Chess hope Viki in the world’s top 4

The child prodigy from Plovdiv, supported by Bachkovo spring water, showed great class throughout the tournament

Plovdiv’s chess hope Viktoriya Radeva achieved a prestigious result at the World Chess Championship, taking 4th place. The championship was held from 16 to 26 September in Montevideo (Uruguay). Viki Radeva competed in the girls’ under-16 category. In the final standings the chess player finished in the top 10 with 7.5 points out of a possible 11; the champion is Annie Yang of the USA. Viki is proud of her result and noted that the American team had 5 coaches, one of whom was Bulgarian. The pupil of the Vasil Levski National School of Commerce in Plovdiv showed great class throughout the tournament, and her win over the former European champion Shuvalova in round 8, where Viki displayed superb tactics, was especially impressive. Unfortunately, in the last 3 rounds our girl had a viral illness, which prevented her from making the most of her advantages against Lara Schulze (Germany) and Sophie Suzuki (USA), and she drew both games.

Behind a chess player’s success there is not only hard work and perseverance, but also fighting spirit and work with a specialist. Much of the credit for the Plovdiv girl’s visible progress goes to GM Aleksandar Delchev, a long-standing member of the national team, as well as her devoted father, Slavey Radev. Viktoriya is a European rapid champion, a three-time national champion under 16, and national champion in women’s rapid chess and in the women’s team event with the team of Lokomotiv 2000 Chess Club. Viki’s greatest success is 2nd place in the world, and this time she was within a hair’s breadth of a medal. Over the next 2 years she has 2 more appearances in the under-18 category, where Viki is convinced that she has the strength and ability to win the most valuable title. Viki’s family is extremely grateful to Plovdiv Municipality and to Nova Trade Ltd for their support.