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Profile: Tatev Abrahamyan
U.S. Chess Champs
May 2013
Title: Women's Grandmaster
Rating: 2409
Residence: Glendale, California
Age: 25
Status: Accepted
Chess Highlights:
2011 and 2004 U.S. Women's Championship Runner-Up; 2008 and 2005
U.S. Women's Chess Championship Third Place; 2006 Pan-Am U18 (Perfect
Score)
Bio:
Tatev Abrahamyan started playing chess at 8 after her father took her
to the Chess Olympiad games in 1996. There she met Grandmaster Judit
Polgar, arguably the greatest woman player of all time and the only
woman in the tournament. "I was in complete awe," Tatev said. "My
first thought was, 'I want to be just like her.'" She was soon playing
competitively among the top players her age in Europe and has played
in the U.S. Women's Chess Championship eight times.
But becoming a top chess player has not been easy. "The main problem
is balancing school with chess. Even though college is the number one
priority for me, I usually take time off to play in major events, like
this one." When she is not studying or playing chess, she likes to
read, play tennis, travel, watch movies and hang out with friends.
Another big challege for Tatev was moving to the U.S. In fact, she
said: "It was the biggest change in my life, and it happened in a very
short period of time. Everything in my life changed in a matter of few
months. I had to give up everything I knew and start a new life. Even
though I have lived here for some time now, it was a very big
adjustment, and I think a continuous one."
Tatev is a formidable competitor. At the 2010 U.S. Women's
Championship she played her heart out to a fantastic 7/9 score, which
would usually be enough to net first place, but actually put her in a
tie for second place, half a point behind Irina Krush. Tatev's strong
play and fighting qualities in 2010 earned her the 9 Queens/goddess
chess fighting spirit award, which was selected by former Women's
World Champion, Alexandra Kosteniuk.
At the 2011 U.S. Women's Championship, Tatev turned in a remarkable
performance, falling just short to Anna Zatonskih in the playoff
finals to finish in second place. Although she had a somewhat
disappointing performance last year (6th place overall), Tatev has
gained more than 70 USCF rating points since the event in 2012, and
she is poised to mae a deep run at this year's Championship.
U.S. Chess Champs
May 2013
Title: Women's Grandmaster
Rating: 2409
Residence: Glendale, California
Age: 25
Status: Accepted
Chess Highlights:
2011 and 2004 U.S. Women's Championship Runner-Up; 2008 and 2005
U.S. Women's Chess Championship Third Place; 2006 Pan-Am U18 (Perfect
Score)
Bio:
Tatev Abrahamyan started playing chess at 8 after her father took her
to the Chess Olympiad games in 1996. There she met Grandmaster Judit
Polgar, arguably the greatest woman player of all time and the only
woman in the tournament. "I was in complete awe," Tatev said. "My
first thought was, 'I want to be just like her.'" She was soon playing
competitively among the top players her age in Europe and has played
in the U.S. Women's Chess Championship eight times.
But becoming a top chess player has not been easy. "The main problem
is balancing school with chess. Even though college is the number one
priority for me, I usually take time off to play in major events, like
this one." When she is not studying or playing chess, she likes to
read, play tennis, travel, watch movies and hang out with friends.
Another big challege for Tatev was moving to the U.S. In fact, she
said: "It was the biggest change in my life, and it happened in a very
short period of time. Everything in my life changed in a matter of few
months. I had to give up everything I knew and start a new life. Even
though I have lived here for some time now, it was a very big
adjustment, and I think a continuous one."
Tatev is a formidable competitor. At the 2010 U.S. Women's
Championship she played her heart out to a fantastic 7/9 score, which
would usually be enough to net first place, but actually put her in a
tie for second place, half a point behind Irina Krush. Tatev's strong
play and fighting qualities in 2010 earned her the 9 Queens/goddess
chess fighting spirit award, which was selected by former Women's
World Champion, Alexandra Kosteniuk.
At the 2011 U.S. Women's Championship, Tatev turned in a remarkable
performance, falling just short to Anna Zatonskih in the playoff
finals to finish in second place. Although she had a somewhat
disappointing performance last year (6th place overall), Tatev has
gained more than 70 USCF rating points since the event in 2012, and
she is poised to mae a deep run at this year's Championship.