Verica Nedeljković (née Jovanović; ), (; 16 September 1929 – 13 December 2023) was a Yugoslav and Serbian chess player who held the title of

Woman Grandmaster 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 ...

(WGM, 1978). She was a six-time winner of the Yugoslav Women's Chess Championship (1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1958, 1965).

Biography

From the mid-1950s to the late 1960s, she was one of the leading Yugoslav women's chess players. Verica Nedeljković won the Yugoslav Women's Chess Championships six times: 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1958 and 1965. The winner of many international chess women's tournaments, including twice in a row in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

(1961, 1962). Verica Nedeljković four times participated in the Women's World Chess Championship Candidates Tournaments: * In 1955, at

Candidates Tournament The Candidates Tournament (or in some periods Candidates Matches) is a chess tournament organized by FIDE, chess's international governing body, since 1950, as the final contest to determine the challenger for the World Chess Championship. The win ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

she took 6th place; * In 1959, at

Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...

she took 2nd place; * In 1961, at

Vrnjačka Banja Vrnjačka Banja ( sr-cyr, Врњачка Бања) is a town and municipality located in the Raška District of central Serbia. The population of the town is 9,252 inhabitants, while the population of the municipality is 25,065 inhabitants (2022 ce ...

shared 4th–6th place; * In 1964, at

Sukhumi Sukhumi or Sokhumi is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the Capital city, capital and largest city of Abkhazia, a partially recognised state that most countries consider a part of Georgia (country), Georgia. The ...

she took 9th place; * In 1967, at

Subotica Subotica (, ; , , ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city in Central Europe and the administrative center of the North Bačka District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. Formerly the largest city of Vojvodina region, contemporary Sub ...

she took 6th place. Verica Nedeljković played for Yugoslavia in the

Women's Chess Olympiad The Women's Chess Olympiad is an event held by FIDE (the International Chess Federation) since 1957 (every two years since 1972), where national women's teams compete at chess for gold, silver and bronze medals. Since 1976 the Women's Chess Olympia ...

s: * In 1963, at the second board in the 2nd Chess Olympiad (women) in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

(+12, =0, -0) and won the team silver medal and the gold individual medal, * In 1966, at second board in the 3rd Chess Olympiad (women) in

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

(+4, =4, -2). In 1954, Verica Nedeljković was awarded the FIDE

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 ...

(WIM) title, but in 1978 she received the honorary title of FIDE

(WGM). After graduation, she was a naval engineer and completed a research degree. She also worked as a lecturer at the

University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...

. She was married to a chess player, a chess trainer and a medical doctor by profession - Srećko Nedeljković (1923—2011). Verica Nedeljković died in Belgrade on 13 December 2023, at the age of 94.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nedeljkovic, Verica 1929 births 2023 deaths Serbian female chess players Serbian chess players Yugoslav female chess players Yugoslav chess players Chess Woman Grandmasters Chess Olympiad competitors Sportspeople from Čačak