Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen is a renowned Lithuanian chess player and politician. Born in Šiauliai, Lithuania on August 6, 1983, she holds the title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM, 1997) and International Master (IM, 2006), and won multiple elite chess championships in Lithuania and worldwide.
Čmilytė-Nielsen secured the Lithuanian Women's Chess Championship at just 15. But her accomplishments range far beyond her home country: she became the European Women's Chess Champion in 2011 and 2013, and she was the silver medalist in the Women's World Chess Championship in 2008. She also played in the Women's World Chess Championship in 2004, reaching quarterfinals.
She played for Lithuania in ten Chess Olympiads, claiming team silver and bronze and four individual medals. Furthermore, on three occasions, she represented Lithuania in the Women's European Team Chess Championships, achieving team silver and bronze and three individual golds.
Besides her grandmaster ability, Čmilytė-Nielsen holds a degree in English Philology and is multilingual.
After retiring from professional chess in 2014, she transitioned into politics. In 2016, Čmilytė-Nielsen was elected to the Seimas, Lithuania's parliament, through the Liberal Movement. In 2020, she became the Speaker of the Seimas.
She has two children with former chess Grandmaster Alexei Shirov.