Woman Grand master Verica Nedeljkovic (nee Jovanovic) was born September 16m 1929 and passed away at the age of 94 on December 13, 2023. From the mid-1950s to the late 1960s, she was one of the leading Yugoslav women's players winning the Yugoslav Women's Championship six times (1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1958 and 1965).
An excellent student throughout her education, she studied at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Belgrade and graduated with as the first woman in the country to have a naval engineering degree.
She first worked for shipping companies and then from 1961 to 1987 she lectured at the University of Belgrade and also taught engineering at other schools. She also independently published an engineering textbook.
o-author of several scientific research papers.
She learned to play chess at the in elementary school and when she moved to Belgrade in 1948 she joined the local chess club which she belonged to the rest of her life. She received the title of National Master title after winner of the Yugoslav Championship in Skopje in 1950. She earned the WIM title in 1954 and the WGM title in 1977.
Her opponent in the following game was Maria Albuleț (1932-2005). Romanian doctor and WGM and winner of the Romanian Women's Championship in 1951, 1955 and 1956. She was also known as Maria Pogorevici and Maria Albuleț-Pogorevici.
She was also a correspondence player. She took part in the Women's Correspondence Olympiad (1974-1979) where the Romanian team took 6th place.
[Event "Team Match-Women, Bucharest"]
[Site ""]
[Date "1958.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Verica Nedeljkovic (Yugoslavia"]
[Black "Maria Pogorevici (Romania)"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 17"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "1958.06.15"]
[Source "Perpetual Check"]
{B36: Sicilian: Maroczy Bind: Gurgenidze System} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4
4. Nxd4 g6 5. c4 {At once time this was conce considered a refutation of the
Accelerated Dragon, but black began losing fear of the Maroczy Bind back in
the 1950s when ways were found for him to work himself loose from the Bind.
White gets an advantage in space but black's position is fundamentally sound.}
Nf6 {Thus move was advocated by GM Roman Dzindzichasvili because it allows
black to draw white's Q to d4.} 6. Nc3 Nxd4 7. Qxd4 d6 {This prtevents white
from playing e5.} (7... Bg7 {is met by} 8. e5 Ng8 9. Bf4 {and black lacks a
really good reply.}) 8. Be2 (8. e5 {White can play this anyway because when
black will not be able to castle.} dxe5 {By far the best.} 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10.
Be2 Be6 11. O-O Rc8 {Black has full equality.}) 8... Bg7 9. Be3 O-O 10. Qd2 {
Black usually plays 10...Be6 and ...Rc8 putitng pressutre on the P on c4.
Another good option is ...a5 and ...a4 followed by ...Qa5 aimimh fpr Q-side
counterplay.} Ng4 11. Bxg4 Bxg4 12. O-O Be6 13. b3 Qa5 14. Bd4 (14. Rac1 Rfc8
15. Nb5 Qxd2 16. Bxd2 a6 17. Nc3 b5 18. Nd5 {Kochiev,I (2053)-Klepikov,N (2063)
chess.com INT 2023. The chances are equal.}) 14... Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Qg5 {This is
not a good place for the Q as it results in a loss of time. 15...Rac8 was
better.} (15... Rfc8 16. Rfe1 Qc5 17. Qxc5 Rxc5 {½-½ Casas,F (2350)
-Sanguinetti,R (2530) Santa Fe 1973}) 16. f4 Qc5 17. Qxc5 dxc5 {At first
glance this position ,ay look drawish, but it actually favors white as
Nedeljkovic quickly demonstrates.} 18. f5 {An excellent nive!} Bc8 {A square
too far; the B should have stopped at d7, but even the after 19.Nd5 white has
a great position.} (18... gxf5 19. exf5 Bd7 20. Nd5 {There is no good way to
meet the attack on the e-Pawn.} Rae8 (20... Rfe8 21. Nc7) (20... e6 21. Nf6+)
21. f6 e6 22. Ne7+ {and black is in a serious bind.}) 19. Rad1 {Not at all bad,
but 19.Nd5 was even stronger.} gxf5 20. exf5 e6 {Again, black's position looks
like it can be defended, but white's next move seals black's fate.} 21. f6 {
An absolutely fantastic move. Black's pieces are all confined helplessly to
the 8th rank.} b6 22. Rf3 Bb7 23. Rg3+ Kh8 24. Rd7 Bc6 25. Re7 Be8 26. Ne4 Rg8
27. Ng5 {Moving in for the kill.} Rd8 {Naturally black wants her R on the open
file, but the fly in the ointment is that it allows a mate in 7!} (27... h6 {
avoids the matem but loses to} 28. Nxf7+ Bxf7 29. Rxf7 Rxg3 30. hxg3 a5 31. Re7
Kg8 32. Rxe6 Rb8 33. Re7 {is obviously hopeless for black.}) {This wins, too.}
28. Nxf7+ (28. Rxe8 {One can harld bla,e white for missing this problem-like
move, but it's a real beauty!} Rd1+ 29. Kf2 Rd2+ 30. Ke3 {Black can delay, but
not prevent, the mate.} h6 31. Kxd2 b5 32. Nxf7+ Kh7 33. Rgxg8 bxc4 34. Rg7#)
28... Bxf7 29. Rxf7 Rxg3 30. hxg3 Rd2 {The ending is clearly losst after, say
30...a6, but apparently enthused by grabbing the d-file black played this
hasty move getting her R to the second rank, but overlooking the obvious.} 31.
Rf8# {Perhaps not a flashy game, but still a very impressive win by
Medeljkovic.} 1-0
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