FIDE World Women’s Team Championship: Quarterfinals set with rising stars and tactical fireworks at Linares
Georgia fields reserves while France scores a last-round triumph. With the qualifying rounds concluded, the quarterfinal line-up is finalized, showcasing a mix of powerhouse teams and emerging contenders. Azerbaijan, China, and other top seeds demonstrated both depth and precision, while prodigious talents like Lu Miaoyi and Ulviyya Fataliyeva reminded the chess world of their rising potential. The upcoming duels will test strategy, resilience, and nerves under pressure. Eight teams move forward, each carrying hopes, ambitions, and the scars of previous battles. Every quarterfinal match promises intense battles, where experience meets ambition, and every move could decide the fate of a championship run. Let’s look at how the afternoon unfolded in greater detail in each pool. The afternoon of chess began with Javier Ochoa de Echagüen, President of the Spanish Chess Federation and of the Ibero-American Chess Federation and FIDE Adviser, opening the round with the ceremonial gong. Pool A Azerbaijan prevailed in their crucial clash against the host nation, Spain. The final result — a convincing 3.5–0.5 — leaves no room for doubt and secured the Azeri team a spot in the quarterfinals, while simultaneously eliminating the Spaniards from the competition. One of the key victories came on board one, where IM Ulviyya Fataliyeva (2420) outplayed IM Sarasadat Khademalsharieh (2429). European U-14 and U-18 champion, Fataliyeva also won the 2024 European Women’s Individual Chess Championship. In this middlegame position, Fataliyeva enjoys more space, and her pieces are harmoniously placed for an attack. Until this moment, Khademalsharieh had defended accurately, striving to keep the position as closed as possible. However, her last move – 21…Qd7? instead of the stronger 21…0–0–0 – allowed the Azeri player to break through with a classical piece sacrifice, beginning with 22.f5! gxf5 23.Bxf5! exf5 24.e6! fxe6 25.Nxe6 The knight on e6 prevents Black from castling and threatens multiple discovered checks. Spain’s top board tried to block with 25…Be7, but after 26.Qe5! the rook on h8 came under direct fire. Khademalsharieh replied with 26…Rg8, yet 27.Qxf5 (threatening 28.Qxh5#) only intensified the pressure. Following 27…Qc6, the precise 28.Qf7+ forced immediate resignation, as 28…Kd7 29.Nc5+ Kd6 30.Bf4 leads to checkmate. A fantastic attacking masterpiece by IM Ulviyya Fataliyeva! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtM3R5DTm8g In the other afternoon encounters, team FIDE completed the qualifying stage with a perfect 100% score, delivering a dominant 3.5–0.5 victory over Peru. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan produced the upset of the round, defeating team USA by the same margin and securing second place in the group. POOL A FINAL STANDINGS Pool B The match between Uzbekistan and India was fiercely contested. Although a draw would have been enough to qualify both teams, a decisive win on the fourth board by WGM Srija Seshadri secured a 2.5–1.5 victory for India and third place in the group standings. Meanwhile, China cruised past Ukraine with a convincing 3–1 score. The match highlighted IM Lu Miaoyi (2440) as a future contender for the highest honors in women’s chess. Born in 2010, Lu Miaoyi is a rising Chinese chess prodigy and one of the strongest young female players in the world. She is known for her aggressive style, rapid rating ascent, and record-setting achievements at a remarkably young age. Under severe time pressure, IM Nataliya Buksa (2400) finally cracked and played 18.Qe1? (the correct move was 18.Qe2, which would have maintained equality), allowing a neat tactical opportunity. Lu Miaoyi thought for seven minutes to calculate the lines and played 18…Nxe3! After 19.Rxe3, she followed up with 19…Qd5!, threatening mate on g2. At this point, 20.Nf3 would have fallen to 20…Qxd3, while 20.Bf1 loses to 20…Bxe3+ 21.Qxe3 Rc2!, winning immediately. Buksa chose 20.Qf1, giving up the exchange after 20…Bxe3. Although the game continued until move thirty-seven, the result was never in doubt, with Lu Miaoyi firmly in control. Already qualified in first place, Georgia decided to field their two reserve players, Kirtadze and Mgeladze, providing a well-deserved rest for the starting lineup. Despite putting up a strong fight, they went down 3–1 against France, who will leave Linares with mixed feelings – elimination from contention but a final-round victory against the group leaders. POOL B FINAL STANDINGS With these results, the quarterfinals are set. Duel 1: Team FIDE vs. Team Uzbekistan Duel 2: USA vs. China Duel 3: Azerbaijan vs. Georgia Duel 4: Kazakhstan vs. India According to the regulations, each duel consists of two matches with the same time control as the qualifying stage: 45 minutes per player for the entire game, plus a 30-second increment per move starting from move 1. In the event of a drawn duel – either if each team wins one match, or both matches are drawn – board points will not be used as a tiebreaker. Instead, blitz matches will determine the winner. The first quarterfinal matches will start on November 21 at 1:30 PM local time. The action can be followed live on the FIDE YouTube Channel, featuring expert commentary by GMs Antoaneta Stefanova and Ivan Cheparinov. Official website: worldwomenteams2025.fide.com/ Written by IM Michael Rahal Photos: Raúl Martínez / Pavel Dvorkovich
FIDE announces the list of players for the 2025 World Rapid and Blitz: A stellar lineup in Doha
World Champion Gukesh D and Magnus Carlsen join over 360 players who have confirmed their participation in the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Chess Championship in Doha. The event, which will take place from December 25 to 30, brings together a field featuring multiple world champions, most of the sport’s highest-rated competitors, and rising stars. A total of 233 players registered for the Blitz Open and 230 for the Rapid. After missing out on the crown in the Rapid and sharing gold in the Blitz in the previous edition in New York, Magnus Carlsen – who this year became a father – returns to the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz. He will try to unseat the 2024 World Rapid champion, Volodar Murzin, who has had strong tournament performances throughout the year. Photo: Lennart Ootes World Champion Gukesh D has also confirmed his attendance. His participation is expected to draw a lot of interest from the public. In particular, his superb result in Zagreb earlier this year indicates he will be one of the favorites in Rapid. Many seasoned elite players such as 2024 World Blitz co-champion Ian Nepomniachtchi, Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Wesley So, and Levon Aronian have also confirmed their participation. Challenging them will be a new generation of contenders seeking to disrupt established hierarchies: Vincent Keymer, Arjun Erigaisi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Praggnanandhaa R, Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, and Ediz Gürel to name just a few. Photo: Michal Walusza And of course, the public will be delighted to see legendary players like Alexander Grischuk, and Vasyl Ivanchuk, who actually won the World Rapid in Doha, back in 2016. FIDE Women’s Rapid and Blitz will also see the best in the world taking part. Headlined by Women’s World Champion Ju Wenjun, the competition will see 130 players, including heavyweights Zhu Jiner, Lei Tingjie, Aleksandra Goryachkina, Humpy Koneru and more. Anna Muzychuk – who won both the Women’s Rapid and Blitz in Doha in 2016 – will also be there, together with her sister, Mariya. Photo: Anna Shtourman “The lineup shows the immense strength and magnetism of the World Rapid & Blitz,” FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich said. “We are pleased to see so many strong players in both the Open and the Women’s competition confirming they will take part. The FIDE World Rapid & Blitz is traditionally one of the most exciting and most watched chess events in the year, and we expect that tradition to continue. I’d like to thank the local organizing committee for sparing no effort in making it a great event,” Dvorkovich added. “The field is tremendously strong, and it is going to be a real chess feast. Once again, FIDE managed to gather nearly all the world’s best players, and I am looking forward to a great sportive drama, fascinated both in my FIDE capacity, and as a life-time chess fan,” says FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky. “Doha is now the only city to host the World Rapid & Blitz Championship twice, a milestone for chess and for sports in Qatar. It reflects our deep passion for the game and our commitment to delivering excellence. We are proud to welcome the world’s greatest players back to Doha, where ambition, tradition, and the future of our sport meet,” said Mohd Al-Mudahka, President of Qatar Chess Federation. Taking place in Doha (Qatar) from December 25 to 30, the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Chess Championship has a prize fund of over €1,000,000 spread across both the Open and the Women’s competitions. Doha last hosted the championship in 2016, when Vasyl Ivanchuk claimed the title in the Rapid section and Sergey Karjakin became the Blitz World Champion. About the event The FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships 2025 is taking place in Doha, Qatar from December 25 to 30, bringing together the world’s elite chess talent for a thrilling end-of-year showdown. Held at the Sports and Events Complex, Qatar University, this edition features both Open and Women’s events in Rapid and Blitz formats, with a total prize fund of over €1,000,000. Doha returns as host after nine years, underscoring Qatar’s growing stature in the chess world. The full list of registered players can be found here: Rapid Open: worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/participants-rapid-open/ Rapid Women: worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/participants-rapid-women/ Blitz Open: worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/participants-blitz-open/ Blitz Women: worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/participants-rapid-women/ For more information about the event, including media registration, please visit: https://worldrapidandblitz2025.fide.com/