Origins & Early Life

Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik (Russian: Влади́мир Бори́сович Кра́мник; born 25 June 1975) is a Russian chess grandmaster. He was the Classical World Chess Champion from 2000 to 2006, and the 14th undisputed World Chess Champion from 2006 to 2007. In 2000, Kramnik defeated Garry Kasparov and became the Classical World Chess Champion. He defended his title in 2004 against Peter Leko, and defeated the reigning FIDE World Champion Veselin Topalov in a unification match in 2006.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

As a result, Kramnik became the first undisputed World Champion, holding both the FIDE and Classical titles, since Kasparov split from FIDE in 1993. In 2007, Kramnik lost the title to Viswanathan Anand, who won the World Chess Championship 2007 tournament ahead of Kramnik. He challenged Anand at the World Chess Championship 2008 to regain his title, but lost. He played in four more Candidates tournaments between 2012 and 2018. Kramnik publicly announced his retirement as a professional chess player in January 2019 to focus on projects relating to chess for children and education.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Kramnik reached a peak rating of 2817 in October 2016, which makes him the joint-eighth-highest-rated player of all time. He is widely recognized...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• 50 Cent — Contemporary (Born in 1975) (1975): Iconic rapper, actor, and entrepreneur known for raw storytelling and business acumen.
• Alex Rodriguez — Contemporary (Born in 1975) (1975): Legendary baseball player and businessman, known as "A-Rod"
• Allen Iverson — Contemporary (Born in 1975) (1975): Iconic NBA scorer and guard, nicknamed "the Answer", celebrated for his electrifying play.
• Alexei Abrikosov (physicist) — Shared historical date (06-25 · Born) (1928): Pioneering theoretical physicist known for low-temperature condensed matter physics.
• Antoni Gaudí — Shared historical date (06-25 · Born) (1852): Master exponent of Catalan Modernisme, known for nature-inspired architecture.
• Éamon de Valera — Historical peer (Died in 1975) (1975): Dominant Irish statesman, leading figure in the establishment of modern Irish governance.
• Angelina Jolie — Historical peer (Born in 1975) (1975): Acclaimed American actress, filmmaker, and dedicated global humanitarian.
• Abraham Pais — Historical peer (Died in 2000) (2000): Pioneering physicist and acclaimed science historian of modern physics.
• Alec Guinness — Historical peer (Died in 2000) (2000): Iconic English actor celebrated for stage mastery and cinematic versatility.
• Aaron Spelling — Historical peer (Died in 2006) (2006): Pioneering American producer of hit TV series like Dynasty and Beverly Hills, 90210.
• 1975 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1975
• June 25 (06-25) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on June 25