105 TO ONE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 December 1943, Page 3

105 TO ONE

CHESS PLAYER’S ENDURANCE. ONLY SEVEN GAMES LOST. SYDNEY, December 19. Mr Lajos Steiner, Sydney chess expert, played 105 opponents at the one time, winning 85 games, losing seven and making a draw of 13. For more than eight hours he walked round the Sydney Maccabean Hall, and played approximately 4000 chess moves. Steiner was on his feet from 2 p.m. until 10.30 p.m., and covered about 2000 yards in that time. His moves occupied about eight seconds each. One of his opponents was eight-year-old John Lee. The result of the game was a draw.

Steiner, a Hungarian, studied engineering, passed his examinations, and then devoted his whole time to sports, including chess and wrestling. A wellbuilt, middle-aged man of medium height, he was once amateur wrestling champion of Hungary. He first came to Australia on a tour as chess champion in 1936, and returned to Hungary in 1937. Coming back to Australia in 1939, he married Miss Edna Kingston, New South Wales women’s chess champion. He is following his profession as an engineer. The record number of simultaneous chess games for Australasia is 143 boards. It is held by Lieutenant G. Koshnitsky.