Korchnoi, Viktor Lvovich

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(vyēk´tər ləvôv´yĭch kôrch´noi), 1931–, Russian-Swiss chess master. A long-time leading Soviet player, he lost to Anatoly Karpov in 1974, competing for the right to challenge Bobby Fischer for the world title. Korchnoi criticized Karpov after the match, was banned from competition for six months by Soviet authorities, and in 1976 emigrated to Switzerland. An innovative but erratic tactician, he lost world-title matches against Karpov in 1978 and 1981.