Fact: The First Woman to Become a Chess Grandmaster

The first woman to earn the grandmaster (GM) title was Nona Gaprindashvili from Georgia in 1978. Before this, women could only compete for the Women’s World Chess Championship, but Gaprindashvili proved that women could compete at the highest level against men.

She was the Women’s World Champion from 1962 to 1978 and played in numerous high-level tournaments against male grandmasters. Her achievements paved the way for future female stars like Judit Polgár, who later became the first woman to break into the Top 10 players in the world.

Gaprindashvili’s legacy remains an inspiration for women in chess today.