In our minds, Alexander Nikitin will be remembered as a wonderful coach, without whom Kasparov would not have become the great Kasparov
Nikitin, a powerful International Master, retreated from chess at some point, focusing on scientific studies, but returned to the game he loved and became one of the most renowned chess tutors in history.
Back in 1975, he met Candidate Master Garik Kasparov, and it was a turning point in both of their careers. Nikitin and Kasparov had a long and fruitful relationship, and they only parted ways in the early 1990s.
And yet fantastic things happened afterward as well. Nikitin’s influence on Dmitry Jakovenko helped him rise to number five in the world.
Also, Nikitin worked well with Etienne Bacrot, the world’s best junior at the time. Nikitin appeared on the platform after our match with Etienne was completed and joined our postmortem discussion.
66-year-old quiet gentleman was on par with Bacrot, a rising young star with a star rating of 2650+ when he was the European Champion.
It is clear that Alexander Nikitin was a decent and honorable person. Despite his occasionally aggressive stance, he was always right when it came to his principles.
His coaching skills were also top-notch. That’s something his students can tell you about better than I can.
How Did Aleksander Nikitin Die?
Aleksander Nikitin cause of death is not known. He died at the age of 86.
