South Carolina Chess Master Aleksander Wojtkiewicz Dead

Aleksander Wojtkiewicz, 43, an internationally ranked chess player and a native of Latvia, died of an intestinal hemorrhage July 14 in Baltimore.

Aleksander Wojtkiewicz (January 15, 1963, Riga - July 14, 2006, Baltimore) was an International Grandmaster of chess. He was Polish by nationality but was born in Latvia, USSR; his last name was originally spelled Vojtkevic. He was jailed by the Soviets for two years because he refused to serve in the Soviet Army. When Poland regained independence he moved from Riga to Warsaw where he won two Polish Chess Championships.

He later resided in the United States. He was one of the most active players in the world, constantly flying around the world playing in chess tournaments. Several times he won the annual $10,000 first prize for Grand Prix chess tournaments in the United States.

Wojtkiewicz played in the FIDE World Chess Championship 2004. In his final months, he tied for first at the 2006 World Open in Philadelphia and won the 2006 National Open in Las Vegas. He died on 14 July 2006 of a perforated intestine and massive bleeding.

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