Garry Kimovich Kasparov (, ; born
Garik Kimovich Weinstein, 13 April 1963) is a
Russian (formerly
Soviet) chess
Grandmaster, former
World Chess Champion, writer, and political activist, considered by many to be the
greatest chess player of all time. From 1986 until his retirement in 2005, Kasparov was ranked world No. 1 for 225 out of 228 months. His peak
rating of 2851, achieved in 1999, was the highest recorded until being passed by
Magnus Carlsen in 2013. Kasparov also holds records for consecutive professional tournament victories (15) and
Chess Oscars (11).