Rebel Queen - Susan Polgar

Rebel Queen by Susan Polgar
The Cold War, Misogyny, and the Making of a Grandmaster

A real-life Queens Gambit, this captivating memoir tells the story of one of the most renowned women in chess history, Susan Polgar, who took on a sexist establishment, stood up to an authoritarian empire and rewrote the rules of what women could achieve against the oppressive backdrop of Cold War Eastern Europe

Born to a poor Jewish family in Cold War Budapest, Susan Polgar would emerge as one of the greatest female chess players the world had ever seen. Susan would become the highest rated female chess player on the planet and the first woman to earn the mens Grandmaster title chesss highest designation. Still a teenager, in 1986, she became the first woman to qualify for the mens World Chess Championship cycle. Then, she would make history again, by becoming the first chess player, male or female, to achieve the games triple crown, holding World Championship titles in all three major chess time formats (blitz, rapid, and classical), and still the only one to earn all 6 of the worlds greatest chess crowns (triple crown, world number 1 ranking, Individual and Team Olympiad Gold).

Yet, at every turn, she was pitted against a sexist culture, a hostile Communist government, vicious anti-Semitism, and powerful enemies. She endured sabotage and betrayal, state-sponsored intimidation, and violent assault. And she overcame all of it to break the games long-standing gender barrier and claim her place at the pinnacle of professional chess. After retiring as a player, she defied the odds again, leaving all she had known in Hungary to start a new life as an American citizen, and becoming the only female Division 1 college coach in the country. Over her14-year coaching career, she built two separate college chess dynasties from scratch, and led them to more national titles, world championships, major titles, and Olympiad medals than all other college chess teams combined.

Before her improbable rise, it was taken for granted that women were incapable of excellence in the game of chess. More than question those entrenched beliefs, Susan Polgar disproved them single-handedly.

Susan Polgar is considered one the of the greatest female chess players the world had ever seen. Born to a poor Jewish family in Cold War Budapest, Susan Polgar is the only woman inducted to both the US and World Chess Hall of Fames. At the age of 4, she won the Budapest Championship for girls 11 and under with a perfect 10-0 score. At 15, she was the worlds number 1 ranked woman. She was the first female in history to earn the Mens Grandmaster title. She won 4 World Championships, 12 Olympiad medals (5 Gold), and she is the only player in history to earn all 6 of the worlds most prestigious chess crowns. In 2024, she was awarded the best female Chess Trainer in history.

ISBN: 9781538757291, Hardback, 352 pages, Grand Central Publishing