Befriending the Queen of Chess

Every week, The Friendship Files features a conversation between The Atlantic’s Julie Beck and two or more friends, exploring the history and significance of their relationship.

This week she talks with two Hungarian master chess players: Judit Polgár, who is widely considered the best female chess player of all time, and Anna Rudolf, who grew up idolizing Judit as a child. Anna became an elite player herself, and ended up meeting and befriending Judit (who is now retired) through the Hungarian chess community. In this interview, they talk about the social scene at chess competitions and facing sexism in a male-heavy environment, and Anna discusses what it’s like to become friends with your childhood hero.

The Friends:

Judit Polgár, 43, a retired chess grand master and creator of the Global Chess Festival who lives in Budapest
Anna Rudolf, 32, a chess international master and broadcaster who lives in Zaragoza, Spain

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Julie Beck: I don't know much at all about chess at the professional or elite level. How do you get from just being a really good chess player to doing it full-time?

I started playing chess when I was 5 years