FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 12, 1999

Press Release #16

JUDITH POLGAR LOSES [Game 1 of Quarter Finals] TO RUSSIAN AT WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP

The day after she knocked one Russian player out of the World Chess Championship in Las Vegas, Hungarian chess sensation Judith Polgar lost a game to another Russian. Polgar, 23, the world's top-ranked female chessplayer, was trounced today by the experienced grandmaster Alexander Khalifman. If she wins against Khalifman tomorrow, the match will go to quickplay tiebreak games the next day. Polgar is considered very dangerous in these fast games.

The other three games today were all draws: Kramnik-Adams, Akopian-Movsesian, and Nisipeanu-Shirov.

In this quarterfinal round, only eight players still survive out of 100 who began play at Caesars Palace on July 30. Appropriately in high-rolling Las Vegas, the prize money doubles every round. As a result, the tension is high. When the Russian Vadim Zvjaginsev was eliminated by Polgar yesterday, he said, "I'm not happy to lose, but now I am free from the pressure!"

Polgar, who is young, attractive, and dresses smartly, is a media darling wherever she goes. She is almost unique in the chess world, which is dominated by young men. In a display of intellectual macho, a few of these players complain about the distraction of playing a "chick." An Israeli grandmaster, who was eliminated yesterday, guaranteed that he would defeat Polgar if they played. But as the Russian Khalifman pointed out, "It's easy for him to say-he doesn't have to face her. Even after winning today's game, I don't know if I can beat her tomorrow. She is one of the world's best."

The World Chess Championship is sponsored by the World Chess Federation, known as FIDE. The prize fund is $3 million, with the winner getting $660,000. The new world champion will be crowned on August 29.

Chess fans around the globe are following the moves live on the U.S. Chess Federation Web site, uschess.org.

CONTACT: Timothy Hanke, Press Officer for the World Chess Championship, at 702-731-7110, extensions 5913 through 5927.