Chess

Not so many years ago even the best women players suffered from a huge inferiority complex. Their trainers tended to be male players stronger than themselves, and both parties seemed to accept that the difference in sex accounted for most of the discrepancy. Now all that has changed. One could hardly ask for better evidence than this game from the world junior girls championship. The white player is a 20-year-old grandmaster who was one of the favourites for the title, but she is brilliantly outcombined in a most unladylike fashion.

White had the better of the opening and her 16.h3 threatened to trap the knight with f4. Passive defence is fatal in such positions, so Black had to sacrifice a pawn and hope for the best. But with h3 weakening the g3 square and f4 weakening the e-pawn, there are good grounds for hope.

The fun started with 28.Nxe4, when White must have missed the strength of 31...gxf4 and 32...Rxc3! In the endgame, the two rooks are no match for three minor pieces. At the end, 40...Bxg2 leaves all clear for the f-pawn to romp home.

White: Tatiana Vasilievich

Black: Zuzana Hagarova

1 d4 Nf6 21 Re1 f5

2 c4 g6 22 Rb3 fxe4

3 Nc3 Bg7 23 Bc2 b5

4 e4 d6 24 axb5 axb5

5 f3 0-0 25 Ra3 Qb4

6 Bg5 c5 26 Ra7 Re7

7 d5 a6 27 Rb7 Rc8

8 a4 h6 28 Nxe4 Qxd2

9 Be3 e6 29 Bxd2 Rxc2

10 Qd2 exd5 30 Ng5+ hxg5

11 cxd5 Kh7 31 Rxe7 gxf4

12 Nge2 Qa5 32 Bc3 Rxc3

13 Ra3 Nbd7 33 bxc3 Bf5

14 Nc1 Ne5 34 Rxb5 Kh6

15 Be2 Bd7 35 Rc7 Kg5

16 h3 c4 36 Kf2 Be5

17 f4 Nd3+ 37 Kf3 Nf6

18 Nxd3 cxd3 38 c4 Be4+

19 Bxd3 Rae8 39 Kf2 Bd4+

20 0-0 Nh5 40 Ke2 0-1