Salamanca (EFE).- The Iranian chess player Sara Khadem, who has lived in Spain since she protested against the regime in her country, believes that Spain “is a great place for chess players” where “many internationals are moving.”
“It is one of the great chess centers in Europe, there are many tournaments throughout the year, which means that when you want to play, you can play,” he said in an interview with Efe in Salamanca, where he is competing this week in the Magistral of the VI “Festival of Chess. Salamanca Cradle of Modern Chess”.
Resides in Spain to avoid reprisals
Khadem, who at the age of 25 wears the category of Grand Master, has established his residence in Spain to avoid reprisals from the Iranian regime after participating without a veil in the World Cup in Kazakhstan, in protest of the death in Iran in police custody of the young Kurdish girl Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for how she was wearing the headscarf.
“Due to the situation in the country, many people are doing everything they can, I did what I could, so I don’t regret it, because it was something I really wanted to do,” he commented on his protest gesture.
He cannot return to Iran, so he has settled with his family “in the south of Spain”, where “everything is very good”, he stressed. He also finds “many similarities between people in Spain and Iran” as they are “welcoming and warm.”
Expectation for Khadem in the Salamanca Magistral
Khadem’s participation has aroused special expectations this year for the Magistral de Salamanca, inaugurated this Tuesday and which will be held until April 29 at the Centro Internacional del Español (CIE).
Khadem lost his first two games on Wednesday, against the Ukrainian Anna Ushenina and against the Russian Kirill Aleeksenko who also lives outside his country and does not play under that flag.
“It’s a very good tournament, there are many great players and the fact that we can play men against women, in equal numbers, makes it interesting,” explained the Iranian chess player.
The Salamanca championship claims to be “one of the few in the world that is equal”, eight great chess figures compete, four men and four women, so the participation of a player profile like Khadem’s is “very important”. for the message of the tournament, according to the direction of the festival.
There are still many more men than women
Only 16.1 percent of the chess players competing in the world are women, according to data from the International Chess Federation (FIDE). “There are many more men than women, so everything that is being done to attract women to chess is very interesting,” Khadem considered.
The popular television series “Lady’s Gambit”, from Netflix, “has been crucial” in promoting this sport among women, which the Iranian chess player recommends even if it is not competed, “as a hobby, it is a very healthy hobby.”
Khadem takes her role as a role model “with great responsibility” for other girls and women who may be interested in playing chess, a sport she was introduced to by a classmate at school. EFE