Garry Kasparov came to international fame as the youngest world chess champion in history in 1985 at the age of 22, taking the title from the Kremlin favorite. Mr. Kasparov’s outspoken nature did not endear him to the Soviet authorities, giving him an early taste of opposition politics. From 1989-91 he played a prominent role in the democratic opposition to the Soviet system. After twenty years as the world’s top-ranked player, Mr. Kasparov retired from chess in 2005 to take up the struggle for Russian democracy full time. His organization, the United Civil Front, is a member of the Solidarity opposition alliance that staged “Marches of Dissent” across Russia to protest President Putin’s authoritarian crackdown on democracy and civil rights. The ongoing efforts of Kasparov and his allies are directly connected to the popular eruption of anti-Putin protests that took place after the corrupt parliamentary elections at the end of 2011 and the similarly fraudulent presidential election of March 2012. Kasparov continues to be a potent voice for democracy and civil rights in Russia and around the world.