Life
Born in Yekaterinoslav (Ukraine, then Russian Empire), Soultanbéieff learned to play chess rather late, but he improved fast. In 1914 he won the city championship. In World War I, he fought in the Russian army. In 1918 he won the city championship again. After the Bolshevik Revolution, in 1920, he moved to Gallipoli with the army of Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel. At the end of 1921 he sought asylum in Belgium. After a short stay in Brussels he moved to Liege, where he would stay for the rest of his life.
In 1923 he participated for the first time in the Belgian Chess Championship, a championship which he would win 5 times; in 1932 (jointly with Boruch Israel Dyner), 1934, 1943, 1957, and 1961. In 1923 he finished 4th, but impressed with his play. He had to combine chess with his work, which resulted in a low number of international tournaments and sometimes bad playing conditions. Nevertheless he participated in some important tournaments like Hastings International Chess Congress and the Hoogovens tournament.
Soultanbéieff was made a national master in 1931 and International Arbiter in 1964.
Read more about this topic: Victor Soultanbeieff
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