Before The Queen s Gambit There Was Vera Menchik Netflix
By Jeff Somers/Dec. 29, 2020 2:50 pm EDT/Updated: Jan. 5, 2021 4:46 pm EDT
The Queen s Gambit has been a breakout success for Netflix, reintroducing the world to Walter Tevis terrific novel and inspiring a surge of interest in the game of chess. The story of Beth Harmon orphan, alcoholic, and chess genius the series combines a fine sense of 1960s style with an accurate portrayal of just how dramatic the chess world can be. And while the story only skims the challenges faced by female players in the male-dominated sphere of world-class chess, it s easy to see Harmon as a feminist icon who smashes through glass ceilings as easily as she smashes through her endgames.
FIDE expands the World Cups, increases number of players and prize fund
206 players will compete in a revamped FIDE World Cup for a record prize fund of $ 1,890,000. The Women’s World Cup is also expanded to 103 players, with a 50% increase in the prize fund: from $450,000 to $676,000.
The FIDE World Cup is one of our flagship competitions, and in recent editions, it has clearly become one of the most followed events in the chess calendar. In view of this, the International Chess Federation has decided to expand it, increasing both the number of players and the prize fund. These significant improvements will affect both the World Cup and the Women’s World Cup, which will be organized in Russia in the second half of 2021.
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Elena Burmistrova, Deputy Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee/Director General of Gazprom Export, has presented the CFR Chess Museum with a unique art gift for the New Year.
It comes from a limited edition of handmade chess sets titled “Indian”, manufactured at the porcelain enterprise “Delta-X” of Kislovodsk in the 1990s. To design the chessmen, the artist A. Lyubkin resorted to ancient legends and tales’ motives. Pieces of gilt and overglaze painting join the combat on a chessboard of marble and serpentine stone, with a unique house for chess pieces being a rare and distinctive feature of this particular set. The tradition of tucking the pieces away “to rest” in a dedicated “accommodation” instead of a dark wooden box dates back to several centuries ago. This is both a respect for the wise game’s porcelain participants and a practical solution to keep beautiful pieces on the table as a kind of display.
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Image: Netflix
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Queen’s Gambit. “It was fascinating to watch the trailer; a female-centric, chess-based show seemed interesting,” she says, ending up watching all seven episodes at one go. “It was captivating, and since I’ve played chess I could relate to Beth [the protagonist, played by actor Anya Taylor-Joy] and her struggles of trying to fit into a man’s world.”
Chabbra, a law student, stopped playing chess to focus on her studies. “Watching the show made me realise what I’m missing out. It’s such a powerful game, and it has shaped me as a person,” she says. The show s portrayal of chess convinced her to start playing again. “I’ve started playing online matches and eventually wish to resume playing tournaments. There is no game as fascinating as chess; it s an escape, a much-needed one in these times.”
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