Indian Chess Player Divya Deshmukh Alleges Sexism At International Tournament

18-year-old Indian chess player Divya Deshmukh recently addressed the issue of sexism and misogyny in the world of chess following her participation in a chess tournament in Wijk Aan Zee, Netherlands. In a candid Instagram post, the young International Master shed light on the unequal treatment faced by women chess players during the tournament.

"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," said the player from Nagpur, who won the Asian women's chess championship last year. (Khelo India Games 2023: Assam Girl Pahi Borah Learnt Swimming In Lake, Now Wins Gold Medal In 200m Breaststroke; Read Her Story From Tezpur To Podium Finish At KYIG)

"Most recent example of this on a personal level would be in this tournament, 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," she wrote in an Instagram post on Sunday.

Checkout the post here:

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A post shared by Divya Deshmukh (@divyachess)

Deshmukh secured the 12th position in the Challengers section, facing defeat against Leon Luke Mendonca in the 13th and final round with a score of 4.5. The intricate match could have unfolded differently, but Divya made the initial mistake by opting for an incorrect capture in the middle game.