She may be just 18 but Indian chess star Divya Deshmukh has seen and experienced enough on the world circuit to speak out against the sexism in the viewership of chess, as well as the coverage of the sport, with regards to women.
Divya took to social media following her participation in the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, and wrote about her disappointment at the way female players are often treated by spectators.
Deshmukh revealed that despite her strong performance and pride in her games, the focus of the audience was diverted to irrelevant aspects such as her clothes, hair and accent.
The International Master finished 12th with a score of 4.5 out of 13 in the tournament that had players like Hans Niemann and Harika Dronavalli.
"I have been wanting to address this for a while but was waiting for my tournament to be over. I got told and also myself noticed how women in chess are often just taken for granted by spectators," Divya wrote in her Instagram post.
Currently among the best female chess players from India, Divya is ranked 41st in the world, and also wrote about the disappointment she felt when she finished her game and heard that people were instead talking about everything apart from her chess expertise.
"I played a few games which I felt were quite good and I was proud of them. I got told by people how the audience was not even bothered with the game but instead focused on every single possible thing in the world: my clothes, hair, accent, and every other irrelevant thing.
"I was quite upset to hear this and I think is the sad truth that people when women play chess they often overlook how good they actually are, the games they play and their strength. I was quite disappointed to see how everything was discussed about in my interviews (by the audience) except my games, very few people paid attention to it and it is quite a sad thing.
"I felt it was unfair in a way because if I go to any guy’s interview there would be way less judgment on a personal level, actual compliments about the game and the player. I feel women are underappreciated, and every irrelevant thing is focused on and hated on while guys would probably get away with the same things.”
Addressing the broader issue faced by women in the chess community, she called for equal respect, emphasising that women should not be judged based on irrelevant criteria but rather acknowledged for their skills and achievements.
"I think women face this on a daily basis, and I’m barely 18. I have faced so much judgment, including hatred over the years for things that don’t even matter. I think women should start getting equal respect," Deshmukh concluded, shedding light on the need for a more inclusive and fair treatment of female chess players in the sport.
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