Judit Polgar

“But in 2002 I had a miscarriage, at 13 weeks. And funnily enough after that I had my best-ever tournament result, in January 2003.”

“From the moment of my birth on 23 July 1976, I became involved f in an educational research project. Even before I came into the world, my parents had already decided: I would be a chess champion.”

“I started when I was five, and grew up playing against adults and against men most of the time.”

“I do hope in Ireland children in schools can experience the richness of chess and it's positive effects.”

“Of course I got angry when I lost and maybe would cry in my hotel room afterwards. But I would never show it. I didn't want the men's pity. I didn't want to share my pain with them.”

“When the Ladies Chess Club was founded in London in 1895 and the first international women-only competition took place two years later, most clubs and competitions didn't accept women at all.”

“I started playing chess in the Eighties, but it is only recently that people have begun to appreciate the importance of physical exercise for chess players. You really need to be in good condition to be able to sit for four to six hours and still maintain your concentration.”

“Chess can open up a kid's brain, and develop it in a playful creative way. They can learn playfully about creative, strategic, and logical thinking, and quick problem-solving.”

“But at least if you are with your kid in a playground, be there mentally as well as physically, even for 20 minutes. Focus means everything to a child.”

“My life story is very special. I was raised with a special family as both my parents are teachers. They decided before I was born that I was going to be a chess champion.”

“My father believed that the higher you put your goal, the higher you reach. That was the main reason me and my sisters were playing mostly against male competitors.”

“Competitions last about 10 days or two weeks. I was homeschooled, so in this way I could train on a daily basis for many hours. And then I was traveling all over the world.”

“I believe that for the audience the best way to give the commentating is to avoid going into the deep, deep details.”

“I had a gold medal in olympics at 12. At 14 or 15 I had my career set before me. Because I started so early, I had this daily training. It developed a focus. It became so natural that it was like a native language for me to play chess. That's why I didn't feel pressure.”

“Every single person in the profession has an engine as a helper now. The engines contain six or seven million games, searchable by opening move, player, country, time control. That makes it possible to really research your opponent.”

“You see, in chess we have styles - like in any other field. There are also fashions in the kinds of systems that people play. So I'm trying to know my opponent as much as possible.”