Diana Lanni

Diana Lanni, who calls the Washington D.C. area home, played in three U.S. Women’s Championships in the late 1970s to mid-1980s. She has the distinction of drawing with former Women’s World Champion Nona Gaprindashvili in the 1982 Women’s Chess Olympiad in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Diana is perhaps best known for possibly providing the inspiration for the Beth Harmon character in the hit series The Queen’s Gambit. The author of the book of the same name, Walter Tevis, hung around many of the chess haunts in New York City that Diana did in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The similarities between her and Beth Harmon are examined in a number of articles including one in Tatler by Annabel Sampson  –  and another by the famous chess historian Batgirl.