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Polgar JuditHungarian chess player, grandmaster.
Date of Birth: 23.07.1976
Country:  Hungary |
Content:
Biography of Judit Polgár
Judit Polgár, a Hungarian chess player, was born in Budapest into a Jewish family. She, along with her sisters Zsuzsa and Sofia, received homeschooling. Their mother, Klara Polgár (born Altbeger, 1946), an educator from the village of Vilok (now in the Zakarpattia region of Ukraine), provided their education after graduating from the University of Uzhhorod. Their father, László Polgár, a psychologist and educator, taught them chess from an early age. While her older sisters also became strong chess players (Zsuzsa Polgár being an International Grandmaster in the US and World Champion from 1996-1999, and Sofia Polgár (Kosashvili) being an International Master in Israel), Judit Polgár achieved the greatest success.
Early Achievements
Judit Polgár earned her title of International Grandmaster at the age of 15 years, 4 months, and 28 days. She became the youngest person to achieve this feat, surpassing Robert Fischer's record by one month. However, her record was broken in 2002 by Indian chess player Humpy Koneru. In contrast to her sisters, Judit Polgár played predominantly in male tournaments and became a successor to Vera Menchik. No other woman had achieved such progress in playing against men before her. Since the early 1990s, she has been competing with the world's leading grandmasters.
Notable Achievements
Judit Polgár became the champion of Hungary in 1991 and won tournaments in Hastings (1992), Madrid (1994), Hoogovens (1998, 2001, and 2003), and Jakarta (2000). At the Wijk aan Zee tournament in 2003, she finished second, only behind Viswanathan Anand. Judit Polgár defeated Anatoly Karpov in rapid chess in 1993 and Gary Kasparov in 2002. She has also won against Viswanathan Anand four times and Magnus Carlsen once.
Recognition and Retirement
Grandmaster Alexei Shirov, who played against Judit Polgár multiple times, described her as a "killer" who can sense checkmate in only twenty moves. Since 1989, she has been leading the rating list of female chess players. In July and October 2005, she reached her peak rating of 2735, both times securing the eighth position in the world among male players. This is the highest chess rating among women, and Judit Polgár remains the only female chess player to achieve a super grandmaster rating.
Judit Polgár was honored with the Caissa award by FIDE in 2012, recognizing her as the best female chess player of the year. The chess Oscar "Caissa," created by the master jewelers of the Classic Jewelry House "Lobortas," was presented to her on October 2, 2013, during the 84th FIDE Congress in Tallinn.
Judit is bilingual, speaking Hungarian as well as Russian and Esperanto with her parents and sisters. She is married and has two children, Oliver and Hanna. After the 41st Chess Olympiad in Norway in 2014, Judit announced her retirement. On December 10, 2018, she became an honorary vice president of the International Chess Federation (FIDE).
