In a provocative statement that shocked the chess world, Garry Kasparov, the former World Chess Champion, once dismissed Judit Polgár, the Hungarian chess prodigy, by calling her “a circus puppet.”
He even went as far as suggesting that women should stay at home and focus on raising children, a comment that seemed to undermine Polgár’s groundbreaking career.
Despite her remarkable victories over some of the game's greatest players, she was still not widely recognised as a professional player by many in the chess establishment.
But in 2002, during a World Rapid Chess Championship, Polgár’s moment of reckoning arrived.
The tournament featured games with a 25-minute time limit, and in a historic match, Polgár triumphed over Kasparov—the first woman ever to defeat the world’s number one player.
The outcome forced Kasparov to confront his previous remarks.
He issued a public apology, acknowledging his mistake: “I was wrong about women playing chess. I gave an opinion a long time ago that I no longer believe.”
It was only after Polgár’s stunning victory that Kasparov seemed to truly grasp the scope of her talent—and perhaps more importantly, the evolving role of women in the game of chess.
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