A trendsetter in women's chess

AS A little girl she did whatever her brother did. He went for fishing, so did she. When he played table tennis, she also did. He played soccer, and she also charged to the football field.

Then he learnt chess. She did not like it to begin with, but since her brother liked it, she thought she too ought to play the not so exciting game. Pia Cramling's life was never the same again.

A few years after being taught the moves by her brother, she beat him. At a time when women were not prepared to take on men across the chessboard, Cramling played only with men. She was a trendsetter, ahead of her time. Judit Polgar arrived years later. And she comes from a country which has no great chess tradition.

Cramling, a former World No. 1, who has a Grandmaster title in men's chess, does match her wit with players of her own sex (``But I still enjoy playing with men more''). She was in New Delhi for the women's World chess championship. But she was beaten in the second round by the Russian, Eelena Zayac, after winning a tough first round battle against Hungary's Nikoletta Lakos.

``Yes, it is disappointing to lose so early in the championship, but I had my chances against Zayac,'' she told TheHindu a couple of days before she left for Spain, where she lives now. ``I was feeling very tired after the Olympiad. There should have been a rest of at least three weeks between the Olympiad and the World championship; both are very demanding tournaments you know.''

The 37-year-old says she was having a good year on the board until the Olympiad, where she played for the Swedish men's team. She had done well in the inaugural World Cup in China before losing to the local girl, Xu Yuhua in the semifinals.

Why didn't she play more with women, like her contemporaries?

``Right from the beginning, I was always playing with boys, for the simple reason that in Sweden there was no separate competition for girls,'' she recalls. ``When I was 12 I won a Swedish schools tournament in which 50 boys played. My victory tasted doubly sweet when my brother came first in his age-group at the same tournament. That triumph was the first turning point in my career. It made me so happy, and I knew all I wanted to do in my life was to play chess.''

She says she is grateful that Sweden had such a system. ``After playing with boys, I became one of the best among the men in Sweden, and that was enough to be among the best women in the world. If the men in Sweden were stronger (they weren't), I would have been a far better player.''

In 1978, when she was 15, Pia was in the Swedish women's team for the Olympiad. ``Our team did well, but for me it was just a nice excursion, because the all-women's tournament was an unusual experience for me. Even at that age, I did not like playing in women's events.''

Nevertheless she played in the women's team at the Olympiads in 1982, 1984 and 1988. So far she has played on four occasions for the Swedish men's team, in 1990, 1992, 1996 and this year. ``I really enjoyed the 1996 Olympiad at Yerawan when I played on the second board. I could meet some of the finest players in the world.''

Cramling's big break came in 1982. At the Lloyds Bank tournament she held the then World No. 2 Victor Korchnoi to a draw. ``I should have won that game in fact; I missed a winning chance. I was thrilled to see a big crowd analysing my game, as I came out after the game finished. It was fantastic. I had also drawn with Raymond Keene in that tournament.''

She got her first International Master norm from that event, and completed her title the following year. She had won an open tournament in Norway for her second norm. ``That tournament is also memorable because I beat my brother, Dan, who is a former Swedish national champion, for the first time. They say it is the worst thing you could do to your brother. But for me it meant a lot. It made me more confident as a player.''

She got her Grandmaster title in 1992, after scoring her first norm in 1989 (``I defeated my brother when I scored that norm too,'' she laughs). ``Becoming a Grandmaster was indeed my greatest dream, but I feel I should have completed the title long before that.''

In 1983 she was ranked No. 1 among women in the world, and held that position for two years. Her highest rating was 2545 in 1995, ``when I was playing the best chess of my career.''

Her famous victims include two World champions, Boris Spassky and Vassily Smyslov and Korchnoi. She held former World champion Anatoly Karpov to a draw once, and has drawn three times with Alexei Shirov. She has won quite a few open men's tournaments.

Now of course women playing in men's tournaments is not unusual. But, how did the men react in the initial stages?

``They were surprised, because no other woman played in men's tournaments then. Of course Nona Gaprindashvili played in a few events, and that's all. Maya Chiburandidze started to play with men when she got bored playing with women. The men always treated me with respect. Once, while I was playing in a GM tournament, Mikhail Tal came to me and said that he liked the way I played and started a conversation. That was very kind of him. He really was such a wonderful person. I like his games too.''

Cramling feels it is unfortunate that Sweden could not produce more players like her. ``The administrators are responsible for that. There is a good base for the junior players in Sweden, but when they grow up, they have no backing, so they quit chess. You know I learnt on my own. I never had a trainer until I met Juan Manvel Lopez. It would have been great if there was someone in Sweden to guide me. That is why we have very few professional players back home. And I feel they should have taken advantage of my success, and should have encouraged women to take up the game.''

Pravin Thipsay, who had also played in the 1982 Lloyds Bank tournament, recalls that game with Korchnoi. ``Yes, she should have won that game. She is a very fine player, no doubt about it. It is remarkable that she played with men all the while no other woman did. I think she could have been the women's World champion, if she wanted to.''

The ever-smiling Cramling likes V. Anand, not just the quality of his game, but for his gentle nature as well. ``He is so quiet and nice, unlike some of the other top players. I had played him twice about ten years ago, and both the games were drawn. Of course, he was not so strong then.''

You can't help liking this fragile woman either. She is so polite, so gentle. Says Damir Levacic, ``I have always enjoyed meeting her. She plays regulary in the French league. I know her since she was a 20- year-old. She was a pretty girl then. It makes me happy to see her with Juan. They are a romantic pair of bishops.''

The only woman player Cramling admires is Judit. ``She has done a lot for the women's game, by being among the top 30 male players in the world. She is such an inspiring figure. We need more players like her.''

But will there ever be another Judit?

``Yes, I am sure there will be. Because I believe in women.''

P. K. AJITH KUMAR

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