Zhao Xue facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Zhao Xue |
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| Country | China |
| Born | 6 April 1985 Jinan, Shandong, China |
| Title | Grandmaster (2008) |
| FIDE rating | 2486 (June 2026) |
| Peak rating | 2579 (September 2013) |
Zhao Xue (born on April 6, 1985) is a super talented chess player from China. She is one of the few Chinese players to earn the highest title in chess, called Grandmaster. Zhao has been a key player on China's national chess teams. She helped her team win gold medals at the Women's Chess Olympiad three times (in 2002, 2004, and 2016). She also won gold at the Women's World Team Chess Championship in 2007, 2009, and 2011. Zhao has played in many Women's World Chess Championship tournaments, even reaching the semifinals in 2010.
Contents
Zhao Xue's Chess Journey
Early Wins and World Championships
Zhao started her chess journey with great success. She won two gold medals at the World Youth Chess Championship. She was the best player in the Girls Under 12 group in 1997. Then, she won again in the Girls Under 14 group in 1999.
In 2002, Zhao won the World Junior Girls Championship in India. She beat the defending champion, Koneru Humpy, in a very close finish. This big win allowed her to play in the Women's World Chess Championship 2004. She won her first match but was later eliminated.
Zhao played in the Women's World Chess Championship 2006. She lost in the first round that time. Later in 2006, she won a silver medal at the 2006 Asian Games in the women's fast chess event.
Becoming a Grandmaster
In July 2007, Zhao won the Queens Woman Grandmasters tournament. She also tied for first place in another big tournament, the North Urals Cup in Russia. During this tournament, she earned her final "norm" needed to become a Grandmaster. A "norm" is a high-level performance required by the World Chess Federation (FIDE). FIDE officially gave her the Grandmaster title in 2008.
In the Women's World Chess Championship 2008, Zhao won her first match. However, she was knocked out in the second round by another Chinese player, Shen Yang. In October 2008, she won a silver medal at the 2008 World Mind Sports Games in Beijing. This was in the women's individual rapid chess event.
Grand Prix and Later Achievements
Zhao took part in the FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2009–11 series. These are important tournaments for top female players. She finished third in Nanjing in 2009 and shared third place in Ulaanbaatar in 2010. In November 2010, she won another silver medal at the 2010 Asian Games in the women's individual rapid chess event.
In December 2010, Zhao played in the Women's World Chess Championship 2010. This time, she made it all the way to the semifinals! She lost a close match to her teammate, Ruan Lufei. This strong performance helped her qualify for the FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2011–2012. She won the Nalchik stage of this Grand Prix in October 2011, scoring an amazing 9½ out of 11 points. Overall, she finished fourth in the Grand Prix series.
In April 2012, Zhao won the 2nd China Women Masters Tournament. The next month, she won the Asian Women's Blitz Championship. In the Women's World Chess Championship 2012, she reached the quarterfinals.
In January 2013, Zhao won a special prize for being the best female player at the Gibraltar Chess Festival. She also won the women's chess tournament at the 2013 Summer Universiade in Kazan. Her win helped China's team earn a gold medal.
Zhao continued to compete in the FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2013–14. In January 2015, she won the New Zealand Open. She also played in the Women's World Chess Championship 2015, reaching the quarterfinals. In the 2017 championship, she lost in the second round. In December 2017, Zhao won a gold medal in the women's Basque chess event at the IMSA Elite Mind Games. In November 2018, she played in the Women's World Championship again. She won her first match but was eliminated in the second round after a tiebreaker.
Playing for Teams
Zhao has been a very important player for the Chinese women's chess team.
- In the 2002 35th Chess Olympiad, she scored 11 out of 12 points, helping her team win gold.
- In the 2004 36th Chess Olympiad, she scored 10 out of 12 points and won an individual gold medal.
- In 2006, she scored 10 out of 13 points and won another individual gold medal.
Zhao also led the Chinese women's team to victory in the first Women's World Team Championship in 2007. She plays for the Beijing chess club in the China Chess League (CCL).
Awards and Honors
Individual Awards
- 2012: China Women's Masters, Wuxi, China
- 2011: FIDE Women's Grand Prix, Nalchik, Russia
Team Awards
- 2012: Asian Women's Nations Cup, Zaozhuang, China
- 2011: FIDE Women's World Team Championship, Mardin, Turkey
- 2011: China League Division A, Tianjin, China
