教授 (Professor)

“When 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) [pictured above] withdrew from chess, or rather put her career in stand-by, she was by far the strongest. There was no such dominance before or after her, except perhaps Judit Polgár, but Judit did not play with women”, Kazakh International Master Bibisara Erkhanovna Assaubayeva said in a talk with a Championat correspondent. “侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) is still one of the strongest female players in the world, but in her case, the lack of practice has its telling effect. Many other players, even those who have achieved great careers, still play, while 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) teaches at the university. I think if she decides to restart her career and play constantly, her chess strength may return. Let’s wait and see”. Photo: Eteri Kublashvili/Chess Federation of Russia.