Elena Donaldson-Akhmilovskaya
Elena Donaldson Akhmilovskaya, née Jelena Bronislawowna Achmylowskaja, ( born March 11, 1957 in Leningrad, † November 18, 2012 in Kirkland ) was a Soviet and American chess player. She was vice-world champion in 1986 and since 1988 a citizen of the United States.
Life
Elena Akhmilovskaya learned chess from her mother. She went to school in Krasnoyarsk and then began studying at the local university. In 1979 she moved to Sochi and then lived in Georgia. She was trained among others by Fyodor Skriptschenko and Georgi Orlov.
Even as a 20 -year-old Akhmilovskaya was very successful. She won in 1978, 1980 and 1983, the championship of the RSFSR. Due to its international success in 1977, she received the title of Grand Master of the women. She was honored for her achievements in 1981 with the Soviet decorations and 1987 Honored with the honorary title of Master of Sports of the USSR.
In 1976, she shared the second prize with Alla Kushnir in the Interzonal in Roosendaal. In the quarter- finals of the qualifying matches for the World Chess Championship defeating Tatjana Lematschko, but lost in the semifinals against Maia Tschiburdanidse. In the next series of elimination contests she shared in Alicante with Tatjana Lematschko the first place, but then lost in the quarterfinals against Nana Alexandria.
Only in the 1985-1986 cycle, they could fight over the interzonal tournament in Havana and the Candidates tournament in Malmo the right to compete against the reigning world champion Maia Tschiburdanidse. She lost the world championship match in Sofia with 5.5 to 8.5 points and received the title Vizeweltmeister.Im Candidates Tournament in 1988 in Split was they split first ( with Nana Iosseliani ), then lost the playoff game. Her last appearance in a Candidates Tournament in 1990 in Borzomi.
In 1978 she took in Buenos Aires at age 21 for the first time at a Chess Olympiad in part. She won with 10 points over 10 games twice gold: a medal for the best individual result and a first place prize of their team. The Soviet Union won the Olympics ahead of Hungary and the Federal Republic of Germany. In 1986, she won a gold medal for the team victory and 1988, a silver medal ( team and individual scoring).
She played three times for the Soviet Union (1978, 1986, 1988 ) and five times for the crew of the USA (1990, 1992, 1994, 1998, 2002). In this case, it achieved a score of 57 points from 83 games ( 68.7 percent).
During the Chess Olympiad 1988 in Thessaloniki, she married John Donaldson, the team leader of the U.S. team. The two traveled then after the tenth round unexpectedly in the United States. Akhmilovskaya had achieved up to that point 8.5 points from 9 games. That was for the Soviet team a serious problem for the first time ( with the exception of 1976, when the team did not participate ) was at a Chess Olympiad no gold but win silver. From Garry Kasparov and Maia Tschiburdanidse her therefore unsportsmanlike behavior was accused.
In the United States Donaldson Akhmilovskaya won three times at the U.S. Championships (1990, 1993 and 1994). She lived with her new husband Georgi Orlov and her son in Seattle since 1990. She died on 18 November 2012 after a long illness.