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Hou Yifan facts for kids

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In this Chinese name, the family name is Hou.
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Hou Yifan
Hou Yifan (29762728494) (cropped).jpg
Hou in 2016
Born (1994-02-27) 27 February 1994 (age 31)
Xinghua, Jiangsu, China
Alma mater
Chess career
Country China
Title Grandmaster (2008)
Women's World Champion 2010–2012
2013–2015
2016–2017
FIDE rating 2658 (August 2025)
Peak rating 2686 (March 2015)
Peak ranking No. 55 (May 2015)
Chinese name
Chinese 侯逸凡
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Hóu Yìfán
Wade–Giles Hou I-Fan
IPA [xǒu̯ îfǎn]
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization Haùh jaht fàahn
IPA [hɐ̏u jɐ̀t fȁːn]
Jyutping Hau4 jat6 faan4
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ Hâu E̍k-hōan

Hou Yifan (Chinese: 侯逸凡; pinyin: Hóu Yìfán ; born 27 February 1994) is a Chinese chess grandmaster. She has won the Women's World Chess Championship three times. She is also a professor at Peking University. Many consider her the second highest rated female chess player ever.

Hou Yifan was a chess prodigy, meaning she was incredibly talented at a young age. She became the youngest female player to earn the grandmaster title at 14 years old. She was also the youngest ever to win the Women's World Chess Championship when she was just 16.

At 12, Hou was the youngest player to join the Women's World Championship in 2006. She also played in the Chess Olympiad that year. In 2007, she became the youngest Chinese Women's Champion. She earned the titles of Woman FIDE Master in 2004, Woman Grandmaster in 2007, and Grandmaster in 2008.

She won the 2010 Women's World Championship in Turkey. She then won three more championships in 2011, 2013, and 2016. She has been the No. 1 ranked woman in the world since September 2015. In 2017, the BBC included her in their 100 Women program. In 2020, at 26, she became the youngest professor at Shenzhen University, and later moved to Peking University.

Becoming a Chess Star

Hou Yifan started playing chess regularly when she was five. However, she was interested in the game even earlier, at age three. Her father noticed she loved looking at chess pieces in a bookstore. He bought her a set, and within weeks, she could beat her father and grandmother!

In 1999, her father hired a chess coach, IM Tong Yuanming, for five-year-old Hou. Tong said Hou was a special talent. She showed "strong confidence, great memory, calculating ability, and fast reactions." Hou herself said she loved chess because the pieces fascinated her.

In 2003, Hou played against Ye Jiangchuan, the main coach of China's national chess teams. Ye was amazed that the nine-year-old could spot almost all his weak moves. "Then I knew she was an exceptional genius," Ye said. That year, Hou became the youngest member of the national team. She also won first place at the World Youth Championship for girls under ten. In June 2007, she became China's youngest national champion.

When she was ten, she joined the National Chess Center in Beijing. This academy was for talented young players. Her coaches included leading Chinese grandmasters Ye Jiangchuan and Yu Shaoteng. To help her chess career, her family moved to Beijing in 2003. Hou's mother, a former nurse, traveled with her to many international tournaments. Hou was homeschooled. As a teenager, she enjoyed reading and studying. Her favorite chess player was Bobby Fischer.

Life Beyond the Chessboard

In 2012, Hou enrolled in Peking University to study International Relations. This was against her trainer's wishes. She took many classes and joined extracurricular activities. She later received a Rhodes Scholarship. This allowed her to study for a Master of Public Policy at St Hilda's College, Oxford.

Chess experts have noted her achievements despite her busy academic life. Vladimir Kramnik, a famous chess player, said she would need to focus fully on chess to reach her full potential. Hou knows this but chooses to treat chess as a hobby, not just a career. In 2018, she said, "I want to be the best, but you also have to have a life."

In 2020, at 26, Hou became the youngest professor at Shenzhen University. She teaches at the School of Physical Education, which includes chess in its Sports Training Program.

Amazing Achievements and Milestones

Hou Yifan has achieved many incredible things in her chess career:

  • Youngest Titles: She became a Woman FIDE Master in 2004, a Woman Grandmaster in 2007, and a full Grandmaster in 2008. She was the youngest female ever to earn the Grandmaster title.
  • World Champion at 16: In 2010, she won the Women's World Championship in Turkey. This made her the youngest women's world champion in history.
  • Multiple Championship Wins: She successfully defended her title in 2011 and won it again in 2013 and 2016. She won these matches with impressive scores.
  • Top-Rated Female Player: In March 2015, her rating reached 2686. This made her the world's No. 1 woman player, a position she has held since September 2015. She was the first woman since Maia Chiburdanidze in 1989 to be both the top-rated woman and the reigning Women's World Chess Champion.
  • Playing Against the Best: Hou has competed in many strong tournaments against top male grandmasters.
    • In 2012, she tied for first place at the Gibraltar Chess Festival. She beat Judit Polgár, who had been the top-rated female player for 22 years.
    • In 2013, she drew a game against then-World Champion Viswanathan Anand at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament.
    • In 2017, she beat Fabiano Caruana and drew against Magnus Carlsen at the Grenke Classic.
  • Team Success: She has won many medals with the Chinese national team. This includes a bronze at the 37th Chess Olympiad in 2006 and a gold at the 1st World Women's Team Chess Championship in 2007.
  • Caissa Cup Winner: She has won the honorary Caissa Cup four times (2010, 2011, 2013, 2014). This award recognizes the best female player of the year.

Chess Style and Openings

When playing as White, Hou Yifan usually starts with the move 1.e4. As Black, she often uses the Sicilian Defence (like the Najdorf and Dragon variations) or the French Defence against 1.e4. Against 1.d4, she prefers the Nimzo-Indian, Bogo-Indian, and Queen's Indian defenses. Her favorite opening is the Sicilian.

Notable Games

This section uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves.
Sargissian vs. Hou, 2008
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Final position after 49...Re8

Here is an example of Hou Yifan's skill. On 25 January 2008, as Black, she defeated Grandmaster Gabriel Sargissian (rated 2676) of Armenia. This game was played at the Corus (Group B) tournament in the Netherlands:

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 Queen's Indian Defense: Fianchetto. Nimzowitsch Variation (E15) 5. Qc2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. e4 d5 8. cxd5 Bxf1 9. Kxf1 exd5 10. e5 Ne4 11. Nc3 Nxd2+ This was a new move in chess theory. 12. Nxd2 Qd7 13. Kg2 Nc6 14. Qa4 0-0 15. Rac1 f6? 16.Nd1 Nxe5 17.Qxd7 Nxd7 18.Rxc7 Bb4 19.Nf3 +/−; better was 15...Rfd8. 16. f4 fxe5 17. dxe5 Bb4 18. Rhf1 Rac8 19. Ne2 Nxe5 20. Qxb4 Nd3 21. Qb3 Nxc1 22. Nxc1 Rce8 23. Nf3 Qf5 24. Rf2 c5 25. Qd3 Qe4 26. Rd2 d4 27. Qxe4 Rxe4 28. Nd3 Re6 29. h4 Rc8 30. a4 a6 31. Nfe5 b5 32. a5 g6 33. Rc2 c4 34. Nb4 Rf8 35. b3 d3 36. Rd2 Rc8 37. Rd1 Rd6 38. Kf3 d2 39. bxc4 bxc4 40. Nc2 c3 41. Ke2 Rd5 42. Ng4 Rxa5 43. Nge3 Rd8 44. Rb1 Ra2 45. Kd1 Rb2 46. Ra1 Rdb8 47. Rxa6 Rb1+ 48. Ke2 Rc1 49. Rc6 Re8 0–1 If 50.Kd3, then ...Rxc2 follows. If 50.Rxc3, then ...d1=Q+.

Her Thoughts on Chess

Hou Yifan believes there are many reasons why fewer women reach the very top level in chess. She thinks that long chess games can be physically tiring, which might give men an advantage. She also feels that men often work harder at chess when they are growing up. She uses Chinese girls as an example, saying that most prefer a balanced life. They prioritize things like university and family over spending all their time on chess.

However, she also points out external factors. Girls playing chess are often only encouraged to compete for girls' titles. This might lower their motivation to aim for the highest overall titles.

Images for kids

  • Hou Yifan 2005

    Hou Yifan at the 2005 World Team Chess Championship, Beersheva, Israel

  • HouyifanCorus2007

    Hou Yifan at the 2007 Corus Chess Tournament

  • Hou Yifan

    Hou Yifan at the 2008 World Junior Chess Championship, Gaziantep, Turkey where she gained a GM norm

  • Хоу Ифань - Серии Гран-При 2013-2014 в Шардже

    Grand Prix Cup award ceremony, Sharjah, UAE

  • Хоу Ифань - «Каисса»

    Hou receiving the Caissa Cup in 2012

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Hou Yifan para niños

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