Tania Chernova

Tania Chernova was a Russian-American who went to Belarus to get her Grandparents out of Russia. When she reached Belarus, the Germans had already killed her Grandparents. After that incident, she joined the resistance.

During World War II

Tania Chernova was a Russian-American who went to Belarus to get her Grandparents out of Russia. When she reached Belarus, the Germans had already killed her Grandparents. After that incident, she joined the resistance.

Tania and her group went to Stalingrad by traveling through the sewer system to reach the Russian lines. After that, she joined Zaitsev's sniper school and became a sniper. The group of snipers that Zaitsev formed was called "The Hares." Tania was a part of a raid on a German headquarters. She and the rest of The Hares killed Germans by picking off guards one by one. Tania was accredited with 24 kills. As far as we know, there was no love triangle present between Danilov, Tania, and Zaitsev but Tania and Zaitsev did have a love affair.

Another major point in her lifetime was when she got wounded in that abdomen (as far as we know it was a land mine) which made her unable to have children. When this happened, Zaitsev carried Tania back to get medical treatment. They were separated and they never saw each other ever again. Zaitsev did try to find Tania, but because the war records were destroyed, he was never able to locate her.

In 1969 she was interviewed by a journalist and one of the things he asked her about was her time in The Hares. Confused as to how he got this information, she immediately asked him where he heard that. He replied with that Zaitsev told him. This broke her heart at first because she thought that Zaitsev had never tried to find her. Eventually, she did learn that Zaitsev had looked for her.

After the war

Tania Chernova survived the war. She continued to "break as many sticks" as she could. William Craig interviewed her for Enemy at the Gates:

More than a quarter century after her vendetta against the enemy, the graying sniper still refers to the Germans she killed as "sticks" that she broke. For many years after the war she believed that Vassili Zaitsev, her lover, had died from grievous wounds. Only in 1969, did she learn that he had recovered and married someone else. The news stunned her for she still loved him.

In fiction

In the film Enemy at the Gates, Tania is a citizen of Stalingrad who has become a Private in the local militia. Danilov has her transferred to an intelligence unit away from the battlefield. She later reunited with Zaitsev in a field hospital.