LaviChess

Judit Polgár vs. Kasparov

In a rapid game in Moscow, Judit Polgár beats world number one Garry Kasparov for the first time, after some twenty games between them.

  • WhiteJudit Polgár
  • BlackGarry Kasparov
  • WhereMoscow
  • WhenSeptember 9, 2002
  • EventRussia vs. the Rest of the World, round 5 (rapid)
  • Result1–0, White won
  • OpeningRuy Lopez, Berlin Defense (C67)
  • Length42 moves

In September 2002, Russia and the Rest of the World met in a team match in Moscow, billed as the Match of the New Century. The teams played with ten players at a time in the Scheveningen system, where each player meets the members of the other team in turn, playing rapid chess with 25 minutes per player and a ten-second increment per move.

Russia fielded four world champions: Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Vladimir Kramnik and Alexander Khalifman. Judit Polgár played for the Rest of the World. Her game against Kasparov was played in the fifth round, on September 9.

There was a history between them. In 1990, Sports Illustrated quoted Kasparov on Polgár: “She has fantastic chess talent, but she is, after all, a woman. It all comes down to the imperfections of the feminine psyche. No woman can sustain a prolonged battle.”

The players

Judit Polgár (born 1976) from Hungary is counted as the strongest woman chess player of all time. In 1991 she became a grandmaster at 15 years and 4 months, the youngest ever at the time, breaking Bobby Fischer's record. She is the only woman who has been among the ten best players in the world, and the only one who has had a rating over 2700.

Garry Kasparov (born 1963) was world champion from 1985 to 2000 and still world number one in 2002. He topped the world rankings for a total of 255 months.

The game move by move

Step through with the arrows or tap a move. Moves with a dot have a comment.

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Judit Polgár has the white pieces, Garry Kasparov the black.

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Play like Judit Polgár

Guess the moves Judit Polgár played, one at a time. The move from the game earns two points, and a move Lavi thinks is about as good earns one. The other side's moves and the game's notes come as you go.

Play like Judit PolgárPlay like Kasparov

The moments that decided it

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After 8…Kxd8: the queens are gone, and Black's king can't castle.
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After 31.Rexd6+: Kasparov's king is still in the center, hunted by two rooks.

The end

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The final position after 42…Kc8. Black resigned after 42…Kc8.

Why the game is famous

The game was historic: the first time a woman beat the reigning world number one in a competitive game. Polgár has called it “one of the most remarkable moments” of her career, and the win helped the Rest of the World win the match 52–48.

Kasparov later changed his mind. In his book How Life Imitates Chess (2007) he wrote: “The Polgárs showed that there are no inherent limitations to their aptitude—an idea that many male players refused to accept until they had unceremoniously been crushed by a twelve-year-old with a ponytail.”

The whole game with notes, as text

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 The Berlin Defense. Kasparov chose it instead of his usual Sicilian Defense. 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 The queens are off after eight moves, and Black's king has lost the right to castle. Polgár has chosen a setup that Kasparov himself had used. 9. Nc3 h6 10. Rd1+ With check. The king goes back to e8, but it is still in the center. 10… Ke8 11. h3 Be7 12. Ne2 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Be3 Bf5 15. Nd4 Bh7 16. g4 White takes space on the kingside with the pawns. 16… Be7 17. Kg2 h5 18. Nf5 The knight on f5 attacks the bishop on e7 and the pawn on g7. 18… Bf8 19. Kf3 Bg6 20. Rd2 hxg4+ The h-file opens, and Black's rook gets in with check on the next move. 21. hxg4 Rh3+ 22. Kg2 Rh7 23. Kg3 f6 24. Bf4 Bxf5 Black trades off the knight on f5. 25. gxf5 fxe5 Black wins a pawn. 26. Re1 Bd6 27. Bxe5 White wins the pawn back. 27… Kd7 28. c4 c5 29. Bxd6 cxd6 30. Re6 The rook goes to the sixth rank and attacks the pawn on d6. 30… Rah8 31. Rexd6+ Polgár wins the pawn with check. Kasparov's king is still in the center, and now it is hunted by both rooks. 31… Kc8 32. R2d5 Rh3+ 33. Kg2 Rh2+ 34. Kf3 R2h3+ 35. Ke4 b6 36. Rc6+ Kb8 37. Rd7 Rh2 38. Ke3 Rf8 39. Rcc7 Both white rooks are on the seventh rank. 39… Rxf5 Black wins back a pawn. 40. Rb7+ Kc8 41. Rdc7+ Kd8 42. Rxg7 The g-pawn falls too. White is a pawn up, and the rooks are still on the seventh rank. 42… Kc8 Kasparov resigned after this move.

PGN – the game as text for other chess programs
[Event "Russia vs. the Rest of the World, round 5 (rapid)"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2002.09.09"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Judit Polgár"]
[Black "Garry Kasparov"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C67"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 h6 10. Rd1+ Ke8 11. h3 Be7 12. Ne2 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Be3 Bf5 15. Nd4 Bh7 16. g4 Be7 17. Kg2 h5 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. Kf3 Bg6 20. Rd2 hxg4+ 21. hxg4 Rh3+ 22. Kg2 Rh7 23. Kg3 f6 24. Bf4 Bxf5 25. gxf5 fxe5 26. Re1 Bd6 27. Bxe5 Kd7 28. c4 c5 29. Bxd6 cxd6 30. Re6 Rah8 31. Rexd6+ Kc8 32. R2d5 Rh3+ 33. Kg2 Rh2+ 34. Kf3 R2h3+ 35. Ke4 b6 36. Rc6+ Kb8 37. Rd7 Rh2 38. Ke3 Rf8 39. Rcc7 Rxf5 40. Rb7+ Kc8 41. Rdc7+ Kd8 42. Rxg7 Kc8 1-0

Download .pgn

Sources

  • Chessgames.com, J. Polgar–Kasparov 2002
  • PGN Mentor, PolgarJ.pgn
  • Wikipedia: Judit Polgár
  • Wikipedia: Chess matches of Russia and the Soviet Union against the rest of the World

The moves compared in two databases (Chessgames, PGN Mentor): identical, 84 half-moves. Kasparov resigned after 42…Kc8. The date and round from Chessgames and PGN Mentor; the time control (25 minutes + 10 seconds per move) and the final score, 52–48, from Wikipedia. Every move has also been replayed by computer and checked against the rules of chess.

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Updated November 6, 2026