FIDE Women’s World Cup Day 4: Giant-killer Kamalidenova takes down Goryachkina in the surprise of the day
Top seeds Lei Tingjie and Tan Zhongyi also get off to a good start The competition just got tougher! With the 21 top seeds officially joining the competition the battle for the Candidates is heating up. None less than 64 of the best female players from around the world started their clocks at 3pm local hour for the second round of the World Cup knockout – it can’t be a coincidence that the chessboard also has 64 squares! In less than three weeks, only two will remain, with one of them following the steps of GM’s Kosteniuk (winner in 2021) and Goryachkina (2023) – and FIDE’s media team will be here all the way to keep you in the loop! Even at this early stage of the tournament, there is no easy match-up for anyone. Many games ended in hard-fought draws, albeit none of them before move thirty – the rule threshold. Most top seeds start on the right foot Top seed and former World Championship finalist, GM Lei Tingjie, wanted nothing of the sort. After missing the previous two World Cups, she has a clear objective here to play well and qualify for the Candidates. Her fine performance in the first game of her match against 2025 American Continental Champion, WGM Candela Be Francisco Guecamburu looks like an excellent step in the right direction. After the game, Lei joined us in the media center to give us her thoughts. https://youtu.be/TLG5x1Ex07E Some other top seeds getting off to a good start this afternoon are GM Tan Zhongyi, GM Humpy Koneru, GM Nana Dzagnidze, GM Vaishali Rameshbabu, IM Polina Shuvalova, IM Yuliia Osmak, IM Divya Deshmukh and IM Teodora Injac. The surprise of the day WGM Meruert Kamalidenova is a fantastic player. Silver with Kazakhstan in the 2024 Budapest Olympiad, several times National and Asian youth champion, former World Junior Champion, Kamalidenova is a star athlete in the making. This afternoon she pulled off a brilliant first game win against one of the best female players in history, and current World Cup trophy holder, GM Aleksandra Goryachkina. After three previous losses and one draw, Kamalidenova was over the moon with the result and happily joined FIDE Press Officer IM Michael Rahal in the media center to give us her thoughts on the game. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwLoneTZxFY Two other relative surprise results of the day were FM Anastasia Avramidou holding GM Kateryna Lagno to a draw with Black along with WGM Thalia Cervantes also achieving a draw with Black against GM Mariya Muzychuk. TACTIC OF THE DAY It’s hard to call a result “surprising” when the rating difference is less than 50 points, but of course GM Anna Ushenina is a former Women’s World Champion with a rating peak of over 2500. Up to move thirty both players were performing at an extraordinarily high level with no inaccuracies but going into time trouble mistakes gradually started to creep in. At the key moment, Ushenina went for a pawn-grab with 33…Nxf2? against which Vantika uncorked a devilish tactic. Starting with 34.Qd8+ Kg7 35.Ne6+! fxe6 (35…Kh6 36.Qh4 mate) and now 36.Qc7+! forcing resignation. After the exchange, a new queen will appear on the board very soon. WIM Charlize van Zyl, FIDE’s star interviewer, caught up with Vantika just before she left the venue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLTUvHmz6ag BLUNDER OF THE DAY The all-American game between GM Irina Krush and IM Carissa Yip was a match to watch. Yip surprised her experienced opponent in the opening with the Dutch defence – at least which was the vibe that Charlize and I felt when we saw the move being played on the board. Irina picked up the advantage early on and even sacrificed the exchange in an attempt to win. Things were looking very good but, with both players under severe time trouble, disaster struck for her. With just three moves to go to reach the time control, Irina played 38.Nh4??, resigning immediately after 38…Qxc2. Instead, 38.Qxf5 Rxf5 39.Nd4! would have left Krush with excellent drawing chances. After retreating to her room for a well-deserved rest, Carissa was kind enough to return to the venue to talk to Charlize. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSBgcsft9PU The second game of round two will be played tomorrow at 3pm in the Grand Bellagio Hotel and Convention Centre. Written by IM Michael Rahal (Batumi, Georgia) Photos: Anna Shtourman and Polina Bovina About the tournament: Scheduled to take place from July 6th to July 28th, the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup will gather together in Batumi (Georgia) the world’s best female chess players. A total of 107 players from 46 different federations are set to participate in the event, including seventeen of the current top twenty! Chess legends, seasoned professionals and emerging talents will play for the $50,000 first prize, in addition to three qualifying spots for the Candidates. The full pairings tree and day-by-day results can be found on the Women’s World Cup website.
Uniting continents behind bars: 5th FIDE Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners
As part of the Chess for Freedom project and in celebration of the FIDE Year of Social Chess, the International Chess Federation is proud to present the 5th edition of the FIDE Intercontinental Online Chess Championship for Prisoners, taking place from October 14 to 16, 2025. This special event underscores FIDE’s commitment to using chess as a force for positive change, offering hope, connection, and new perspectives to those behind bars. Since its launch, the Intercontinental Championship has become a powerful symbol of how chess can transform lives and break down barriers. Organized in collaboration with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office (Chicago, USA), the tournament gives incarcerated individuals around the world a rare opportunity to represent their institutions, demonstrate their skills, and engage in meaningful competition beyond prison walls. Teams and Composition Teams from correctional facilities across the globe are invited to participate, with each country able to register up to three teams: one representing male inmates, one for female inmates, and one for juveniles under 20 years old. Countries that hold national prison chess tournaments may be granted additional teams. In cases where needed, teams can include players from multiple facilities. Each team is composed of four players with an unlimited number of substitutes, all of whom must be incarcerated individuals. Their names and identities will remain protected unless disclosure is permitted by local laws for media purposes. Format The event will take place on Chess.com using a time control of 10 minutes plus a 5-second increment per move. On October 14, teams will compete in round-robin groups of up to eight teams, grouped by time zone to ensure fair play conditions. No two teams from the same country will be placed in the same group. The top two teams from each group will move on to the Championship Round on October 15. On October 16, the best teams from each category; men’s, women’s, and youth, will battle for the championship title, while the next two will fight for the third-place spot. To ensure integrity and fairness, strict regulations govern the event. Each site must have a secure connection and a video setup covering the playing area via Zoom. Fair play checks and oversight will be rigorously enforced throughout. Registration Participation is free of charge. Correctional facilities must complete the official registration form (forms.gle/2SbUGJCnUSP7RQrs9) and confirm their entry by emailing Tournament Organizer Mikhail Korenman (mikhail.korenman@ccsheriff.org). The registration deadline is September 14, 2025, with pairings announced on October 7 and a mandatory technical meeting scheduled for the week of September 15. Winning teams will receive special certificates and global recognition as champions of this remarkable initiative. Final standings will be determined by match points, individual scores, direct encounters, and tie-break criteria. Continental Championships Recap:Earlier this year, in May 2025, FIDE successfully introduced the inaugural Continental Online Chess Championships for Prisoners, creating a strong foundation for regional competition and connection. That milestone highlighted the growing momentum of chess as a tool for rehabilitation and reintegration. Now, the Intercontinental Championship brings together teams from all corners of the world, embodying the spirit of inclusivity and transformation that defines this FIDE Year of Social Chess. About the FIDE Year of Social Chess: 2025 has been declared the FIDE Year of Social Chess, a dedicated celebration of chess as a bridge to inclusion and community building. Throughout this year, FIDE emphasizes projects that bring chess to diverse groups, highlighting its role in promoting education, social engagement, and empowerment around the world. The Intercontinental Championship for Prisoners is a powerful example of this mission in action, offering inmates an opportunity to reconnect with society and develop life-changing skills through the game. Registration form: forms.gle/2SbUGJCnUSP7RQrs9 Tournament regulations (PDF) More info about the program: chessforfreedom.fide.com