Irina Krush facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Irina Krush
Krush at the 42nd Chess Olympiad, 2016
Full name	Irina Borisivna Krush
Country	United States
Born	(1983-12-24) December 24, 1983 (age 41) Odesa, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Title	Grandmaster (2013)
FIDE rating	2429 (June 2025)
Peak rating	2502 (October 2013)

Irina Borisivna Krush (born December 24, 1983) is an American chess Grandmaster. She is the only woman to earn the Grandmaster title while playing for the United States. Irina Krush has won the U.S. Women's Chess Championship eight times. She has also won the Women's American Cup Championship twice.

Early Life and First Moves

Irina Krush was born in Odesa, which was part of the Soviet Union (now Ukraine). Her family moved to Brooklyn, USA, in 1989 when she was five years old. Her father, who played chess in college, taught her how to play the game.

Irina showed her talent early. When she was just six years old, she won her very first chess tournament. At age seven, she represented the United States at the World Youth Championships in Poland. She competed in the category for girls under 10.

Becoming a Chess Champion

Irina Krush made history at age 14 when she won the 1998 U.S. Women's Chess Championship. This made her the youngest U.S. women's champion ever! She has won this important championship seven more times: in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2020.

Playing Against a Legend

In 1999, Irina Krush took part in a very special chess game called "Kasparov versus the World." Garry Kasparov, one of the greatest chess players ever, played against a team of people from all over the world. The public voted on moves for the "World" team using a website. Irina and three other young chess players helped guide the public's choices.

During the game, Irina suggested a new and clever move that the "World" team voted for. Kasparov later said that after this move, he felt he lost control of the game. It was a big moment for a young player like Irina!

International Tournaments and Grandmaster Title

In 2008, Irina played in the Group C of the Corus Chess Tournament in the Netherlands. This was a big tournament with 14 players. She played very well, finishing in joint fifth place. She even won a game against Fabiano Caruana, who later became a top player.

In 2013, Irina Krush earned the highest title in chess: Grandmaster. She achieved this title because of her strong performances in several tournaments, including the NYC Mayor's Cup International GM Tournament in 2001, the Women's World Team Chess Championship in 2013, and the Baku Open in 2013.

More recently, in 2022, she won the 2022 American Cup for women. She also tied for first place in the 2022 U.S. Women's Chess Championship but lost in a tie-breaking playoff.

Playing for Her Country

Irina Krush has proudly represented the United States in many team chess competitions.

Women's Chess Olympiad

Since 1998, she has played for the U.S. national team in the Women's Chess Olympiad. This is a huge international team event. The U.S. team won the silver medal in 2004 and the bronze medal in 2008. In 2022, Irina was part of the U.S. women's team that finished fourth at the 44th Chess Olympiad.

Other Team Events

She also competed for the U.S. team in the Women's World Team Chess Championship in 2009 and 2013. In 2015, she played for the Manhattan Applesauce team in the U.S. Chess League. She had also played for the New York Knights team for many years. In May 2020, Irina played for the USA team in the FIDE Online Nations Cup, an online team tournament.

Writing About Chess

Irina Krush often writes articles about chess. Her articles appear in Chess Life magazine and on the uschess.org website. Her article about earning her Grandmaster title in 2013 was even named the "Best of US Chess" for that year!

Life Outside Chess

Irina Krush went to Edward R. Murrow High School in Brooklyn. She later studied at New York University and graduated in 2006 with a degree in International Relations.

In March 2016, Irina appeared on the Steve Harvey television show. She was on the show with two actresses who were pretending to be her. The host, Steve Harvey, and special guest Hillary Clinton asked them questions about Irina's life and chess career. Steve Harvey was able to guess who the real Irina Krush was!

In March 2020, Irina became sick and was treated in a hospital. After recovering, she played in an online women's chess tournament called the Isolated Queens Swiss. She finished in joint second place in that tournament.

On January 18, 2023, Irina Krush was a contestant on a special episode of The Price Is Right TV show. She won one of the games but did not make it to the final round.

See also

In Spanish: Irina Krush para niños