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FIDE Women’s World Cup Day 1: Most Favorites Cruise Through
The day 1 first round of the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup kicked off at the stunning Grand Bellagio Batumi Convention & Casino Hotel. Located just four minutes from the beach, this five-star venue offers players and guests everything they could wish for.
At 3:00 pm sharp, Chief Arbiter Mahdi Abdulrahim welcomed Georgian Federation President Akaki Iashvili and FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. Dvorkovich made the ceremonial first move—1.Nf3—on board one, where IM Carissa Yip was playing White against WFM Hannah Wilson.
The games then got underway, but there was a small drama. One of the 86 players, Jana Mohamed Zaki, was missing at first. She arrived just under the 15-minute limit to avoid a forfeit, explaining she had taken the wrong elevator. Though she made it on time, she will be fined $300 from her prize money as per tournament rules.
The top twenty-one seeds will join the forty-three round-one winners in three days. Some of these top players have already arrived, including 2021 winner Alexandra Kosteniuk, India’s Vaishali, and China’s Tan Zhongyi and Lei Tingjie.
Game of the Day
French IM Deimante Daulyte-Cornette played a brilliant Sicilian with White, beating WIM Ahmed Wadifa. She later visited the media center to share her thoughts on the game. Her play even reminded many of a classic Smyslov game from 1945!
Strong Performances from Favorites
In the first round, most favorites won comfortably. IM Carissa Yip scored an impressive 96% accuracy win on board one. IM Stavroula Tsolakidou did even better, scoring 97% on board two.
Other players who took early leads were GM Bella Khotenashvili, GM Anna Ushenina, and 16-year-old WGM Anna Shukhman. Shukhman defeated WFM Ruelle Canino of the Philippines in a sharp Ragozin. She then stopped by the media center to show off her tactics on the digital board.
Close Calls and Upsets
Not all favorites had it easy. IM Klaudia Kulon and GM Antoaneta Stefanova both had to work hard and nearly dropped half points after mistakes in the endgame.
Since each match has two games, everyone still has a chance to come back tomorrow and force tiebreaks.
CM Isabelle Yixuan Ning, out-rated by over 400 points, held GM Valentina Gunina to a draw. WFM Lala Shohradova also achieved a solid draw against IM Vantika Agrawal with an impressive 98% accuracy.
GM Irina Krush, WGM Govhar Beydullayeva, IM Olivia Kiolbasa, IM Sophie Milliet, and IM Marsel Efroimski were also held to draws. They will look to win tomorrow to stay on track.
In the lower brackets, where ratings are closer, the matches were even more balanced. IM Ann Matnadze Bujiashvili will need to win her second game to tie against WFM Anastasia Kirtadze. Peruvian IM Cori Deysi must do the same against WIM Wang Chuqiao, and IM Le Thao Nguyen Pham will try to bounce back after her first-round loss to WFM Kesaria Mgeladze.
What’s Next?
The second game of round one starts tomorrow, July 7th, at 3:00 pm local time. Watch the action live on YouTube with expert commentary!
About the tournament:
The 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup runs from July 6 to July 28 in Batumi, Georgia. It features 107 players from 46 federations, including 17 of the current top 20. They will fight for the $50,000 first prize and three spots in the Candidates Tournament. Full pairings and daily results are available on the official World Cup website.
Photos: Anna Shtourman, Andrei Anosov, FIDE_chess
Source: FIDE CHESS NEWS
