The FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024/25 reached a nail-biting conclusion in Grosslobming, Austria. In a bittersweet victory, Anna Muzychuk claimed first place, but it was Zhu Jiner who secured the coveted 2026 Women’s Candidates spot.
Muzychuk missed qualifying for the 2026 Women’s Candidates via the Grand Prix by the narrowest of margins, just 1.67 points.
“It has never been so sad to win an event,” an emotional Muzychuk remarked after the tournament’s conclusion on May 15, 2025.
The Road to Grosslobming Grand Prix
The FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024/25, which concluded in the 2025 chess calendar, was a series of six tournaments that determined two qualifiers for the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament.
Twenty of the world’s elite female players competed in three of the six events. Based on their performances, each player accumulated Grand Prix points.
The series kicked off in Tbilisi, Georgia, where Polish GM Alina Kashlinskaya clinched first place with 6 points.
She sealed her tournament win with a nice final-round game win against Mariya Muzychuk. But the second leg saw a dominant performance from GM Aleksandra Goryachkina.
She scored an impressive 7/9 for a convincing victory.
Goryachkina continued her formidable run in the next Grand Prix leg in Monaco.
She tied for first place with GM Humpy Koneru and IM Batkhuyag Munguntuul, all on 5.5 points. On better tie-breaks (Sonneborn-Berger), Goryachkina was declared the winner.
The momentum shifted in Nicosia, Cyprus, where Ukrainian GM Anna Muzychuk won after a gripping finale.
This victory was crucial for players aiming to catch the then-dominant Goryachkina. A particularly “brutal” Round 4 saw Anna Muzychuk defeat Divya Deshmukh in a crushing Advance Caro-Kann Variation.
The penultimate leg in Pune, India, saw Humpy Koneru and Zhu Jiner tie for first place. Zhu Jiner’s convincing performance here was a sound indicator of things to come.
She maintained her lead after surviving a queen sacrifice against Nurgyul Salimova in Round 5.
These five demanding tournaments set the stage for a climactic showdown in Grosslobming, Austria.
Early Rounds Drama in Grosslobming
The tournament began dramatically with recent World Champion Challenger, Tan Zhongyi, defeating Zhu Jiner in the first round, while Vaishali Rameshbabu overcame Nurgyul Salimova.
In Round 2, Anna Muzychuk won a crucial game against Zhu Jiner, leaving the Chinese grandmaster with 0 points from her first two games.
This created what seemed an insurmountable obstacle to her tournament and series hopes.
Zhu’s Remarkable Comeback
What followed was nothing short of extraordinary! Zhu Jiner mounted an incredible comeback, beginning in Round 3 with a victory over Nurgyul Salimova.
By the halfway point, Anna Muzychuk led with 4/5, but Zhu had won three consecutive games to reach 3/5.
The comeback continued through Round 7, when Zhu’s dramatic victory over Nana Dzagnidze earned her a share of the tournament lead and reportedly boosted her FIDE rating to a career-best 2550.
This made her the world’s number four female player.
Final Round Drama
The climactic round of the Grosslobming Grand Prix delivered extraordinary tension. With the minor points gap separating Zhu, Goryachkina, Anna, and Tan, multiple scenarios were in play for the overall series qualification.
In Round 8, both leaders were held to draws, setting up a tense final round. Muzychuk entered the final round knowing she needed clear first place to qualify for the Candidates.
Thus, her game against India’s GM Vaishali Rameshbabu was a must-win.
However, an alternative path opened when Alexandra Kosteniuk gained a winning position against Zhu Jiner.
Had Kosteniuk converted her advantage after Zhu’s critical error (43…Kd5?), Muzychuk’s draw against Vaishali would have been sufficient.
But Kosteniuk faltered four moves later, allowing Zhu to escape with a draw.
Despite maintaining tension expertly in her game and finding the powerful move 41.h5!, Muzychuk couldn’t break through against Vaishali.
The endgame of the opposite-colored bishops ultimately proved drawish, and Muzychuk’s hopes of Candidate qualification went with it.
Tiebreak Determines Tournament Winner
Muzychuk and Zhu finished the Grosslobming tournament tied on points, with Muzychuk awarded first place.
This was based on the tie-break criterion of playing more games with the black pieces.
This victory earned Muzychuk €18,000 (~$20,000) and capped off a strong individual performance, even as she narrowly missed Candidates qualification.
In one of the tournament’s other notable moments, Anna’s sister Mariya Muzychuk managed a remarkable save against Tan Zhongyi after the critical mistake 32…Be7? 33.Bb2!, where White appeared to have a decisive advantage both on the board and the clock (with a 50-minute time advantage).
Consistent Zhu Takes Series Victory
Zhu Jiner’s remarkable tournament consistency proved decisive in the final standings. Despite starting the Grosslobming tournament with two losses, Zhu mounted an impressive comeback to tie for first place.
This marked her third consecutive Grand Prix event in which she finished tied for first, though she placed second after tie-breaks each time.
This consistency across the series earned Zhu:
- First place in the overall Grand Prix standings
- €30,000 (~$34,000) in additional prize money
- A guaranteed spot in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament
Russia’s GM Aleksandra Goryachkina secured the second Candidates spot based on her overall Grand Prix performance.
Candidates’ Qualification Paths Remain
While Muzychuk fell short in the Grand Prix qualification path, six spots in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament remain available through other routes.
Events like the FIDE Women’s World Cup and FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss come with candidate spots, offering Muzychuk and other top female players additional opportunities to earn their place in the Women’s Candidates.
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