Rani Hamid (born 14 July 1944) is a Bangladeshi chess player who became the country's first

Woman International Master FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...

in 1985. She has become the national champion a total of 20 times. She is the current national champion crowned on the 38th Women National Championship at the age of 75. She won her 20th National Women's Chess Championship title on September, 2019. She is also a three-time winner of the British Women's Chess Championship. She became Zonal Champion in 2018, got the Journalists Choice Award in Chess World Cup 2018 in Russia and won Gold Medal in Commonwealth Chess 2017 in Delhi.

Early life and career

Hamid was born Sayeda Jasimunnessa Khatun in

Sylhet Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...

in 1944. She started playing chess at the age of 34. She was awarded the

FIDE The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( Fédération Internationale des Échecs), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national c ...

(WIM) title in 1985. Hamid won the national title for six consecutive years from 1979 to 1984 among her total 19 titles. This is the most Bangladeshi Women's Championship titles by a wide margin. She has won the British Women's Championship in 1983, 1985 and 1989. Hamid at the age of 75 has won her 20th Bangladesh National Women's title in September, 2019. She started to play chess at the age of 34 and became the country's first FIDE Woman International Master in 1985. By that time, she already won her first national championship in 1979. Starting from 1984, Rani Hamid played in all World Chess Olympiads (3 times in the general team). Hamid was the Zonal Champion at 2018. Rani Hamid won the "Journalists Choice Award" in World Cup 2018, Russia. She achieved gold medal in Commonwealth Chess 2017 in Delhi.

Personal life

Hamid was married to

Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

MA Hamid MA Hamid (died on 25 July 2008) was a Bangladeshi sports organiser and a Bangladesh Army lieutenant colonel. He was the founder of the Bangladesh Handball Federation, the president of the Army Sports Control Board and the vice chairman of the Nat ...

, a sports organiser, from 1959 to 2008 (his death). Their son

Kaiser Hamid Mohammad Kaisar Hamid is a Bangladeshi former soccer player. He became well known in the 1980s and 1990s as a central defender for Mohammedan Sporting Club in Dhaka's domestic league and in the 1988–89 Asian Club Championship. He also repr ...

is a former football player for Mohammedan Sporting Club and the captain of Bangladesh national football team during the 1980s and 1990s. Her other son, Sohel Hamid, was a national squash champion. Her youngest son, Shajahan Hamid Bobby (d. 2022), was a national handball player and a first division football league player. Her daughter is Jabin Hamid.

References

External links

* * * * 1944 births Living people People from Sylhet Bangladeshi female chess players Chess Woman International Masters Chess players at the 2010 Asian Games Asian Games competitors for Bangladesh {{Bangladesh-chess-bio-stub