What Is With the Sexism in Chess?
How can we make the game safer and fairer for girls and women?
Two weeks ago, the highly anticipated Tata Steel Challengers tournament unfolded in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands. Tata Steel Chess is one of the most prestigious tournaments in the chess world, known for bringing together top chess players.
Among them was International Master Divya Deshmukh. She was one of three women participating in the tournament, finishing 12th with 4.5 points in her debut in the tournament. Unfortunately, her tournament experience was not entirely positive. Upon the tournament’s conclusion, she posted on Instagram, calling out the continuous sexism and judgement she endured.
In her Instagram post, Divya mentioned: “I was quite disappointed to see how everything was discussed about in my interviews (by the audience) except my games, very few people paid attention to it and it is quite a sad thing.”
On top of that, a respectable GM decided to leave his 50 cents on Divya’s statement.
Golubev did not even try to understand Divya’s statement. In fact, he did not understand two things:
- Divya criticized the inappropriate behaviour of discussing someone’s appearance at a chess tournament.
- Any individual has the full right to address inappropriate behaviour, regardless of whether their ELO rating exceeds 2500 or not.
And cases like these are regrettably not uncommon.
Last year, Olympiad chess player, chess coach and author WIM Sabrina Chevannes mentioned her experience of living in fear when being at tournaments.
“It’s the constant fear at tournaments you go to and you cannot relax. You consistently get hit on by men, you are propositioned to go back to their room. You are forced into situations you don’t want to be in.
Deutsche Well has also talked to German female players who have mentioned avoiding certain tournaments due to feeling unsafe.
Are these fair complaints?
Should we listen to them or ignore them?
Currently, there is a significant gender gap in the game. According to the World Chess Federation (FIDE), women make up just 10% of licenced players globally. FIDE lists 1,643 male Grandmasters against only 37 females.
I played chess for over 10 years. I’m from Moldova, a post-Soviet country with about 55 active female chess players now and no GM among them. I had my share of experiences. Unfortunately, there is a reason why there are so few female chess players and I’d like to share my 50 cents.
My chess stories
Why try if I am a girl?
I began playing chess at the age of 7. As a child, I was indifferent to whether my opponent was a boy or a girl; my sole focus was on playing and winning. However, my perspective began to shift around the ages of 10 to 12. I started paying attention to what I was hearing and to what I was being told by older chess players and chess coaches:
- “Boys are usually more aggressive.”
- “You should consider competing in girls-only tournaments; you’ll have better chances.”
- “You play like a girl.”
That was the time when my brain was absorbing information like a sponge, shaping my understanding of the world and my place in it. Here’s what I learned as a young girl:
- “I cannot play aggressive. I can only play safe.”
- “I should play in girls-only tournaments, I have higher chances.”
- “Additional effort spent on practice cannot make a difference, as I am a girl.”
Instead of focusing on learning openings or solving puzzles, I was stuck in my head doubting myself — before tournaments, during tournaments, after tournaments. I was spending more time doubting myself than playing chess. Doubts then lead to defensive playing and then losses.
New evidence might have shed some light on why I had that doubt for so long. A study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology gathered participants from a U.S. Chess Federation mailing list, including 286 parents and mentors of 654 children. 90% of the adults were men, and 81% of the children were boys. They completed an online survey, and the results showed that “parents and mentors thought that female youth players’ highest potential chess ratings were on average lower than male players’, a bias that was exacerbated among parents and mentors who believed that success in chess requires brilliance. In addition, mentors who endorsed (vs. rejected) this belief also reported that female mentees were more likely to drop out of chess due to low ability”.
This is currently the first large-scale evidence of gender bias against young female chess players. Unfortunately, the study had too few females, and therefore we shall take this with a grain of salt.
Playing or vacationing
A few years ago, during a visit to my family, I was approached about participating in the women’s national chess championship. That meant I had to sacrifice my 7-day vacation to play chess for a first prize of a max of 500 Euros at the national level. I told them I’d play if more money was offered as an incentive. The response was: “Well, women play worse than men, so we cannot offer you more.” This kind of logic has persisted for as long as I can remember, and it’s flawed at its core. With such reasoning, one would never attract female players in the first place.
The truth is, while there may be fewer good female players, it’s not solely due to ability. Factors like financial incentives and a supportive environment are crucial for a player’s development, and these are often in low supply for female chess players.
Around the age of 12, I already knew I would not go professional. I did not have either emotional support from coaches or sponsorship from the chess federation. And when you think things can’t get worse, they can.
“Why not be a model?”
No man approaching me, no man insulting me during a tournament became my personal “success”.
I was playing an international tournament in Serbia, back in my youthful and fruitful years. I had just won a game against a GM. Man, I was happy. But then, someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Weird game. Maybe you should consider being a model instead?” I was confused. I had so many questions.
- Why comment on the game like that?
- And me, a model?
It was such an odd and unexpected remark. All I wanted was a simple “Hey, good game!” acknowledgement. As a chess player, validation means a lot, but getting such a comment instead was just inappropriate.
And so, the young girl stopped searching for chess validation and instead looked for silence.
“Hey, stop being a victim!”
I wish I did not have to be one and I wish I did not have to write about it. But we have to be vocal, to develop this world to a better future. And I believe we can. Both men and women can do this together.
How to make the game safer and fairer for girls and women?
I think we can all make this world better and safer. That’s why I want to provide some action points for parents, coaches and other chess players.
- Parents and coaches, support female players emotionally.
When you are just a little girl, your visions are backed by what your role models state. In that case, parents and coaches are role models. If as a young kid, you hear that “you cannot do it because you are a girl”, they will believe it, and that will affect their game and their experience.
- Don’t stare and talk about a girl’s physique.
It’s very uncomfortable to be one of the 10 women with 90 men in a room. There are so many eyes on you that you just want to dig yourself a hole.
- Include girls and women in chess conversations.
If she wants to provide her opinion, don’t interrupt. I avoided analyzing my chess games with male chess players because they wouldn’t let me finish my sentences and provide my input. It would go something like this: “I wanted to play Kg5 and then …” — “Ah, no, that’s bad.” — “Wait, I did not say…” — “Yeah, but that’s bad.”
- Parents and coaches, let girls and women play in mixed tournaments.
With my first coach, I was playing in a lot of mixed tournaments. My first coach wanted me to get used to playing against anyone. I wish I had continued doing that. It makes you more confident playing against men.
Lessons to learn from these stories
- No one wants to be or act like a victim. All a human being wants is to be accepted and respected. If that is not present, growth is not possible.
- One has to be able to voice their concerns without being rotten. Our human society has developed due to sharing stories. We can be better than that.
- Chess was developed to play, not to boost egos. Everyone should be welcome to play without judgement.
Thank you for reading! I am Olga, a former chess player. Follow me here on Medium for more stories on chess and how to make better decisions in life.
