Ukraine’s chess Cinderella

The Kharkiv Chess Federation is rejoicing. A Kharkiv resident has become Women’s World Champion in Chess, over the entire history of the world chess competitions. Until now our female chess players have never reached the final.

For many professional chess players the victory of Anna Ushenina in the world championship in Khanty-Mansiysk came as a total surprise, but not for her coach Hennadii Kruhovy. “She has been playing chess since the age of seven, under the guidance of her mother. When she was playing for four years, I knew she would become the world’s champion. Many were mocking at me, they thought it was incredible. But I saw in her the best qualities any chess player needs, like the desire to be the best, the number one. And she is just like that, the most beautiful and intelligent. This is her strength of will. She quit everything to be able to play and she won. Now everyone is congratulating us, and I say: ‘I am thankful to you for impeding Ania, for not believing in her, for fostering this kind of character in her. She became a champion in spite of everyone who was standing in her way.’” At the same time the coach says that Ania’s family and friends were sure that she would become a prize winner of the championship at the least. However, the title of the queen of chess has exceeded even the boldest dreams.

Mr. Kruhovy says that Ania’s mother put much strength and health in her daughter’s victory. Ania had a hard life, living in a one-room apartment with her grandmother, bound to bed, and her disabled mother. The coach hopes that from now on everything will change in the life of the 27-year-old chess player. The 60,000-dollar cash prize will be a great help for the new queen of the world chess.

Ania’s friends and colleagues assert, “Ania has shown firm character before, but she has revealed herself to the full only now.” Among her distinguishable features they name her seriousness and ability to focus, as well as man’s playing style. “Chatting and joking is not about Ania,” her friends say.

According to the international Grand Master Oleksandr Kovchan, Anna Ushenina proved the status of Kharkiv as a chess capital with a good school and virtuoso masters. “Ania has shown that we have very strong chess players. This will help to draw the attention of the authorities and functionaries to this kind of sport. Probably, Ania in her new status will get involved in promotion of chess. But that will depend on her only.” He was laconic about the reasons for the girl’s victory: “She was in a good shape, she showed her style to the fullest; she did not make mistakes, showed strong nerves, strong will and character. The selection was very rough, and the smallest mistake was equal to loss.” Ukraine’s five-time champion considers Ania’s victory especially outstanding, because the world championship gathered the world’s strongest female chess players and Ania beat everyone. Each game she won led her to a stronger rival. Especially symbolic was that in the final Ania won over Antoaneta Stefanova in a rapid tie-break. Stefanova was the world’s strongest namely in this kind of game, a current champion. Ania is Ukraine’s champion in rapid chess, which became a step to her world triumph.