I just noticed something....

On the website for the tournament at Wijk aan Zee, I noticed that Judith Polgar, Koneru Humpy, and Peng Zhaoqin all have the title of 'GM', while Hou Yifan, Anna Ushenina, and Irina Krush all have the title of 'WGM'.

Is there a reason for this? I thought the rating for a 'WGM' title was less than a 'GM', but that doesn't appear to the case, as Zhaoqin has a rating of 2461, and Krush has a rating of 2473...

The women who have achieved GM status in unhandicapped tournaments (ie, they played in tournaments where anyone, man or woman could play) are full-fledged GMs. The women who acheived their GM title soley by playing in women's tournaments have only been granted a WGM title.

It is truly unfortunate that in this modern era where it is widely understood and accepted that women are equal to men in mental capacity that separate chess tournaments still take place. It certainly makes sense in physical sports because women truly are at a disadvantage, but with chess the playing field is already level.

But, that is why WGM is not considered as prestigious as a regular GM title.

That's what I suspected, but I wasn't sure.

Yes, I too think that in this day and age, an organization such as FIDE would discriminate against women by lowering standards, thereby declaring them to be inferior...

quote:

Originally posted by KHollister:
That's what I suspected, but I wasn't sure.

Yes, I too think that in this day and age, an organization such as FIDE would discriminate against women by lowering standards, thereby declaring them to be inferior...

Look at it from the other side.

Unforturnately, for whatever reason, women weren't earning the titles, so FIDE created some. Personally, I think this is the best empirical evidence that male and female minds work differently (big surprise there). Males are more oriented toward logical thought, wherein lies the world of chess (our brains are literally wired differently, regarding the two hemispheres).

Note: the above does not in any way limit the potential accomplishments of any single female chess player. But when you look at the aggregates, even though there are no physical requirements, men seem to have the advantage.

I also have the utmost respect for the women who refuse to accept the "women's titles" and compete on the open playing field. Maybe we will see a true female IGM one day...

quote:

Originally posted by mouser9169:
I think this is the best empirical evidence that male and female minds work differently (big surprise there).

Yes, ask any married couple and they'll verify the differences between male and female minds.

Although the minds work differently, all women's titles do is admit that women's minds are inferior... and that simply isn't trure.

I too have respect for the women who refuse to accept the "women's titles".

quote:

Originally posted by mouser9169:
Maybe we will see a true female IGM one day...

Ever heard of Judit Polgar? Not only did she become a GM at age 14 (world record at that time), but she also won many of the top 'men' tournaments and competed for the 'men' world champion title in San Luis 2005.


There are currently 14 female grandmasters

Soon there will be many more female grandmasters. I predict that in 1 year there will be 30 of them.


P.S.: Check this post in 1 year

Forgive my ignorance/confusion here then.

What's the difference between a Grandmaster (GM) and an International Grandmaster (IGM)?


And I didn't mean to suggest female brains are inferior, only different.

There is no such thing as an international grandmaster.

The titles are:

Grandmaster (GM)
International master (IM)
{FIDE} Master (FM)


Womens titles are:

Woman grandmaster (WGM)
Woman international master (WIM)
Woman {FIDE} master (WFM)

Ok, so what's the difference between and IM and a GM?

And are there any women IM's yet? (I think this is what I was thinking of at the start - isn't one of them a lifetime title?)

GM title is far more valuable than IM. All titles are for life.

Yes there are plenty of female IM's. Female players can have women titles, universal titles or both.

For example: Irina Krush is IM and WGM. Koneru Humpy is GM and WGM. Judit Polgar is only GM, she doesn't have any woman title, because she never played in any women-only tournament.

Thanks for the help.

I did some googling and think I understand the current system now. (Maybe I should look into adding some newer books to my chess library, most are at least 30-40 years old or so...)

Here are the regulations for obtaining the titles.

http://www.fide.com/official/handbook.asp?level=B0101


Pretty complicated stuff.