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Susan Polgar

Susan Polgar of Hungary was women's world chess champion from 1996 to 1999. At 15 she already shared first place among the world's women on FIDE's list, and in 1991 she became the third woman to receive the grandmaster title.

Susan Polgar
Photo: Stefan64, 2012. CC BY-SA 3.0. Cropped and toned.
  • BornApril 19, 1969, Budapest
  • CountryHungary
  • Women's world champion1996–1999
  • In the line of women's championsNo. 8 of 17
  • Highest rating2577 (January 2005)
    FIDE's official lists (from July 1971)

The road to the title

Polgar was born in Budapest in 1969. As a teenager she played almost only in tournaments against men. On FIDE's list of July 1984, when she was 15, she shared first place among the world's women with Pia Cramling of Sweden. In January 1991 she became the third woman to receive the grandmaster title, after Nona Gaprindashvili and Maia Chiburdanidze.

Her younger sister Judit Polgár also became one of the best players in the world. You can see her in one of the famous games here, against Garry Kasparov in 2002.

The title matches

Polgar's points come first, then wins (+), losses (−) and draws (=) in the classical games. A tiebreak at faster time controls is given separately.
YearAgainstResultWhere
1996Xie Jun8½–4½ (+6 −2 =5)
Won the title		Jaén, Spain

World champion

From 1992 Polgar also played in the women's championship cycle. In 1996 she challenged the champion, Xie Jun, in Jaén, Spain. She lost the first game but then won four of the next seven, and the match ended 8½–4½.

The title that slipped away

Polgar's title defense against Xie Jun was to be played in China, but she and FIDE never agreed on the conditions. In 1999 FIDE declared that she had forfeited the title, and Xie Jun played for it against Alisa Galliamova. Polgar has not played in the women's championship since. Later she became a coach of university teams in the United States, which under her leadership won several national championships.

Sources

  • Wikipedia: Susan Polgar
  • Chess.com: Susan Polgar
  • OlimpBase: the 1996 title match and FIDE's lists of 1984
  • Mark Weeks: the women's championship 1996
  • FIDE: Polgar's profile and rating history

The facts on this page come from the sources above, checked against each other. Where the sources disagree, only what they agree on is given. The match results are also checked game by game.

Updated November 8, 2026