Alexandra Kosteniuk facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Alexandra Kosteniuk |
|
|---|---|
Kosteniuk in 2023
|
|
| Full name | Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk |
| Country | Russia (before 2022) FIDE (2022–2023) Switzerland (since 2023) |
| Born | 23 April 1984 Perm, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Title | Grandmaster (2004) |
| Women's World Champion | 2008–10 |
| FIDE rating | 2471 (August 2025) |
| Peak rating | 2561 (January 2018) |
Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk (Russian: Александра Константиновна Костенюк) is a famous chess player. She was born on April 23, 1984. Alexandra is a Grandmaster from Russia and Switzerland.
She was the Women's World Chess Champion from 2008 to 2010. In 2021, she became the Women's World Rapid Chess Champion. Alexandra also won the European women's champion title in 2004. She has been the Russian Women's Chess Champion twice.
Kosteniuk has won many team gold medals for Russia. These include the Women's Chess Olympiads in 2010, 2012, and 2014. She also won the Women's World Team Chess Championship in 2017. In 2022, she started representing Switzerland in chess.
Contents
Alexandra's Chess Journey
Alexandra Kosteniuk started playing chess at age five. Her father taught her how to play. In 2003, she finished her studies at the Russian State Academy of Physical Education. She became a certified professional chess trainer. When she was a child, she sometimes played chess for money. This helped her pay for trips to chess tournaments.
Early Wins and Titles
In 1994, Alexandra won the girls under 10 division. This was at the European Youth Chess Championship. Two years later, in 1996, she won the girls under 12 title. She achieved this at both the European Youth Championships and World Youth Chess Championships. At just twelve years old, she also became the Russian women's champion in rapid chess.
In 2001, when she was 17, she reached the final of the Women's World Chess Championship 2001. She played against Zhu Chen in this big tournament.
Becoming a Grandmaster
Kosteniuk became the European women's champion in 2004. She won the tournament in Dresden, Germany. Because of her strong performance, she earned the grandmaster title. This happened in November 2004. She was the tenth woman ever to receive this top title from FIDE. Before this, she had already earned other titles. She became a Woman Grandmaster in 1998. Then, she became an International Master in 2000.
In 2005, she won the Russian Women's Championship.
World Champion Success
In August 2006, Alexandra made history. She became the first Chess960 women's world champion. She won against Germany's top female player, Elisabeth Pähtz. She successfully defended this title in 2008.
Her biggest success came in 2008. She won the Women's World Chess Championship 2008. She beat the talented young player Hou Yifan in the final match. Later that year, she won another gold medal. This was in the women's individual blitz event. It happened at the 2008 World Mind Sports Games in Beijing.
In the Women's World Chess Championship 2010, Alexandra was eliminated. She lost in the third round. This meant she lost her world champion title.
Later Achievements
In 2013, Kosteniuk achieved another first. She became the first woman to win the men's Swiss Chess Championship. She also won the women's Swiss champion title that year.
In 2014, she tied for first place in the Women's World Rapid Championship. She took the silver medal after a tiebreak. In 2015, she won the European–ACP Women's Rapid Championship. She also won the Russian Women's Championship again.
In 2017, she won the European ACP Women's Blitz Championship. In 2019, she won the European Women's rapid and blitz championships. She also shared first place in a FIDE Women's Grand Prix event.
In August 2020, Alexandra was part of the Russian team. They shared the gold medal in the Online Chess Olympiad.
In 2021, Kosteniuk played in the first ever Women's Chess World Cup 2021. This was a big knockout tournament. She won all her matches without needing tiebreaks. She defeated many strong players. In the finals, she won against Aleksandra Goryachkina. This win earned her prize money and a spot in the Women's Candidates Tournament 2022.
She finished 2021 by winning the women's world rapid championship. She had an amazing undefeated score. She also placed second in the blitz championship.
Other Interests and Life
Alexandra Kosteniuk has done more than just chess. She has worked as a model. She also acted in the film Bless the Woman.
She is part of the "Champions for Peace" club. This group has 54 famous athletes. They work to promote peace around the world through sports. This club was created by Peace and Sport.
Alexandra also signed an open letter. This letter was sent to the Russian president. It expressed concerns about a conflict.
Personal Life Details
Alexandra was born in Perm. Her family moved to Moscow in 1985. She has a younger sister, Oksana. Oksana is also a chess player.
Alexandra has dual citizenship. She is a citizen of both Switzerland and Russia. She married Diego Garces when she was eighteen. He is a businessman from Switzerland. On April 22, 2007, she had a daughter named Francesca Maria. Francesca was born early but recovered fully.
In 2015, Alexandra Kosteniuk married another chess Grandmaster, Pavel Tregubov.
Notable Chess Games
- The World vs Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2004
- Alexandra Kosteniuk vs Alexander Onischuk, 2005
- Anna Ushenina vs Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2008
See also
In Spanish: Aleksandra Kosteniuk para niños
