The Globe and Mail Olya Kaye Published December 10, 2020 Bookmark Please log in to listen to this story. Also available in French and Mandarin. Log In Create Free Account Getting audio file ... This translation has been automatically generated and has not been verified for accuracy. Full Disclaimer Illustration by Drew Shannon In January, 1994, I turned 10 while playing my last round in the National Russian Girls Chess Championship. I was in Yaroslavl, Russia, some 850 kilometres away from my home in St. Petersburg. My mom was unable to come with me and I felt lonely without her. “If you win this game, Olya, you will be in the Top 10 finalists in this tournament,” my temporarily assigned chess coach said. “And if you start taking chess seriously, next year I am confident that you will be in the Top 3.”