Ribli Zoltan (06.09.1951)

Hungarian Grandmaster (1973), twice world Candidate. Trainer, technician, a mechanical engineer. European Junior Champion (with Vaganian and Maeder) in 1968-69, and alone in 1970-71.

Best results: first equal with Suetin at Kecskemet 1972. Several good results followed: Budapest 1975, first (+6=9) equal with Polugaevsky, ahead of Portisch; Amsterdam 1978, second (+6=5-2), after Timman, ahead of Hort; and Bled-Portoroz 1979, second (+6=8-1) equal with Larsen, after Timman. In Interzonal Riga 1979, Ribli scored +7=8-2 and tied with Adorjan for third place, after Tal and Polugayevsky. Almost made it into the Candidates, but missed out on a tie-break. Three noteworthy first prizes followed: Mexico 1980 (+8=4), Baden-Baden 1981 (+6=7), shared with Miles, and the Interzonal Las Palmas 1982 (+5=8). Then, he became a Candidate for the first time, but after defeating E. Torre (+3=6-1) in the quarter-finals, he lost to Smyslov. The following year, 1983, Ribli was second (+4=9) after Andersson at Wijk aan Zee.

Other major successes are: second at Bugojno 1984, behind Timman; second at Tilburg 1984, equal with Belyavsky, Hubner, and Tukmakov, after Miles; first equal with Portisch and Miles at Portoroz-Ljubljana 1985; 1st at Dortmund 1986, Reggio Emilia 1986-7; first shared with Anand, Nikolic, and Sax at Wijk aan Zee 1989, third equal with Andersson, behind Ehlvest and Ivanchuk. In 1985 he was a Candidate at Montpellier but did not make the final playoffs. Since the 1990s, he mostly plays Liga in Austria, Hungary, and Germany. However, he finished second in Baden Baden in 1992 and first in Kastav (YUG) in 2003. Ribli was Hungarian Champion in 1973, 1974 and 1977, and was a regular on the Hungarian Olympiad Team between 1970 and 1992.

The coach of the Austrian national team for few years.
The author of Winning with the Queen’s Indian 1987) and Winning with the English (1993).

Peak rating: 2625 in 1989.