Career
Smith learned to play chess at the age of ten but did not join a chess club or play in national tournaments until she was 26 years old. She joined the Waitakere Chess Club in 1977, and played in her first New Zealand Women's Chess Championship later that year, finishing 4th. Smith represented New Zealand in fifteen Chess Olympiads between 1978 and 2010.
Smith gained the WCM title for scoring 5.5/11 at the 36th Chess Olympiad in Calvia, Spain in 2004, and gained the WFM title for scoring 6.5/9 at the 38th Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany in 2008.
Smith played in the Oceania Women"s Chess Championships in Gold Coast 2001, Coral Coast 2002, Auckland 2005, Denarau 2007, Gold Coast 2009, Rotorua 2011, Queenstown, New Zealand 2012, and Nadi 2013. During that time she established New Zealand’s annual "Girls Chess Week" to encourage more girls to play chess, and established the NZCF Junior Badge Scheme.
Smith was awarded the title of FIDE Instructor in 2005. Vivian Smith - Teresa Sheehan, New Zealand Women"s Chess Championship Auckland 1998, Queen"s Pawn Game (D02), 1-0
1. d4 Nf6 2.
Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 d5 5.
Nbd2 O-O 6. h3 Nc6 7. Be2 Bf5 8. g4 Be4 9. Nxe4 Nxe4 10. Nd2 Nxd2 11. Qxd2 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13.
O-O-O c6 14. h4 Qb6 15. c3 a5 16. h5 Rfe8 17. hxg6 fxg6 18.
Rh2 Re7 19. Rdh1 Bh8 20. Bg5 Rf7 21. f4 Nd7 22.
Bd3 Nf8 23. f5 c5 24. fxg6 Nxg6 25. Bxg6 Qxg6 26. Qxd5 Rc8 27.
Rxh7 Bf6 28. Bxf6 Qxf6 29.
Rh8+ Qxh8 30. Rxh8+ Kxh8 31. Qxf7 b5 32. g5 b4 33. g6 1-0.