In a shocking moment that stirred up the chess community, Garry Kasparov, the former World Chess Champion, once referred to Judit Polgár, the Hungarian chess prodigy, as “a circus puppet.” He even suggested that women should stay home and focus on raising kids, which really undermined Polgár’s groundbreaking achievements. Despite her impressive wins against some of the greatest players in the game, many in the chess world still didn’t recognize her as a professional player.
But then, in 2002, during a World Rapid Chess Championship, Polgár had her big moment. The tournament had a 25-minute time limit for each game, and in a historic match, she defeated Kasparov—the first woman ever to beat the world's top player.
This outcome made Kasparov rethink his earlier comments. He publicly apologized, saying, “I was wrong about women playing chess. I gave an opinion a long time ago that I no longer believe.”
It was after Polgár’s incredible victory that Kasparov seemed to finally understand just how talented she was—and maybe even more importantly, the changing role of women in the chess world.
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