Igor Zakharovich Bondarevsky, born on 12 May 1913 in Samsonov near Rostov-on-Don, died on 14 June 1979 in Pyatigorsk. After winning a strong tournament in Leningrad in 1936, Bondarevsky was invited to the USSR Championship for the first time in 1937, where he finished in joint 10th-13th place. In the 1939 USSR Championship he finished sixth. In 1940 he shared 1st place with Andor Lilienthal. Sharing 6th-9th place in the Saltsöbaden Interzonal Tournament, he qualified for the 1950 Candidates Tournament in Budapest, but was unable to participate due to illness. In 1950 the FIDE awarded him the grandmaster title. At the beginning of the 1950s Bonsarevsky largely withdrew from tournament chess and played correspondence chess tournaments instead. At the 3rd Correspondence Chess Olympiad he won the gold medal with the USSR team. In the 1960s Bondarevsky was coach and second to Boris Spassky, guiding him to the world title. Bondarevsky was also the author of chess books and an international arbiter from 1954.
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