Alexandra Kosteniuk

Biography (1984)

Alexandra was born on April 23, 1984, in Perm (USSR, now Russia) where her father – a career military man – served. But as early as 1985, she moved to Moscow with her parents, where she spent her childhood. A true prodigy, Alexandra repeatedly won a number of European and world youth championships and became a Woman Grandmaster at the age of 14.Three years later, the 17-year-old girl reached the final of the Women's World Championship, a 64-payer knockout championship held in Moscow. Her rival was Zhu Chen and the final was tied 2-2 after the classical games, but Chen took the title by winning 3-1 in the rapid tiebreak.Her second shot at the title would come in 2008, seven years after her first attempt. Alexandra made her childhood dream come true by winning the knockout Women's World Championship in Nalchik. Under the guidance of grandmaster Yuri Razuvayev, Kosteniuk demonstrated a remarkably balanced and mature playstyle, outscoring her rivals in a regular time to become the 12th Women's World Champion. In the final, Kosteniuk outplayed Hou Yifan, the future Women's World Champion.Two years later, Alexandra was eliminated in the third round of the next championship and lost her title, but ever since, she has been a fixture in Women's Championship cycles