LatestChess - Interviews - Interview with Grandmaster Alexandra Kosteniuk

Alexandra Kosteniuk is a Russian chess Grandmaster with a FIDE rating of 2523, presently ranked eighth in the women chess world (according to April 2008 FIDE rating list). Her most notable chess achievements include: winning the Women's European Chess Championship in 2004, winning the Russian Women's Championship with 9/11 score and a performance rating of 2691 in 2005, winning the first Chess960 (Fischer Random Chess) women world championship beating Germany's top women chess player Elisabeth Pahtz in 2006.
Kosteniuk has been promoting chess in the capacity of a fashion model and ambassador of chess in order to spark interest in the game around the world. Apart from chess, she is actively involved with writing poems, books and articles. She loves to do fashion modelling and even has played a part in a movie, which she considers the most fun thing she has ever done in her life.
In this interview with Alexandra Kosteniuk, she talks about her fashion modelling hobby, Fischer Random Chess, Judith Polgar, importance of Chess in schools, her future plans etc. We hope our readers would enjoy reading the interview with interesting snaps, videos and famous games of Grandmaster Alexandra Kosteniuk.

LatestChess:- Hello Alexandra, We are glad to have you on LatestChess. Most of our readers are, of course, familiar with your great chess career, but you also pursued a concurrent career in fashion modeling. It must be hard to manage both the activities?
GM Alexandra Kosteniuk:- Thanks for inviting me to LatestChess! To answer your question, really it's not so hard, as mostly I play chess. I consider the fashion modelling only like a hobby, and I do it only to promote chess. I always insist that the magazines that invite me to model for them write an article about chess, I want more people to know about our wonderful game. There are practically no photo shoots where the readers don't know that I am a chess player, it's very important to me. I think the modelling helps chess as people find out that beauty and brains can go very well together.

modelling helps chess as people find out, beauty and brains can go very well together.....

From one of her favorite photos

LatestChess:- You have undoubtedly an important role to play in promoting chess as an icon for a younger generation in Russia and all over the world. What role do you see yourself playing in the future?
GM Alexandra Kosteniuk:- Especially now that I have a little baby daughter, I see my role as teaching chess to kids, showing them that chess is a great game that can help them in their life, first at school, then succeeding in life.

I see my role as teaching chess to kids....

Alexandra Kosteniuk having fun in Venice