Levitina Irina Solomonovna (08.06.1954)

Russian Women’s Grandmaster (1976), living in New Jersey since 1990. Chess and bridge teacher. US Women’s Champion in 1992 and joint first in 1993. Four times the Women’s Soviet Champion in 1971, 1978 (jointly), 1979 and 1980-81. In 1985, she was awarded a medal for Excellence of Achievement. The winner of the Leningrad championship in 1978.

Best results: Tolyatti (FIDE zonal) 1972, 2^nd-4^th; Interzonals: Menorca 1973, 2^nd-5^th; Tbilisi 1982, 2^nd; Smederevska Palanka 1987, 2^nd-4^th.; Leningrad 1972, 1^st-2^nd; Budapest 1973, 1984, 1^st; Timisoara 1973, 1^st; Halle 1975, 1^st-3^rd; Moscow 1979, 1^st-2^nd and Yatze 1985, 1^st.

Chess player of a universal style, strong both in complicated strategic and combinational struggle, a player of a high technique of realization of the achieved advantages.

Levitina won a gold medal in the 2006 Bridge World Championship in the women’s division in Italy (together with Kerri Sanborn).

Peak rating: 2425 in 1993.