The Match Of The Century
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Listing Series
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Openings by the_weight_of_small_things
Fandoms: Heated Rivalry (TV), Game Changers Series - Rachel Reid, Game Changers | Heated Rivalry - All Media Types
23 Aug 2026
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Summary
The World Chess Championship. Reykjavík, 1972.
Shane Hollander has spent most of his life preparing for the chance to become the first American in decades to break the Soviet Union’s hold over world chess. Standing between him and the title is Ilya Rozanov, reigning world champion, the opponent Shane has been studying for eighteen months.
Their match in Reykjavík begins with cameras, protests, accusations and enough Cold War paranoia to make even sitting down at the same chessboard complicated.
As the championship continues, professional fascination becomes something much harder to explain, and Shane discovers there are some things he is considerably worse at understanding than chess.
History recorded the chess. This is the love story it left out.
Series
- Part 1 of The Match Of The Century
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Middlegame by the_weight_of_small_things
Fandoms: Heated Rivalry (TV), Game Changers Series - Rachel Reid, Game Changers | Heated Rivalry - All Media Types
04 Sep 2026
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Summary
The World Chess Championship. Reykjavík, 1972.
With the World Chess Championship entering its next phase, Shane Hollander should be focused on taking the title from Ilya Rozanov.
Instead, the two men are carrying on a secret affair under the eyes of the press, their delegations, and a growing number of people who have started to notice just how much time they spend watching one another when there is no chessboard between them.
For Shane, being caught with the Soviet champion could end his career and leave him branded a traitor. For Ilya, the consequences are less certain and far more frightening. As suspicion grows and the match begins to run out of games, they are forced to decide how much they are willing to risk for something neither of them expected to find in Reykjavík.
There are many ways to lose a match. In Reykjavík, there are far more ways to lose each other.
Series
- Part 2 of The Match Of The Century