Anna Muzychuk, runner-up of the inaugural edition of the Norway Chess Women’s event, has revealed how the tournament has helped in the growth of female players in chess.“All the participants are really thankful to the organizers of Norway Chess for establishing an equal prize fund for both men and women. It will give additional motivation to all the girls around the world,” said Muzychuk.With reigning World Champion Ju Wenjun, Indian legend Koneru Humpy, along with Lei Tingjie, Vaishali R, and Sarasadat Khademalsharieh in the fray, the World No. 1 expects a strong and unpredictable competition this year.“I think it’s the strongest women’s event if we look at the ratings. It will be super tough. Each participant has a real chance to win it. I think it will be exciting, and I am really looking forward to it,” she said.The Ukrainian Grandmaster also gave a sneak peek into her career and explained why she and her sister Mariya were hooked on chess from a young age.Who’s that IPL player?“I was born in 1990 when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. It became an independent country a year later, but still, all chess traditions were quite developed in our area. We had coaches, tournaments, and chess was quite popular. There were so many players from my generation from where I grew up, and we competed together in various tournaments. Many of us went on to become grandmasters; hence, our generation was really strong,” Anna said.Anna highlighted the challenges that come with a life in Chess. “In Chess, we can see young players becoming grandmasters at the age of 12. To achieve that, you have to work a lot,” Anna said.“Nowadays, you cannot start too late if you want to be a top-level player. Every time, you have to think if you are ready to sacrifice your childhood, whether you want to be a part of fun activities with other children or work on chess and try to achieve more. It depends on the child and also a lot on the parents because they have to be supportive,” she further added.
