Polgar sisters reunion

Report by Diana Mihajlova

It sounds too good to be true. However, that is exactly what happened in Budapest, if only for a day, on 27th November, 2010. The three Polgar sisters, who nowadays live on three different continents, got together for a daylong chess celebration.

GMs Susan and Judit, IM Sofia Polgar – Zsuzsa, Zsófia and Judit in Hungarian

The ‘Polgar Chess Day’ was packed with press conferences, talks with the sisters, new books presentations and signing, chess demonstrations for kids, blindfold exhibitions and the highlight of the event – three simultaneous exhibitions given separately by each sister.

Sofia, Judit and Susan giving autographs and signing books, photos and other "Polgar paraphernalia"

Highly appreciative Hungarian public packed the large lobby of the Telecom building in Budapest. The limited number of 33 players for each of the sisters’ simultaneous left many disappointed chess aficionados who had to content with being placed on the ‘reserve list’ from which some lucky ones got in at some point.

Susan at her simultaneous exhibition

Sofia at her simultaneous exhibition

Judit at her simultaneous exhibition. Towards the end, Judit was accompanied by
her kids, Oliver (6½ years) and Hanna (4½ years).

The Hungarian chess legend Pal Benko turned up to support the event

Many celebrities of the Hungarian sports, politics and culture were among the visitors and participants in the simultaneous exhibitions.

David Merlini (on the left), an escape artist awarded Best Escape Artist at the World Magic Awards, 2007 in Los Angeles, and Tivadar Farkashazy, a humorist, journalist, author and a well loved TV personality.

Andrea Temesvari, a former tennis champion who won the Italian Open at 16, was helped on the chessboard by her son.


Marton Esterhazy, a former professional footballer who in his heyday in the ‘80 played for the Hungarian national team, scoring 11 goals; today he is a UEFA Match Delegate.

Andras Kepes, the author of ‘Checkmate to Men’, a biography written together with Judit Polgar, which chronicles her fight and success in the men dominated chess world. The book, published in 2008, only exists in Hungarian but its English translation is ready for publication.

A new chess book for kids composed by Judit and illustrated by Sofia was launched at the ‘Polgar chess day’. Titled ‘Chess Playground’ it is aimed at the youngest and it contains 250 fun and creative exercises, games, engaging rhymes and playful drawings. As the back cover blurb sais: ‘Great for parents, grandparents, teachers and anyone who wants to enjoy playing chess together with toddlers and beginners’.

All three siters’ chess efforts are directed towards popularising chess among the youngsters who always come in big numbers at the Polgar chess day. This time they happily took part in creating chess sets using various art materials.

Papier maché (pulp), modelling clay or pinecones – everything is fine to let out the
creative imagination and love for chess.

Susan has made home in the USA, Texas where she is an indefatigable worker promoting chess. She has two sons, (10 and 11) and since 2004 stopped playing chess actively. The Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE), which has organised numerous tournaments and training camps for kids and juniors, is only a snippet of her activities dedicated to chess. Her achievements – five-time Olympic Champion, winner of four Women’s World Championships, first woman to break the gender barrier to qualify for the Men’s World Championship Cycle (1986) … – have opened a new path to women’s chess.

Sofia made a big stir in her chess career as a youngster and reached the IM title. Today, living in Israel with her husband and two children, she dedicates her life to what she loved most after chess – art and illustration.

Judit, the youngest and the most talented, is the only one that remains an active chess player today. She lives in Budapest with her husband and two children. Since recently and after staying away from chess while raising her children, she is making a highly visible comeback on the chess scene. A couple of weeks ago in Mexico City, at the UNAM Quadrangular rapid knockout tournament she surprised the audiences when she knocked out Ivanchuk in the semi-finals. But when she went on to bring down the former world number one, Veselin Topalov to 3.5 – 0.5, she has once again reminded all that she is a force to reckon with.

The organiser and sponsor of this highly acclaimed yearly event in the Budapest
chess calendar is Tamas Nadasi, the CEO of Aquaprofit

Judit presents a gift to the sponsor

As thanks for his support and their fruitful co-operation over the years, the three sisters gave Tamas Nadasi a painting on the theme of chess by Yana Mitra. Judit chose the work because of the presence of ‘water’, which is Nadasi’s main business activity, and because of its title – ‘Depth’, which as she said, ‘best describes his approach to life, chess and business deals.’

The above painting, entitled "Depth", is part of a series of twleve on the theme of chess.

In a newly devised ‘art collaboration’ between Judit Polgar and the artist, Judit has ‘lent’ her autograph on the canvasses of the predominantly abstract renditions with some figurative elements depicting chess notions and emotions. Here are seven finished works in a series of 12 chess paintings’, which were exhibited in the VIP room during the ‘Polgar chess day’. The full production will be shown in the near future.

Impressions of Aquaprofit - Polgár Sakknap 2010 (no speech, just music)

Impressions of Aquaprofit - Polgár Sakknap 2010 (no speech, just music)

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