51 Facts About Aleksandra Goryachkina

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina is a Russian chess player who holds the title of Grandmaster.

Aleksandra Goryachkina is the No 4 ranked woman in the world by FIDE rating and is the fourth-highest rated woman and highest rated Russian woman in chess history with a peak rating of 2611.

Aleksandra Goryachkina is a three-time Russian Women's Chess Champion, which she achieved in 2015,2017, and 2020.

Aleksandra Goryachkina was born into a chess family; her father is a chess coach, and both of her parents have been rated above 2200.

Aleksandra Goryachkina quickly emerged as a chess prodigy, winning the under-10, under-14, and under-18 girls' divisions of the World Youth Chess Championship.

At the age of 13, Aleksandra Goryachkina became the third-youngest Woman Grandmaster of all time behind Hou Yifan and Kateryna Lagno.

Aleksandra Goryachkina then became the fifth-youngest woman to earn the Grandmaster title as a teenager in early 2018.

Aleksandra Goryachkina first entered the women's top 10 in the world later that year, and reached the top 3 with a dominant performance to win the 2019 Candidates Tournament and qualify for the 2020 World Championship match.

Aleksandra Goryachkina was born on 28 September 1998 in Orsk, Orenburg Oblast, Russia to Larisa Matvienko and Yuri Goryachkin, both of whom are experienced chess players.

Aleksandra Goryachkina's father in particular is a FIDE Master with a peak FIDE rating of 2395, and her mother is a Russian Candidate for Master of Sports in chess with a peak FIDE rating of 2210.

Aleksandra Goryachkina's father is a chess coach and an official FIDE trainer.

Additionally, Aleksandra Goryachkina has a sister Oksana who is 12 years younger and a chess player.

Aleksandra Goryachkina was able to defeat her mother in chess by the age of nine, and her father not long after.

Aleksandra Goryachkina had success at the World Youth and World Junior Chess Championships from a young age, generally as one of the highest-rated players in these tournaments.

Aleksandra Goryachkina won five gold medals in the girls' championships, one each at the under-10 youth level in 2008, the under-14 youth level in 2011, and the under-18 youth level in 2012; and two at the under-20 junior level in 2013 and 2014 at 14 and 16 years old respectively.

Aleksandra Goryachkina won the under-10, under-14, and second under-20 gold medals as the top seed in these events, and she was the second seed in the under-18 event.

Aleksandra Goryachkina was rated 2313 at the time compared to Khademalsharieh's rating of 2215.

Aleksandra Goryachkina had a similar level of success in the European Youth Chess Championship.

Aleksandra Goryachkina first reached a FIDE rating of 2000 in January 2009 at the age of ten, gaining 60 rating points from winning the 2008 Russian PriFR under-18 event.

Aleksandra Goryachkina followed this success by coming in joint first at the Czech Open and clear first at the Lyudmila Rudenko Memorial, again gaining about 48 rating points at both events.

Aleksandra Goryachkina maintained a rating in the low 2400s throughout most of 2013 and 2014, reaching as high as 2441 in December 2014.

Aleksandra Goryachkina earned one International Master norm in 2013 and 2014 at the European Individual Women's Chess Championship and the open European Individual Chess Championship respectively.

Aleksandra Goryachkina was on the cusp of a 2500 rating throughout the second half of 2015 and first achieved it in January 2016 at the age of 17.

Aleksandra Goryachkina made her debut in the Women's World Chess Championship knockout event in 2015, where she was eliminated in the second round by third seed Anna Muzychuk.

Aleksandra Goryachkina did not earn any more GM norms in 2016, at best getting three additional redundant IM norms.

Aleksandra Goryachkina returned to the 2500s in rating in the second half of 2018, reaching a new peak rating of 2535 in August.

Aleksandra Goryachkina became the fifth-youngest woman to earn the Grandmaster title at 19 years and 5 months.

Aleksandra Goryachkina gained back most of the rating points she lost in the preceding few months at the beginning of 2019.

Aleksandra Goryachkina then made a major breakthrough at the Women's Candidates Tournament, which was being revived in conjunction with the dissolution of the knockout format that had been used for the past two decades.

Aleksandra Goryachkina earned the right to challenge Ju for the World Championship.

In China, Ju and Aleksandra Goryachkina each won a game with white.

Back in Russia, Aleksandra Goryachkina took the lead in the eighth game before Ju won back-to-back games, the second of which was the only win with black in the match.

Nevertheless, Aleksandra Goryachkina won the last classical game to send the match to a series of four rapid tiebreak games.

Aleksandra Goryachkina then participated in the 2023 Women's Candidates Tournament, having qualified as loser of the previous world Championship match.

Aleksandra Goryachkina won her first round against Kosteniuk but fell in semifinals to Tan Zhongyi.

At the 2024 Candidates, Aleksandra Goryachkina was tied for the lead with 5 points after 8 rounds, but scored only 2 points in her remaining 6 games to finish 5th with an even score.

Aleksandra Goryachkina played the second board at the under-16 Chess Olympiad in 2014 behind David Paravyan.

Individually, Aleksandra Goryachkina finished fourth on the second board, and won the girls' gold medal.

Aleksandra Goryachkina won a brilliancy award for her seventh-round game with black against Cemil Can Ali Marandi for dangerously sacrificing a rook and a knight on the kingside.

Aleksandra Goryachkina has represented Russia in the women's events at the European Team Championship, the World Team Championship, and the Chess Olympiad.

Aleksandra Goryachkina made her Chess Olympiad debut in 2016 on the third board.

Aleksandra Goryachkina won a bronze medal on the fourth board.

Russia won another gold medal at the European Team Championship later in the year, with Aleksandra Goryachkina again playing on the fourth board.

Nonetheless, Aleksandra Goryachkina won a medal this time, winning the bronze on the second board while playing behind only Kosteniuk.

Aleksandra Goryachkina played on the top board for Russia for the first time, placing fifth individually on the top board.

Aleksandra Goryachkina has represented her region YaNAO at the Russian Team Championship.

Aleksandra Goryachkina played on third board in each of those years, and performed well in 2015 with a performance rating of 2638.

Aleksandra Goryachkina only played the women's event the following year on the top board for Belorechensk, and her team finished sixth out of nine teams.

Aleksandra Goryachkina is the fourth-highest rated woman in chess history, having reached a peak FIDE rating of 2611 in August 2021.

Aleksandra Goryachkina is the highest-rated Russian woman in chess history, ahead of sisters Nadezhda and Tatiana Kosintseva who had peak FIDE ratings of 2576 and 2581 respectively.

Outside of playing in tournaments, Aleksandra Goryachkina is very involved in teaching chess.