Ladies Knight, June 2022: FM Yosha Iglesias

This month, Jennifer is joined by FM Yosha Iglesias, a multi-talented chess professional. Not only is Yosha a FIDE Master, composer, coach, and YouTuber, she also works for chess24, and is among the top-ten female players in France (Ranked 9th in June 2022).

Jennifer and Yosha speak about how the "eureka moment" of solving a chess problem can be similar to a "eureka moment" in life -- and how this manifested for Yosha in finding her gender identity.

They also discuss Yosha’s own chess compositions, including this surprisingly difficult mate in one (white to move):

On her blog, Iglesias writes about why it’s important for chess organizations to have trans-inclusive policies. (See US Chess’s policy here.)

A deep thinker about gender, theory, and the game, Yosha points out that, “If men and women have equal abilities for the game of chess, the so-called 'female category' is justified by the numerous additional difficulties and discriminations that the players underdog because of their gender. And believe me, trans players are no more spared than other players.”

Find out more about Yosha on her website, and follow her on Twitter and YouTube.

“Ladies Knight” is a monthly US Chess podcast hosted by WGM Jennifer Shahade, two-time US Women’s Chess Champion, featuring female chess champions and leaders. Jennifer Shahade is the Women’s Program director at US Chess. Find out more about the program and the Women’s Initiative at uschesswomen.org, where you can make a donation.

Listen to the whole family of US Chess podcasts at https://new.uschess.org/podcasts or through the links below.