Then I was competing quite a lot. Competitions last about 10 days or two weeks. I was homeschooled, so in this way I could train on a daily basis for many hours. And then I was traveling all over the world.

Anna Rudolf: I was never a professional chess player. I would call it semi-professional. I kept on going to school because I didn't think that my chess skills were good enough for making it a full profession. I, of course, always loved playing chess. And I competed, and I wanted to get into the Olympic team. But I wanted to have something else as a job, because I didn't think I would get anywhere near the heights of Judit. It's very difficult to be Judit Polgár.

Judit: We had different lives. She was going to school; I wasn't. I have two older sisters and I grew up in a very special environment. My parents devoted their lives in order to raise us to become professional chess champions. So for me it was not really a question of What is going to be my work? I started to become internationally successful starting at the age of 9. But in Anna's case, of course, she was going to school, and actually she was a member of the [Hungarian] Olympic team. She was always so dedicated in the team.

Beck: How would you describe the social scene of high-level chess? Is it friendly? Is it competitive?

Judit: On the highest level, of course there's a lot of competitiveness and drive in the players. They really want to win. But it’s normal that the players are also just friends. Even very close friends. Or rivals, but in a healthy way. It is common that people go out after the game for a walk or they have dinner together. [During the game], they would like to tear each other apart, but after, they are friends.

Anna: In chess, we have olympiads every two years, and in the years when there's no chess olympiad, we compete in the European championships. That’s where I started to get to know Judit, because in those team events, the different nations tend to go have dinner together, walk together, go on excursions together. Those are bonding moments.

Beck: Anna, you said that you admired Judit long before you ever met or knew her. What was it like to actually get to know somebody you used to be starstruck by?

Anna: She's been my idol ever since I was a kid. Everybody knows Judit in Hungary.

The moment I got onto the team and ended up being able to sit at the same dinner table with my role models, I felt like, Oh my God, am I dreaming? I like the games of Judit and Peter Leko, and they were both on the team. They were so friendly and kind. What was really curious to me was that these idols I've had, they were just like real human beings, not some distant star that wouldn't even talk to you. You could talk to them about any topic; you would have a good laugh. They were like normal people, you know?