Polugaevsky was born in
Mogilev, in the Soviet Union (now
Mahilyow,
Belarus), to a Jewish family, and, after being evacuated during the Second World War, grew up in
Kuybyshev (modern Samara). He began playing chess around the age of 10. In 1948, he attracted the attention of Candidate Master Alexy Ivashin, who became his first teacher. International Master
Lev Aronin, who lived in Moscow but had family in Kuybyshev, eventually became the teacher whom Polugaevsky credited most for his development. Additionally, between 1950 and 1953 he trained with
Rashid Nezhmetdinov. Unlike many of his grandmaster colleagues, his development in chess came slowly, and he did not receive the Soviet master title until he was an adult. His progress then accelerated rapidly, however, and by the late 1960s he was one of the world's strongest players, as was recognized by his participation in the famous "
USSR vs. Rest of the World" match of 1970. In this match he occupied fourth board, losing one game to
Vlastimil Hort and
drawing his other three. Until 1973, Polugaevsky did not pursue chess as a career, working as an engineer and taking time off for tournaments. Polugaevsky won at
Mar del Plata in 1962 and 1971. He won or tied in the
USSR Chess Championship three times. He played regularly in qualifying events to select a challenger for the world championship, qualifying for the
Candidates Tournament on three occasions. His greatest advancement toward the title came during the 1977 and 1980 cycles, when he defeated
Henrique Mecking and former world champion
Mikhail Tal, respectively, in quarterfinal Candidates matches, before succumbing both times in the semifinals to the eventual challenger,
Viktor Korchnoi. Polugaevsky played on the Soviet national team in seven
Chess Olympiads, in 1966, 1968, 1970, 1978, 1980, 1982 and 1984. His team won the gold medal on each occasion, except in 1978, when the USSR finished second to Hungary. ==Author==