Camera in Russian Chess Girls' 'Locker Room'! (More Photos' Link Updated)

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

That's the Russian team for the Russia vs China
special chess match beginning on July 1 in
St Petersburg. Can you name all of them - the chess girls and their head coach?

The Russian men's and women's chess teams are all set for the special Russia versus China chess match from July 1-9, 2012 in St Petersburg, Russia.

This is a traditional chess team match between the two countries that has been taking place from 2001 in every year of the Chess Olympiad. The 2012 team chess match will be a practice friendly between both the men's and women's chess teams of both the countries before the Istanbul Chess Olympiad.

Each team will consist of six people – 5 players and 1 captain.

The tournament format is each plays each (Scheveningen), total 5 rounds of classical chess from the 2nd to 6th of July, additional two rounds of rapid chess will be played on the 7th and 8th.

Men's chess teams

Russia
Evgeny Tomashevsky (2738)
Dmitry Jakovenko (2736)
Ian Nepomniachtchi (2716)
Nikita Vitiugov (2703)
Maxim Matlakov (2668)

China
Wang Hao (2738)
Li Chao B (2703)
Wang Yue (2690)
Ding Liren (2679)
Yu Yangui (2626)

Women's chess teams

Russia
Valentina Gunina (2530)
Alexandra Kosteniuk (2457)
Natalia Pogonina (2447)
Olga Girya (2414)
Baira Kovanova (2391)

China
Zhao Xue (2549)
Ju Wenjun (2529)
Shen Yang (2419)
Huang Qian (2417)
Ding Yixin (2353)



Lots of more photos of the Russian women's team having fun in the beautiful sunshine of Peterhof park now at www.chessqueen.com. 


From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com

Why chess cannot be played against a friend!

Chess news and chess trivia blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2010

WGM Baira Kovanova

Hello Everyone,

Yes, does that surprise you - Chess cannot be played against a friend! Actually, it's very tough when you end up facing your friend as an opponent in a tournament - that too the Women's World Chess Championship!

Ask Baira Kovanova. She might be the talk of the first round after knocking out Russian Superfinal runners-up (who tied for first) Natalia Pogonina but Kovanova is finding it hard to have beaten her friend.

The official website of the tournament carries an interview with Baira Kovanova.

"Natalia is a very good friend of mine and it was

very difficult to play against her"

• Anastasia Karlovich- You promoted to the second round winning against Natalia Pogonina in the first round. What do you feel about that result?

Baira Kovanova- I was really upset with the pairings. Natalia is a very good friend of mine and it was very difficult to play against her. She was even helping me and my father with tickets to Hatay. Organizers were contacting Natalia about my accommodation. When I played in the final of Russian cup she was helping me with preparation because at that moment I could not take a computer with me.
So I was really shocked when I knew we have to play against each other. It was very unpleasant but we had no choice.

• A.K- The impression was that you won the match very easily…

B.K- Well the first game was very nervous. Natalia didn’t play well in the opening, then we made some mistakes and everything was decided under the time trouble. Natalia is tired after Russian super final, it’s obvious. The second game I won very quickly.

• A.K- Is it a result of the serious preparation?

B.K- The preparation finished after several moves. I didn`t prepare with a coach to the first game but before the second one I started to worry about the result and even asked GM Sanan Siugirov to help me with preparation. We were checking variations till 3 a.m. I was expecting Spanish Defense but Natalia Pogonina didn`t start with 1…e5. The second game was very impressive.

• A.K- When did you feel you would win that game and the match?

B.K- I think Natalia had to accept the piece sacrifice. After Kh8 the game is lost and it was not very difficult to calculate following variations.

• A.K- Have you played with your next opponent Ju Wenjun before? How do you feel before the match?

B.K- I had met her at the board before – one year ago we made a draw in Grand Prix Psychologically it will be much easier to play tomorrow because I don’t have to play against my friend.

Find a nice review of the Kovanova-Pogonina games at www.chessbase.com.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's
www.chessblog.com
Also see her personal blog at
www.chessqueen.com

Candid chess chat and kisses from pretty champ Pogonina

Chess News and Chess Trivia Blog (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2010

Natalia Pogonina

Find more great photos of this chess star here.

Hello Everyone,

Before we write anything about this Russian super-strong and pretty chess player let us clarify to all fans that she is married. Sorry. You're too late.

And, now you can go on and read her interview.

WGM Natalia Andreevna Pogonina, 25 years old, a resident of Saratov in Russia was on Board 1 for Russia 2 at the recent Chess Olympiad in Khanty Mansisyk. A law student, she knows her mind and can speak well on any subject.

You will love reading this nice interview she gave to Radio Xadrez in Portuguese. You can read it in English at Chessbase.

Q. Radio Xadrez: – First of all, we’d like to know: have you always played chess exclusively or are you interested in any other sports? Looking through the pretty pictures on your website, we have a feeling that you could be a beautiful ice skater or an Olympic gymnast in Russia. Has it always been only chess?

Natalia Pogonina: I am an avid sports fan and enjoy watching almost all types of sport broadcasts. Also love playing football, basketball, volleyball, skating and dancing.

Q. Radio Xadrez: – We’ve always heard in America that millions of children play chess in Russia. That leads us to think of babies who are born holding chess pieces, chess clocks and have autographs of Mikhail Tal or Alexander Alekhine on their onesies. Have you played since you were a little girl or did it take a while for you to find out about the game?

Natalia Pogonina: As most grandmasters, I have learnt how to play chess at a relatively early age – at five. Since I was 12 (after winning the Russian Championship) for the first time I started considering myself a chess semi-pro, and decided to become a chess professional a few years later.

She also talks about how though being a chess mom she won't pressurize her son into taking up chess. Sensible that.

Go on read the full interview. Enjoy.

From Alexandra Kosteniuk's

www.chessblog.com

Also see her personal chess blog at

www.chessqueen.com

Pogonina just married!

Natalia Pogonina wrote to me to announce she got married on June 5, 2009 with Petr Zhdanov. I congratulate both of them and wish them everlasting love and happiness!

They created a beautiful photo album and invite you to visit it at this address.

STAR Interview: Natalia POGONINA

New www.chessblog.com Series: Women Star Interviews!

I admire many women chess players. Some of them are very serious, some are funny, some are simply exceptional. In this regular series of my blog I will introduce you to exceptional women who love to play chess. They are all successful women for whom a game of chess means something special.

The first chess star that I have the pleasure to introduce to you in more detail is Natalia Pogonina from Russia. Natalia is currently rated no 3 in Russia and no 14 in the world. She just lanched her new web-site - www.pogonina.com and in her busy schedule had time to answer my questions:

1. What is your place and date of birth?

I was born on March 9, 1985, in Vladivostok, Russia.

2. How did you start playing chess?

My grandfather taught me how to play chess when I was about 5-6 years old.

3. What are your main achievements in chess?

Adult chess: Bronze medal at the European Women Chess Championship (2009) and North Urals Cup (2007), Winner of the Moscow Open (2009), Gold Medal at the the First International Mind Sports Games (2008), Rudenko Memorial (2007), Bykova Memorial (2006)

Junior chess: Three-times European champion (U16, twice U18), Bronze medal at the World Championship (U18)

4. What is your peak rating?

2501 as of April 2009

5. Do you consider yourself a professional chess player?

Yes, chess is my primary occupation.

6. How often do you study chess? How many hours a day?

I am a very active tournament player, so there is not much time left for studies. About 4 hours during free days, a bit more during training sessions.

7. Do you have a chess trainer or you study chess by yourself?

My chess coach is IM Pavel Lobach, plus two seconds GM Vladimir Georgiev and IM Vladislav Akselrod.

8. What do you study most: openings, middle game or endgames?
I pay attention to all stages of the game. In general, it's impossible to gain an understanding of an opening without analyzing the emerging middlegame positions.

9. Do you prefer to play chess with men or with women?
It's equally pleasant.

10. When did you feel happiest about being a chess player? Why?

It's hard to pick one moment, there are so many of them. The European Chess Championship U16 was probably the most memorable since then I became European Champion for the first time in my life.

11. If you had not become a chess player what career would you have chosen?

I would probably have been a sportsman since I love all kinds of sports.

12. How many brothers and sisters are there in your family?

Unfortunately, I don't have any brothers or sisters.

13. What's your home?

I live at Saratov, but don't spend too much time there since I'm constantly traveling from one tournament to another.

14. What is your favorite chess book?

I like many chess books, so it's hard to name just one. Among the ones that I've recently read I liked Sergei Rublevsky's selection of his best games.

15. What is your favorite non-chess book?

I love reading, my favorite writer is Antoine de Saint Exupéry.

16. Whom do you consider the best chess player in history?

Once again, it's so hard to name the greatest. Let me try. Kasparov.

17. What is the best game you have ever played?
I'm not sure that the notion "best game" exists at all. Each game is remarkable and instructive in one way or the other.

18. What do you like doing besides playing chess?

I like taking pictures, traveling, singing and lots of other activities.

19. Do you believe in the future of women's chess?
I strongly believe that women's chess is going to progress since women are very attractive and interesting.

20. What is the best chess country in the world?

Russia.

21. What is the best organized women's tournament you took part in?

Annual North Urals Cup, I guess.

22. What is your dream in chess?

It's a secret. Dreams tend not to come true when revealed to everyone.

23. What is your favorite chess piece?

I love all of them.

24. What is your favorite place in the world?

Kamchatka, since I spent my childhood there.

25. What is your favorite kind of food?

Okroshka. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okroshka for details.

26. How do you manage to combine playing chess with studying in the University?
Luckily enough, the University's authorities support me a lot.

27. What are your future plans for this year?
I'm in such a crazy period right now that it's very hard to make plans, but I will decide on them soon.

28. What do you think we should do in order to make women's chess more attractive to the media?
Chess players should be more active. Promote chess and themselves on the Internet, participate in advertisements. Play exciting exhibition matches. It's vital not to confine yourself to the game only. Apart from playing in tournaments and studying one should remember about the interests of chess fans and do his/her best to make chess more popular.

Interview made by Alexandra Kosteniuk

Women's World Champion

www.chessblog.com