The landscape of women’s poker has evolved significantly over the years, marked by the inspiring performances of female players. The poker stage has seen the rise of poker legends like Vanessa Selbst and Kristen Bicknell and the inspiring performances such as Rania Nasreddine and Olga Iermolcheva.

One pivotal moment in this shift was Gaëlle Baumann’s deep run in the 2012 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, which she describes as a “milestone” in her career.

Ahead of the Winamax Poker Open, which gets underway in Bratislava this week, Baumann spoke with PokerNews and says she remains optimistic about the future of women in poker.

Twelve Years Ago

Looking back, Baumann describes the 2012 WSOP Main Event as a “milestone” in her career. Despite already being a member of the Winamax Pro Team, it was only her first year, and the result allowed her to play bigger tournaments. It also helped her build confidence in her game, knowing that she could compete at the highest level.

“One of the biggest memories I have is the incredible atmosphere and the energy in the room as we approached the final table. There were many intense moments, but also some funny ones — I’m thinking about the ‘You lost, bro’ hand — but also some tough ones.”

They’re the same types of moments that Kristen Foxen encountered in her deep run at this year’s WSOP Main Event. A two-time Last Woman Standing in the WSOP Main Event, Baumann says the title still holds significance in an event as important as this.

“It is the biggest tournament on the planet and the one that crowns the World Champion of poker. It has more visibility than all other tournaments, so I feel that the last woman standing can inspire a lot of women to step into the game and show that they can compete at the highest levels.”

The Changing World of Women’s Poker

And with Foxen’s deep run holding the potential to inspire another generation of female poker players, Baumann is excited as anyone at the future of women’s poker.

Baumann now has amassed almost $1.5 million in career earnings and has seen a lot change over her career, especially when it comes to women in poker. She says that poker has definitely become more open and welcoming for women since her historic Main Event run twelve years ago.

She says that if a woman were ever to win the Main Event, it would have a tremendous positive impact on the poker world.

“It would be a historic achievement, and it would also inspire a lot of women to persevere studying the game and getting better at it. It would also bring a lot of positive attention to the poker industry and could attract new players.

“We’re seeing more female representation in amateur environments and in the media, but there is still work to be done so that women are more represented at the highest level and in the more expensive tournaments.”

Based in the United Kingdom, Will started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019. He now works as Managing Editor. He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.

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