GMAlexander Ipatov

Alexander Ipatov was born in Lviv in 1993. His father taught him chess at four, and his mother took him to a local club at six. He became a grandmaster in 2011 and won the World Junior Championship in 2012. After earlier representation of Ukraine and Spain, he began playing for Turkey in 2012.

Ipatov won the Turkish championship in 2014 and 2015. He also represented Turkey at Olympiads and world and European team championships. He earned a degree from Ukraine's Yaroslav the Wise Law Academy in 2014 and later studied at Saint Louis University, where he played on its chess team. His two-volume Unconventional Approaches to Modern Chess examines unusual opening ideas for Black and White. His club career has included teams in Spain, Ukraine, Germany, France and Turkey.