Fiji’s top female chess player Kieran Lyons. [Source: Chess Fiji]

Fiji’s top female chess player Kieran Lyons is pushing for more women involvement in the sport.

Lyons became the Woman’s FIDE Master in 2005 and she started playing for Fiji since 2006.

After an outstanding performance for Fiji in the recent Chess Olympiad, Lyons wants to help promote the sport in the country.

However, the Australian-based player says it was not an easy start for her.

“Growing up playing chess was a bit difficult for us because even when I went to school I had a principal who told me that I was not allowed to play chess because that’s a boys sport but fortunately the people that were running the sport at the school stepped in and by the time I graduated with our very first women’s team that went off to represent.”

She says there’s not much popularity in the sport in the southern hemisphere but there is a growth seen in participation.

“I’m loving that like that a lot of the schools I’ve been to cause I used to be a teacher, a lot of schools that I’ve been to we’re getting more and more girls that are interested and that stigma that girls can’t play is almost obsolete now which is amazing.”

Team Fiji’s female chess players continue to impress in the recent Chess competitions.