Echesspedia

 Capital of Cuba where in 1885 one of the first chess club of America was opened. The Club staged the world championship matches Steinitz-Chigorin in 1889 and 1892 as well the 1921 Lasker-Capablanca title match.
The 17th Chess Olympiad was held in Havana in 1966 . Premier Castro was on the Organizing Committee and showed up for many of the rounds. He played games against Tigran Petrosian and Bobby Fischer among others. The American chess team was the first American cultural team to visit Cuba since Fidel Castro took over in 1958. USSR took first place followed by the USA. At the end of the Olympiad, a simultaneous exhibition of 6,480 boards was given.
Since 1962 the city is the venue of the Capablanca Memorial.

The winners of the main international tournaments of Havana were (see also Capablanca Memorial): 1952 Reshevsky, 1963 (Pan American) Jimenez, 1967 Hort, 1970 (Pan American) Jimenez, 1978 Garcia Martinez, 1982 Ortega, 1982 Garcia Gonzales,1983 Hernandez, 1985 Gufeld, 1986 Garcia Guillermo, 1987 Nikolic.