The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams representing nations of the world compete. FIDE organises the tournament and selects the host nation. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, FIDE held an Online Chess Olympiad in 2020 and 2021, with a rapid time control that affected players' online ratings.
Sir George Alan Thomas, 7th Baronet was a British badminton, tennis and chess player. He was twice British chess champion and a 21-time All-England badminton champion. He also reached the quarterfinals of the singles and the semifinals of the men's tennis doubles at Wimbledon in 1911. Badminton's world men's team championships cup, equivalent to tennis' Davis Cup, is named Thomas Cup after him. Thomas lived most of his life in London and Godalming. He never married, so the hereditary Thomas baronetcy ended on his death.
Vera Francevna Mencikova, was a Russian-born Czechoslovak chess player who primarily resided in England. She was the first Women's World Chess Champion from 1927 to 1944 and the longest-reigning women's champion in history. Her eight world championship wins are the most of all time, and only Emanuel Lasker had a longer reign as world champion.
Mona May Karff was an American chess player. She dominated U.S. women's chess in the 1940s and early 1950s: she held seven U.S. Women's Chess Champion titles and four consecutive U.S. Open titles.
Susanna "Sonja" Graf was a German and American chess player. She was a women's world championship runner-up and a two-time U.S. women's champion.
Elisaveta Ivanovna Bykova was a Soviet chess player and twice Women's World Chess Champion, from 1953 until 1956, and again from 1958 to 1962. She was awarded the titles of Woman International Master in 1950, International Master in 1953, and Woman Grandmaster in 1976.
The Women's World Chess Championship (WWCC) is played to determine the world champion in women's chess. Like the World Chess Championship, it is administered by FIDE.
Paulette Schwartzmann was a French-Argentine chess player.
Regina Gerlecka was a Polish chess player.
Róża Maria Herman was a Polish chess player. She was awarded the title International Woman Master by FIDE in 1950.
The U.S. Women's Open Championship is an open chess tournament that has been held irregularly. From 1934 through at least 1966 it was held in conjunction with the annual U.S. Open Chess Championship. After some years of inactivity, the event was reinstituted in 2009.
The Interregnum of World Chess Champions was the period between March 24, 1946 and May 17, 1948.
Clarice Benini was an Italian chess player. She was awarded the title International Woman Master by FIDE in 1950.
Catharina (Toos) Roodzant was a Dutch female chess master.
The below is a list of events in chess in 1939.
The first Women's World Chess Championship took place during the 1st Chess Olympiad, held from 18 to 30 July 1927 in London. It was organized by FIDE and was played as a full round-robin tournament. Vera Menchik won the championship, conceding only half a point in her 11 games. The final results were as follows:
After their 1934 match, reigning Women's World Chess Champion Vera Menchik and Sonja Graf played a second championship match in Semmering in 1937.
The 7th Women's World Chess Championship took place during the 1939 Olympiad in Buenos Aires. The final results were as follows:
While the World Chess Championship title, contested officially since 1886 and unofficially long before that, is in theory open to all players, it was for many years contested solely by men. In 1927, FIDE therefore established a Women's World Chess Championship exclusively for female players. Like the "open" title, the format for the women's championship has undergone several changes since then, the most important of which are described here.
This article is about the participation of women in chess and its culture.
Vera Menchik (TCH)
Sonja Graf (GER)
