Meeting in Ljubljana with Judith Polgár, the most successful grandmaster in history Photo: Simon Intihar
On 11 March 2024, Judit Polgár, the world's most successful female chess player and the youngest grandmaster in history, visited the Liszt Institute Ljubljana to celebrate the launch of the slovenian translation of her book "Be a champion yourself". In the framework of the programme, the Grandmaster gave interviews to Slovenia's biggest media, had professional discussions with Slovenia's best female chess players and met talented chess player children. The programme has achieved a huge interest in the country.
During the morning, Judit Polgár gave interviews about her life and her forthcoming book to the country's most important medias. Among other things, Judit Polgár's visit to the Liszt Institute Ljubljana on the state television channel SLO1 and on PopTv, the country's largest commercial channels, made the news in prime time. Other highlights include an interview in Dnevnik, one of the largest-circulation slovenian newspapers and a report on the state radio Val 202.
The afternoon’s program continued with professional discussions, where mainly representatives of the Slovenian Chess Federation and the best female chess players of Slovenia held discussions. On the slovenian side, grandmasters Laura Unuk, Jana Krivec and Darja Kapš were also present, which further enhanced the quality of the event. This was followed by Judit Polgár's meeting with children, where 25 up-and-coming chess talents met the former world’s number one player. The children enjoyed small group discussions and the opportunity to take photos together. After the closed meetings, Judit Polgár gave an inspiring talk, followed by a public meeting where they had the possibility to sign autographs and take photos. Many of the guests brought their own chess boards and books to the event for the grandmaster to sign.
Judit Polgár is a hero who can reach across national borders. The event was attended by young and elderly people too. In the discussions that followed the event, it was clear that the participants had once in a life-time experience.
The event was organised in cooperation with Vida Publishing House and the Slovenian Chess Federation, with the support of the Petőfi Literary Agency, the Sports Diplomacy Department of the Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Slovenian Railways.