Bordmagazin_August_2017

their thing _ BUDAPEST 95
“Talent alone is
never enough”
In Budapest, chess is so ubiquitous it’s even played at
the city’s many thermal baths. Hungarian women’s chess
team member TICIA GARA explains the sport’s appeal
The world’s best female chess player,
Judit Polgár, is from Hungary. When
my father, a cardiologist, treated her
grandfather in the 1990s, he got the idea that
my sister and I could start playing chess. My
sister was seven-and-a-half years old, I was
six at the time.
If women are given the same
opportunities, they are not inferior to
men. The success of more and more women
players like Judit Polgár proves that. But
chess is still not the first thing that comes
to mind when parents think about possible
hobbies for their daughters. This contributes
to far fewer girls learning to play chess
compared to boys.
You have to be born with an extraordinary
talent if you want to be in the world elite.
Most people who start chess at a fairly early
age can become decent grandmasters. But
you have to be able and willing to work hard.
Talent alone is never enough.
You need a killer instinct – your aim is to
destroy your opponent. Chess is a mental
battle. You have to be competitive, want to
win and be the best. You need the ability to
perform to the fullest of your capabilities in
the heat of competition.
In chess, you are the commander of your
pieces. You are responsible for their wellbeing,
you have to find the best squares for
them where they can flourish and be the
most effective.
Being a professional chess player gives me
plenty of opportunity for travel. I love getting
on a plane and leaving everything behind.
Interview
Natalie Klinger
Photo
Tim E White
+
CHESS COUNTRY
The average rating
of Hungary’s top 10
chess players puts
the nation in eighth
place in the world
rankings (with Russia
in first place). There
are almost 30 active
grandmasters in
Hungary and it has
a national chess
training programme.