Chess lost one of its most iconic players of all time on recently, with Dutch Grandmaster Jan Timman – a former world No 2 and a nine-time national champion – passing away after battling serious illness last month. He was 74 at the time of breathing his last on 18 February in Arnhem.

Timman leaves behind a rich legacy as one of the most colorful individuals in the history of the sport, one who was a maverick in every sense of the word when it came to comparing his behavior with that of other top players of his time.

His ‘bon vivant’ lifestyle, however, did not come in the way of Timman establishing himself as the “Best of the West” – an individual who was widely considered the best player outside of the erstwhile Soviet Union, and later Russia.

Choosing chess over mathematics

Timman was born in Amsterdam, Netherlands on 14 December, 1951, the third of four children to Anneke and Reinier Timman. Both of his parents had specialised in the field of mathematics; his father being a professor at the Delft University of Technology and his mother had studied maths under Max Euwe – another Dutch chess legend who had become the fifth chess world champion in 1935.

Jan was expected to follow his parents’ footsteps and study mathematics, and perhaps go on to specialise in that field later in his career. Had it not been for his older brother Ton introducing him to chess at an early age, the sport might not have had a successor to legendary American Bobby Fischer as the strongest challenger to Soviet domination.

Young Jan had learned to play chess at the age of 8 and it did not take him long to exhibit exceptional talent, as is the case with some of the best players of all time. He won a bronze at the 1967 World Junior Championship in Jerusalem at the age of 15, marking his first major success in the sport.

19 year-old Timman had just very convincingly won the Dutch blitz championship 1971 and gets the trophy handed by Max Euwe. pic.twitter.com/WkF7abOBCQ

— !TUUR (Arthur van de Oudeweetering) (@TUUR1) March 9, 2026

Challenging Karpov for the world title

Timman became a Grandmaster in 1974, seven years after his heroics at the World Junior Championship, becoming only the third player from Netherlands to attain the prestigious title. It was also in the same year that he won the first of his nine Dutch championship titles. Into his 20s at this point, Timman was just getting started.

His stature at the global level grew rapidly through the 1970s with Timman either winning or tying for the first place in a number of high-profile events., starting with Hastings in England in 1973-74 where he shared the top spot with three others including the legendary Mikhail Tal.

It was in the 1980s, however, when Timman had hit his peak, rising to No 2 in the world rankings, behind Soviet superstar Anatoly Karpov in 1982 and continuing to win or tie for the first place in numerous prestigious events – including the Tata Steel Chess (then known as Hoogovens Tournament) in Wijk aan Zee in  1981 and 1985.

It was also in this decade when Timman entered the World Championship picture for the first time, qualifying for the Candidates in 1985 after more than a decade of trying.

His dream of playing in the World Championship showdown, however, would be fulfilled for the first and only time in 1993 following Kasparov and British GM Nigel Short’s decision to split from FIDE and setup their own World Championship match. Timman faced Karpov in the 1993 FIDE World Championship, which the latter won by a 12.5-8.5 scoreline.

Timman had also represented Netherlands at the Chess Olympiad 13 times from 1972 to 2004, playing on top board on 11 of those occasions – with the highlight being his gold in 1976 on Board 1.

Leaving behind a rich legacy

What separated Timman from other top players of his generation was his laissez-faire attitude, with the Dutch star not exactly someone associated with a disciplined lifestyle and having quite the relationship with alcohol and drugs early in his career. He had even admitted that attempting to discipline himself had a negative impact on his game, and that staying true to his nature brought the best out of him, which reflected in his performances on the board.

That, however, did not paint the full picture of Jan Timman the chess star. The Dutchman was also known for being quite the fearless and attacking player who employed a wide variety of opening strategies in an era when the top stars preferred to stick to openings they were thoroughly familiar with.

“Unlike many, he was a serious analyst and researcher who loved every aspect of the game, including compositions,” Kasparov wrote in a post on X following Timman’s demise last month, paying tribute to the Dutch icon along with the likes of Judit Polgar and other leading names.

RIP to the great Dutch Grandmaster Jan Timman. He was the leader of the new Western generation after Fischer. Unlike many, he was a serious analyst and researcher who loved every aspect of the game, including compositions. He was at his powerful peak through the 1980s to 1993,… pic.twitter.com/e0wa1uy0cr

— Garry Kasparov (@Kasparov63) February 19, 2026

Timman continued competing actively till the mid-2000s. His association with chess, however, isn’t limited to his achievements as a player.

Timman, after all, would contribute immensely to chess literature, writing as many as 16 books including the 1980 classic “The Art of Chess Analysis”. He had also become the first editor of the popular chess magazine New in Chess in 1984. And after retiring as an active player, Timman devoted much of his time to studying the art of the endgame and researching moves and strategies in this context.

Timman was inducted into the World Chess Hall of Fame in October last year in recognition of his legacy in the sport.

He had married twice and is survived by two children from his first marriage – son Arthur and daughter Dehlia.