The first leg of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2019-2020 will take place in Skolkovo, Russia, on September 10-23. Twelve participants will compete in a round-robin event.
The drawing of lots was conducted in FIDE office in Lausanne. FIDE’s Chief Operating Officer, Willy Iclicki, picked the numbers, and the Chief Arbiter for the event, Andrzej Fillipowicz, conducted the round-by-round pairings accordingly.
The participants got the following starting numbers:
1. Pia Cramling (Sweden), 2. Antoaneta Stefanova (Bulgaria), 3. Elisabeth Paehtz (Germany), 4. Valentina Gunina (Russia), 5. Kateryna Lagno (Russia), 6. Humpy Koneru (India), 7. Dronavalli Harika (India), 8. Marie Sebag (France), 9. Alina Kashlinskaya (Russia), 10. Alexandra Kosteniuk (Russia), 11. Aleksandra Goryachkina (Russia), 12. Ju Wenjun (China).
Round 1 pairings:
Cramling – Ju Wenjun, Stefanova – Goryachkina, Paehtz – Kosteniuk, Gunina – Kashlinskaya, Lagno – Sebag, Koneru – Harika.
About Women’s FIDE Grand Prix:
Women’s FIDE Grand Prix Series 2019-2020 consist of four Women’ Grand Prix tournaments (hereinafter referred to as WGP tournaments) held over two years (2019-20):
1st – Skolkovo, September 10th – 23rd, 2019;
2nd – Monaco, December 2nd – 15th, 2019;
3rd – Lausanne, between March 1st and 20th, 2020;
4th – Sardinia, between May 20th and June 10th, 2020.
Sixteen (16) players compete in four WGP tournaments. Each of the sixteen players participate in three (3) out of four WGP tournaments. Each WGP tournament is played with twelve (12) players round-robin. In each WGP tournament, every player scores WGP points according to her position in the final standings; the winner of WGP Series is a player who scores the greatest number of cumulative points earned in all three WGP tournaments she participated.
The two (2) players who score the most number of cumulative points in WGP Series qualify to the FIDE Women Candidates Tournament to be held in the first half of 2021.