His Armenian father, Arkady Gevorgovich Aghaian, was a deputy commander of a warship; his mother, Anna Fyodorovna Zaitseva, was a worker at the Red Banner Textile Factory.
[1] In 1969, Zaitsev attained the title of Moscow Champion by defeating Yakov Estrin using the Giuoco Piano opening.
Zaitsev played in six USSR Chess Championships (1962, 1967, 1968–69, 1969, 1970, 1991), his best finish being joint 1st (coming 2nd after a play-off) in 1968–69.
[2] The move fianchettoes the light-squared bishop, putting pressure on White's pawn on e4.
[3][4] Karpov popularized Zaitsev's line at the top level, playing it with success for many years.