Checkers, also known as draughts, is a group of strategy board games for two players which involve diagonal moves of uniform game pieces and mandatory captures by jumping over opponent pieces. Checkers is developed from alquerque. The term "checkers" derives from the checkered board which the game is played on, whereas "draughts" derives from the verb "to draw" or "to move".
Ludmila Yevgenyevna Belousova was a Soviet and Russian pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With her partner and husband Oleg Protopopov, she was a two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion (1965–1968). In 1979, the pair defected to Switzerland and became Swiss citizens in 1995. They continued to skate at ice shows and exhibitions through their seventies.
Oleg Alekseyevich Protopopov is a former Russian pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With his wife Ludmila Belousova he is a two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion (1965–1968). In 1979, the pair defected to Switzerland and became Swiss citizens in 1995. They continued to skate at ice shows and exhibitions through their seventies.
Alexander Moiseyev is a Soviet-born American draughts player. He holds the title of Grandmaster in international draughts, Russian draughts and English draughts. In this latter he was world champion in the 3-move variation from 2003 to 2013, winning five world championships, in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2009 and 2011.
Iser Kuperman, sometimes spelled Koeperman, was a player of international draughts from the USSR. He had been the seven-time world champion, the four-time Panamerican champion, and multiple USSR champion in international and Russian draughts. He was also an International Grandmaster.
Patricia Breen is an Irish draughts player and among the leading women in the game. This is primarily in variants other than International draughts. She became Irish Women's Champion at 12. In 2001 she became the first woman player to represent Britain and Ireland in a Senior International Match against the United States and in 2003 won a silver medal at the English Open Draughts Championship, as runner-up to Fred Buckby.
Larisa Yurievna Selezneva is a Russian former pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With her husband Oleg Makarov, she is the 1984 Olympic bronze medalist, 1985 World silver medalist, 1988 World bronze medalist, and two-time European champion. They were coached by Igor Moskvin.
Oleg Vitalyevich Makarov is a Russian former pair skater who represented the Soviet Union. With his wife Larisa Selezneva, he is the 1984 Olympic bronze medalist, 1985 World silver medalist, 1988 World bronze medalist, and two-time European Champion. They were coached by Igor Moskvin.
Alexander Baljakin is a Dutch draughts player born in the Russian city of Arkhangelsk. He is also a writer of books about draughts.
The Fédération Mondiale du Jeu de Dames is the international body uniting national draughts federations. It was founded in 1947 by four Federations: France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland.
Carl Sylvester "Buster" Smith was an eleven-time "Top Master" in the American Pool Checkers Association Division Championship. He won the Top Master title in 1967, 1970, 1972–76, 1982–83, 1991, and 1992, and Master in 1968 and 1969.
Olga Levina is a retired International draughts player and 4 times Women's World Champion in International draughts. Levina is a Kharkiv University alumnus. Her father, Vadim Levin, is a poet and translator, an author of numerous books for children.
Guntis Valneris is a Latvian draughts player. He was the 1994 World champion in international draughts, a two-time European champion, two-time World champion in fast draughts, three-time Junior World champion (1984–1986), and multiple-time Latvian national champion.
Viktoriya Leontyivna Motrichko is a Ukrainian draughts player, an International Grandmaster since 2005. She was the World champion in International draughts in 2023, World champion in Brazilian draughts in 2007 and the winner of the World Mind Sports Games in Russian checkers in 2008.
Yulia Vladimirovna Makarenkova is a draughts player from Ukraine and International Grand Master (GMI). She specializes in Russian checkers and Brazilian draughts played on a small board but also takes part in competitions in International draughts. Yulia Makarenkova is a three-times World champion and two-times European champion in Russian checkers, two-times national champion of the Soviet Union and multiple times Ukrainian national champion in Russian checkers and International draughts.
Elena Konstantinovna Mikhailovskaya was the first female World champion in international draughts. She won this title five times in a row (1973–1977). Before that she was four-time champion of the Soviet Union in Russian checkers (1969–1972). Later she was coaching and heading the Moscow draughts federation.
The first World Mind Sports Games (WMSG) were held in Beijing, China from October 3 to 18, 2008, about two months after the Olympic Games. They were sponsored and organised by the International Mind Sports Association with the General Administration of Sport of China and the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sport.
The 2012 World Mind Sports Games were held in Lille, France, from 9 to 23 August 2012. The meeting started during the 2012 Summer Olympics and ending shortly before the 2012 Summer Paralympics, both in London. This was the second rendition of the World Mind Sports Games, which was inaugurated in 2008 in Beijing. The mind sport games had about 2000 players from 95 nations—down from 2,763 competitors and 143 countries at the 1st Games. More than half of the gold medals were contested at draughts and Russia, with the strongest draughts squad, won the most gold and most overall medals. China won five gold medals—all five events contested at Xiangqi. Chinese Taipei won four gold medals—four of the five events contested at go.
Vladimir Vigman is a Latvian draughts player in International draughts and Draughts-64. Three-times was second at World Draughts-64 Championships, three-times USSR champion in Russian draughts (1976–1978), draughts trainer and journalist, author of books on draughts. International grandmaster in International, Brazilian and Russian draughts.
Elena Scovitina-Miskova is a Moldavian draughts player in Brazilian and Russian draughts, world champion in 2005, 2006 and 2015 and European champion in 2004 and 2008, Many times champion of Moldova, international grandmaster since 2005.
Moldova 
