashnikov Variation (ECO B32)
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 5.Nb5 d6 6.c4 Be7 7.N1c3 a6 8.Na3 f5 9.Bd3 f4 10.g3 Nf6 11.gxf4 exf4 12.Bxf4 0-0 13.Bg3 Ng4 14.Be2 (diagram) Nxf2!! 15.Qd5+ Kh8 16.Bxf2 Nb4 17.Qh5 Rxf2 18.Kxf2 Bh4+ 19.Kg2 g6 20.Qf3 Qg5+ 21.Kf1 Bh3+ 22.Qxh3 Rf8+ 23.Bf3 Qe3 24.Qxh4 Nd3 25.Nd5 Qxf3+ 26.Kg1 Nf2 27.Kf1 Qxh1+ 28.Ke2 Qxa1 0–1{{cite web | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/chess/3599005/The-Sunday-chess-column.html | title=The Sunday chess column | publisher=Daily Telegraph | date=20 July 2003 | accessdate=21 February 2015 | author=Nigel Short}}

{{clear}}

References

{{reflist|30em}}