Keeping the guys in check

Mum’s smart moves earn her top chess title
Apr 12 2009
Gayle Ritchie

CHESS champ Keti Grant has proved she’s got what it takes to keep the guys in check.

Keti, 40, has become the first female grandmaster in Scotland and one of only 15 in the world.

The mum-of-one, of Edinburgh, reckons young girls need a female chess champ to inspire them to get playing.

But she and husband Jonathan – a top Scottish player – can’t get their 10-year-old daughter Elena interested.

Georgia-born Keti said: “We are chess fanatics and practice every day without fail.

“There was a big tradition of playing chess in Georgia where players were role models and girls played as much as boys.

“My dad taught me when I was six but there’s little chance of Elena following in my footsteps.

“Unlike me she doesn’t have a competitive personality and has absolutely zero interest in chess.

“I think girls in Scotland are lacking some sort of icon if they are ever to see the joy of chess.

“Chess is a fantastic game – great for the mind and the body.

Physical

“It’s a common misconception that you don’t need to be fit to play chess but the truth is you need to be on top form to cope with the physical and emotional pressure.

“I walk and swim, get plenty of sleep and eat a healthy diet which is heavy in bananas, great for slow energy release.”

Keti previously held the rank of woman grandmaster but now joins the elite band of just 15 women who have graduated to grandmaster status within the men’s game. She racked up wins over a string of top male players at international tournaments before finally being awarded the coveted title last month.

Keti said: “Becoming a grandmaster is one of my greatest ever achievements. It’s a male dominated title so I’m really proud to put my name to it.

“Just 15 grandmasters in the world are women and I’m the first female UK player to get the title and the sixth person – male or female – in Scotland.”

Switch

Keti won her first major chess title in 1985 at the world junior chess championship for girls in Slovenia.

She met Jonathan, 43, during a tournament in Scotland in 1996 and the pair married soon after.

She moved to Edinburgh but represented her native Georgia until last year when she switched her playing allegiance.

Keti represented Scotland at the Olympiad in Dresden – the chess version of the Olympics – in November.

And she is keen to dismiss the notion of it being a game for stuffy old men.

She said: “I love clothes and I like to make an effort but for a chess match, which can last around six hours, I dress in what makes me feel good.

“Sadly that usually involves sensible, comfortable trousers and flat shoes, but I think if there were more women in chess and the game was made a bit more sexy I’d be the first to pull on my little black dress and heels.”

Source: http://www.sundaymail.co.uk