1 ECU Women’s and Education Commission SURVEY: WOMEN’S CHESS THROUGHOUT EUROPE Alice O’Gorman: Ireland Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 2 INTRODUCTION • Aims of the Survey o Gather data on women’s chess in every federation in the European Chess Union o Gain an understanding on projects to improve women’s chess in place in every federation in the European Chess Union o Identify which projects are successful and what aspects of women’s chess they improve. • Method o Two surveys were sent out to officials in every federation of the European Chess Union. o The first survey asks questions on policies in place by each federation. o The second survey focused on gathering data regarding how many women are playing in each federation. o The surveys were sent out via email o They were sent in the form of a word document, google doc and an online survey. • Limitations o Only 42 out of 54 federations responded, this leads to missing data and volunteer bias. o Not all data provided may have been accurate. Everything in this booklet is based off the answers received. o Lack of willingness to answer follow up questions. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 3 OVERVIEW: PERCENTAGE OF PLAYERS WHO ARE FEMALE • Below is a map showing what percent of players registered to each federation across Europe are female. Countries in grey either provided no data or unsuitable data. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 4 • Below is a graph showing what percent of players registered to each federation across Europe are female. Percentage of players who are female in European federations 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 • The average (mean) percentage of players that are female is 11% (rounded to the nearest number) • It varied a lot per country, with the range being 24%. • Countries have been grouped together for analysis based on the percentage of players registered to their federation who are female. • Group A: 0-5 % - The Faroe Islands, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Finland. • Group B: 6-7% - Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Norway. • Group C: 8% - The Netherlands, Slovakia, Israel, North Macedonia, Malta • Group D: 9-10% - Czechia, Serbia, Belgium, Germany, Hungary • Group E: 11-13% - Croatia, Cyprus, Albania, San Marino, Andorra • Group F: 17-19% - Moldova, Russia, Slovenia, Portugal • Group G: 21-26% - Georgia, Greece, Romania, Poland, France. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 5 GROUP A • This group contains countries where under five percent of all players registered to their federation are female. • These countries are: The Faroe Islands, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Finland. Below is a map highlighting these countries. • More details on each federation on the next page. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 6 • Denmark ▪ Provides most support for elite juniors and international players. ▪ Have a women’s national championship: 24 players played in it. ▪ Female only junior national championships started in 2019. It was held at different times to open junior national championships. ▪ No women are on the board. ▪ No female arbiters. ▪ Very few female coaches. ▪ High level of girls playing chess in school, however no figures for this. • Sweden ▪ Support is given to female players of all levels. ▪ Very high level of female players in Chess in Schools, 44% of under 14s playing are female. ▪ No female national championships. ▪ 1 out of 9 board members are female. ▪ Provide free female only chess training. • The Faroe Islands ▪ Very few women in competitive chess. ▪ Just under half of participants in chess in schools are female. ▪ One of five board members is female. • Estonia ▪ Differ from the rest of the countries in this group as they have more strong women. ▪ Provide opportunities for elite women every month for little to no cost. ▪ Have no women on the board. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship, however it clashes with the Open National Championship. • Iceland ▪ Have no funding especially for women’s chess. ▪ Tried to have a women’s championship – not enough players. ▪ One woman on the board. • Finland ▪ No information was provided on the policies in place for women’s chess. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 7 GROUP B • This group contains countries where between 6-7 percent of all players registered to their federation are female. • These countries are Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Norway. Below is a map highlighting these countries. • More details on each federation on the next page. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 8 • Austria ▪ Provide support to top female juniors. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championships and Girls’ National Championships. ▪ These events clash with the open versions of them. ▪ Low levels of arbiters and coaches that are female. ▪ One woman on the board. • Norway ▪ Provide support for women’s chess for all standards. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship and Girl’s National Championships. ▪ These events take place at different times to the open versions of them. ▪ 2 women are on the board. • Ireland ▪ There are five women in the top 100. ▪ Activity decreases sharply with age. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship which is on at a different time to the Open National Championship. ▪ Have girls’ prizes in junior national championship. ▪ One of thirteen board members are female. • Switzerland ▪ No data provided on policies in place. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 9 GROUP C • This group contains countries where 8 percent of all players registered to their federation are female. • These countries are The Netherlands, Slovakia, Israel, North Macedonia and Malta. Below is a map highlighting these countries. • More details on these federations are on the next page. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 10 • The Netherlands ▪ Provide support mainly for top female juniors ▪ Funding also goes toward the Olympiad ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship. ▪ This event clashes with the Open National Championship. ▪ Two out of six board members are female. ▪ Percentage of women playing dramatically drops with age. ▪ Find there is an issue with parents not encouraging girls to play as they do with boys. • Slovakia ▪ Funding is focusing on junior chess. ▪ One woman is on the board. ▪ Female participation drops rapidly with age. ▪ Particularly struggle with women dropping out between 18-20. ▪ Have a Female National Championship and Girls’ National Championships. ▪ These events clash with the open version of their events. • Israel ▪ Provide support mainly for elite female chess players. ▪ Have three women on the board. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship and Girl’s National Championships. ▪ These events clash with the open version of them. ▪ Mandatory to have a woman on every team in the league. • North Macedonia ▪ No funding especially for women in chess. ▪ There is a decline of female participation with age. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship which is on a different time for the Open National Championship. ▪ Have Girls’ National Championships which run alongside the Junior National Championships. ▪ One woman is on the board. • Malta ▪ School Chess has a higher rate of girl’s playing chess. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship. ▪ This event is on at the same time as the Open National Championship. ▪ No coaching of special prizes for girls. ▪ Zero women on the board. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 11 GROUP D • This group contains countries where 9-10 percent of all players registered to their federation are female. • These countries are Czechia, Serbia, Belgium, Germany and Hungary. Below is a map highlighting these countries. • There are more details on these federations on the next page. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 12 • Czechia ▪ Provide support mainly to elite women. ▪ Zero woman on the board. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship. ▪ This event is on at a different time to the Open National Championship. ▪ Very dramatic drop of activity among women with increasing age. • Serbia ▪ One third of arbiters are female – have free seminars for woman. ▪ Loss of activity among women with increasing age. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship and Girls’ National Championships. ▪ These events clash with the open versions of them. ▪ Two women in the top 100. • Belgium ▪ Zero women on the board. ▪ Must have a girl playing in every school league. ▪ No Women’s National Championship. ▪ Girls’ National Championships at the same time as the open version of these events. • Germany ▪ Provide support mainly for elite players ▪ Provide coaching exclusively for women. ▪ One woman on the board. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship, which is held at the same time as the Open National Championship. ▪ Have Girls’ National Championships, on at different times to the open version of these events. • Hungary ▪ One woman on the board. ▪ Girls and Boys play separately at junior level. ▪ Top women and girls receive free training. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championships, on at the same time as the Open National Championship. ▪ Lose female chess players at the age of sixteen. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 13 GROUP E • This group contains countries where 11-13 percent of all players registered to their federation are female. • These countries are Croatia, Cyprus, Albania, San Marino and Andorra. Below is a map highlighting these countries. • There are more details on these federations on the next page. Survey: Women’s Chess Throughout Europe 14 • Croatia ▪ Zero women in the top 100. ▪ Dramatic drop of activity of women with age. ▪ Have a Women’s National Championship, on at a different time to the open National Championship. ▪ Have Girl’s National Championships, these are on at the same time as the open version of these events. ▪ One woman on the board. ▪ Struggle with keeping girls playing chess over 16. • Cyprus ▪ 3 women in the top 100. ▪ Successful project started in 2019, female only under tens competition, which increased female participation in this age group.