Chess: Aleksandra seals top spot after nail-biting end to third leg of FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-23

New Delhi: The FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022-23 here came to a dramatic conclusion with the top three players finishing on the same points. However, Aleksandra Goryachkina sealed the top spot due to a better tie-breaker score.

The top three contenders for first place in the third leg of the Women’s Grand Prix all drew their final round games, finishing on six points. After tiebreaks, Aleksandra Goryachkina was awarded first place, Bibisara Assaubayeva second and Zhu Jiner third.

Sonal Goel, RC, Tripura Bhawan, Sanjay Kapoor, President, AICF, and Jagdish Mitra, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Growth, Tech Mahindra felicitated the top three contenders, Aleksandra Goryachkina, Bibisara Assaubayeva, and Zhu Jiner. With a loud cheer from the background, all three players received their respective trophies.

On the Occasion, Sanjay Kapoor said, “It’s a great honour for India to host such a big event. This shows the position of the country in the chess world. I’m thankful to everyone involved who supported us to make this happen. I would also like to thank FIDE and FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. And also credit must be given to the All India Chess Federation (AICF) for moving very fast and I am confident that the competition will be a great success.”

Jagdish Mitra, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Growth, Tech Mahindra, said, “Our long-standing collaboration with AICF and FIDE has been centered on advancing the global chess ecosystem. Our partnership with the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix exemplifies our commitment to promoting and discovering new talent and driving engagement in the legacy-rich sport of chess. We are excited to empower strategy and execution enabled by technology, something which is close to the heart of both our business and of this sport. I congratulate all the Women’s Grand Prix winners and participants and wish them continued success in their future endeavors. Their unwavering dedication to the game of chess has elevated the status of women’s chess and inspired millions worldwide. I’m looking forward to seeing some of these players compete in the Global Chess League 2023 in June.”

The tournament was the third in a series of four which make up the Women’s Grand Prix (WGP). Altogether 16 players are taking part in the series, with each participating in three of the four tournaments. The two players who score the greatest number of cumulative points in the series shall qualify for the FIDE Women Candidates Tournament 2023-24. The next and final event in the Women’s Grand Prix cycle will be held in Cyprus between May 15-28.

–IANS