Estonian chess player Ivo Nei dies at 94
International Master Ivo Nei, a longtime fixture in Estonian chess, died on Monday, July 6, at the age of 94.
Ivo Nei was born on October 31, 1931, in Tartu and began playing chess at age five. He competed in the finals of the Soviet Championship four times and won the Baltic tournament on three occasions. In 1948, at the USSR school championship, he tied for first with future world title contender Viktor Korchnoi. In 1964, at a tournament in Beverwijk, Netherlands, he shared first place with another contender, Estonian Paul Keres.
An eight-time Estonian champion, Nei coached world champions Boris Spassky, Nona Gaprindashvili, and Maya Chiburdanidze. He served as director of the Tallinn Chess School, which he co-founded with Keres, for over 25 years. In 1980, he was head coach of the USSR team at the European Team Championship. From 1989 to 1996, he headed the Finnish national team.
For 16 years, Nei hosted the television program "Malekool" (Chess School) on Estonian TV. In 2016, he received a lifetime achievement award from the Cultural Capital foundation, and in 2001 he was awarded the Order of the Estonian Red Cross, IV class.
