The women’s chess team of the University of Physical Education, Hungary, won a bronze medal at the EUSA Chess Championship in 2017. Klára Varga and Zsuzsanna Terbe expect to repeat their successful performance on home ground as well.   

How are you preparing for the EUC 2019?

Klára Varga (K.V.): I will attend two competitions including the Hungarian rapid championship before the EUSA Chess Championship kicks off, and I also train people. This is how I practice.

Zsuzsanna Terbe (Zs.T.): My preparation for the EUSA games is exactly the same as any other. I will check the list of rivals and prepare my repertoire and strategy accordingly. As soon as the players are paired for the competition, I will finalise my tactics.

You won a bronze medal at the EUC 2017 for Hungary, does it mean you have good chances to collect medals in 2019 too?

K.V.: It is difficult to say as we have no idea who the players exactly are. We should check the registered teams first to be able to make predictions. We know the gold medalists from 2017, they have a great chance of winning this year as well.  

Zs.T.: I think we have chances to win a medal in Budapest although most of the strong teams participating at the ECU 2017 will be present in Hungary too.

Looking at the list of registered teams, what is your impression?

K.V.: It is difficult to predict winners as there may have been changes in the line-up of the different teams in the past two years.

Zs.T.: I must admit that the Russian and Ukranian teams are quite strong, they have the biggest chance to win the championships.

What is the overall significance of the EUSA Chess Championship?

K.V.: It is still in its infancy as the number of participating women’s teams is low. At the same time, however, it is good to see that there is an international common will to take university chess to a higher level.

Zs.T.: I think its level is still lower than that of a junior European Championship, the number of participating teams has yet to rise in the future.