Woman Grandmaster
Which title was conferred to Harriet Hunt in 1999?
Harriet Hunt Harriet Vaughan Hunt ( born 4 February 1978 in Oxford ) is an English chess player and four times British Ladies champion . She is a researcher in archaeogenetics at the University of Cambridge . Playing history . A high-profile player from an early age , Hunt won five British Junior Girls titles between 1989 and 1991 . Even more significant was her ( 1991 ) share of the British Junior Under-14 title , when she became the first girl to compete victoriously in the Boys/Open section of the national championships . At 16 , she made her debut for the English Ladies Olympiad Team . Her result at the event included a draw with future Ladies World Champion Antoaneta Stefanova . Her performances at the World Youth Chess Championships included a bronze at Under-14 level ( Duisburg , 1992 ) and silver from the Cala Galdana Under-18 event of 1996 . Between 1995 and 1999 she was British Ladies Champion four times . Then in 1997 , she won the World Girls ( Under-20 ) Championship in Żagań , at the end of a year out between school and her Plant Science studies at Cambridge University . In Pula the same year and by then a Woman International Master , she scored 5/7 on board 2 at the European Team Chess Championship and this contributed to the English Ladies Teams third-place finish and a team bronze medal . 1997 was also the year that Hunt was invited by chess organiser Johan Zwanepol to compete at the Groningen Open Grandmaster tournament . Zwanepol had been an arbiter at her Zagan victory and was keen to see further progress . Her result of 6/11 was probably as good as could be expected in such a strong competition ( the entry included over 30 grandmasters headed by Mikhail Gurevich , Jaan Ehlvest , Tony Miles , Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu , Suat Atalık , Sergei Tiviakov etc. ) . By 1999 , Hunt had attained the title of Woman Grandmaster and at the Batumi European Team Championship played board 1 , returning a 7/9 performance to win the individual gold medal . She was awarded the International Master title in 2000 , the same year that she graduated with a B.A . from St . Johns College . Pursuing an academic career , she commenced a PhD and Research Fellowship at Cambridge , specialising in archaeogenetics , a subject allied to her degree . In July of that year , her chess reached a new career high when an Elo rating of 2454 placed her at 16th in the Worlds top 100 women . In 2001 , she led the English ladies once more to the European Team Championship ( in León , Spain ) and again returned with a team bronze medal . At the 2004 Chess Olympiad in Calvià , she narrowly missed out on a medal after scoring 9.5/13 , for a rating performance of 2558 , including a notable victory over Humpy Koneru . Good results were also forthcoming in individual competition , including international tournaments at London ( Agency ) , Cappelle-la-Grande , Berlin ( Summer Festival ) , Stockholm ( Rilton Cup ) and Hastings . She regularly matched the performances of male Grandmasters at these events and occasionally defeated them . She has two younger brothers , Adam , who is also an International Master of chess and Laurence , a cognitive neuroscientist . Hunt has been a Cambridge team member at the annual Varsity ( Oxford vs Cambridge ) match – historically the worlds longest running series of matches . At the millennium event , she contested an all-girl pair-up with former World Girls ( Under-18 ) Champion , Ruth Sheldon . The game was originally slotted as a board 2 encounter , but its elevation to top board brought the match increased publicity and a unique place in the history of the event . Their individual game finished a hard-fought draw , but Cambridge went on to win the match by the narrowest of margins . In regular University team competition she has represented Jesus College Chess Society in the highest student league . The team shared first place in the 2005/06 season , losing only to Emmanuel College , and Hunt scored 100% on top board . At a national level , she plays in the 4NCL , representing Betsson.com in the 2006/7 and 2007/08 seasons and more recently , Pride and Prejudice . In Germany , she has played in the ( Ladies ) Bundesliga . Having completed her Doctorate , Harriet Hunt is currently employed by Cambridge University as a Research Associate at the McDonald Institute of Archaeological Research . Less active as a chess player , she nevertheless manages to maintain a high rating , preserving her status as Englands top woman player and holding a regular place in the worlds top 50 women . In 2008 , she participated at the Stockholm Ladies Open , held in Täby , a northern municipality . The event was described by Hunt as one of the largest and best funded womens tournaments of all time and she performed well , finishing on 6½/9 , a half-point behind overall winner Anna Muzychuk , whom she defeated in their personal encounter in round 6 . Sample games . - Koneru-Hunt , 0-1 , Calvia Olympiad , 2004 . Black skilfully outmanoeuvres her highly rated opponent on the queenside , obtaining a lasting advantage and a winning ending . - Cramling-Hunt , 0-1 , Womens Chess Cup , Dresden , 2006 . Blacks understanding of the positional requirements , combined with queenside pressure creates insurmountable problems for a player rated 100 Elo points higher . - Hunt-Muzychuk , 1-0 , Stockholm Ladies Tournament , 2008 . Whites provocative central and kingside play exposes the Black king , with lethal consequences . References . - Olimpbase – Olympiads and other Team event information - Jon Speelman on Varsity Match - English results around the world : 1974–2006 External links . - Personal academic page