Edgard Colle (1897-1932) was a Belgian chess master, who pioneered the chess opening termed the Colle System. The Colle System, 1. d4 d5, 2. Nf3 Nf6, 3. e3, a form of reversed Slav opening, achieved the greatest use during the era from the late 1920s and 1930s. Colle himself played the opening beginning in 1925 and continuing until his death, scoring excellent results in major international tournaments (first in Amsterdam in 1926, ahead of Tartakower and future world champion Euwe; first in the tournament at Merano in 1926 ahead of Canal; and first in the tournament in Scarborough in 1930 (ahead of Maroczy and Rubinstein). Colle scored a number of notable successes with his System, including a number of games some analysts have termed "brilliancies" (Colle - O´Hanlon, Nice 1930, featuring one of the best known example of a Greek gift sacrifice, is especially famous).
Colle"s playing career was hampered by ill health. The Colle System has become more frequently played in amateur ranks than in current tournament play than was the case in Colle"s day. The opening remained popular among amateur players after Colle"s era through the efforts of Belgian/American grandmaster George Koltanowski. As of 2004, The Colle System has been used in recent decades by grandmasters Pia Cramling and Artur Yusupov, as well as numerous amateur players.
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