Judit Polgár

Judit Polgár is the strongest female chess player in history and the only woman to have consistently competed on equal terms with the world’s best men, reaching a world ranking of No. 8. A global ambassador for chess in education, she is the founder of the Judit Polgar’s Global Chess Festival, a TED speaker, and the author of a widely acclaimed three-volume autobiography that blends world-class chess mastery with personal storytelling. She created the Judit Polgar Method, helping children develop key skills through chess.

Judit Polgár began playing chess at the age of five. In 1989, at just twelve years old, she became the No.1–ranked woman in the world; a position she held for the next 26 years. By fourteen, she had already won five gold medals - two team and three individual - at the Women’s Chess Olympiads. After 1990, she competed exclusively in open events, facing the strongest male players in the world.

In 1991, at 15 years and 4 months, she became an international grandmaster, breaking Bobby Fischer’s age record. She competed for the men’s World Championship title in 2005. This year, she achieved a historic milestone by climbing to No. 8 in the absolute world ranking, becoming the first and still only woman ever to surpass 2700 in ratings and enter the world’s top 10. Throughout her career, she defeated eleven men’s world champions, including Carlsen, Kasparov, Anand, Karpov, and Spassky.

In 2012, Judit Polgár established the Judit Polgar Chess Foundation, which supports her mission of promoting chess in education and society. Since she retired from competitive chess in 2014, she has led the foundation, organizing the annual Judit Polgar’s Global Chess Festival and the international Educational Chess Summit, promoting chess worldwide, writing books, and advancing educational innovation. She also works as a seminar lecturer, TED speaker, and expert commentator at major international chess events.