Controversial former world chess champion Bobby Fischer has died aged 64.

Bobby Fischer was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1943. In 1956 he became the youngest ever Junior Chess Champion in North America.

At the age of 15 he became a chess grandmaster.

In 1970, Fischer took part in a competition between the Soviet team and the rest of the world. Fisher beat the former world champion, Soviet Tigran Petrosian.

Fischer's place in history was sealed by his remarkable defeat of world champion Boris Spassky in the "chess match of the century" in 1972.

After many disputes, the match took place in Reykjav�k, Iceland, and saw Fischer become the 11th World Chess Champion.

Twenty years later, in 1992, Fischer controversially played Spassky in Yugoslavia in defiance of international sanctions.

Fischer won the game and the tournament with a score of 10 games to five, winning $3.35m.

The reclusive player - who had renounced his US citizenship - lived undetected in Japan for a number of years before moving to Iceland.

Mr Fischer died in Iceland on Thursday, his spokesman Gardar Sverrisson said.