Koneru Humpy Wins FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024-25 (Pune Leg) Title

The FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024-2025 operates as a biennial tournament sequence that selects competitors for the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament, making them eligible to challenge for the Women’s World Chess Championship. Through her victory Humpy solidifies her position as a top chess player who represents India. Humpy obtained the championship success after beating Nurgyul Salimova from Bulgaria during the concluding round with seven points. Zhu Jiner won her match against Polina Shuvalova of Russia during the last round at the same time as Humpy.

Context of the News:

• FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024-25 (Pune leg) ended with Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy sealing the victory against Chinese player Zhu Jiner because both had the same score but Humpy had better tie-breaks.

Key Points:

Purpose of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix:

• The tournament serves as an evaluation mechanism to specify the two competitors who will participate in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament.

• The FIDE Women’s Grand Prix gives professional chess competitors essential experience that prepares them to enter the Women’s World Chess Championship.

Schedule & Locations:

• Pune, India: April 13–24, 2025.

• Grosslobming, Austria: May 5–16, 2025.

Prize Fund:

• A total amount of €600,000 makes up the prize fund of the series.

• The tournament prize distribution consists of €80,000 for each competition.

Recent Highlights:

• Koneru Humpy clinched victory in the Pune leg by winning seven games after defeating Nurgyul Salimova in the last round.

• Zhu Jiner finished her tournament by defeating the Russia player Polina Shuvalova.

Participants:

• Players in the tournament include top female chess grandmasters like Koneru Humpy, Zhu Jiner, Aleksandra Goryachkina, and Tan Zhongyi.

Conclusion:

At the FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2024-25 (Pune leg) Koneru Humpy secured her place among world-class female chess competitors through her victory. Humpy’s prize at the tournament series positions him better to challenge for the Women’s World Chess Championship through the 2026 Candidates Tournament qualifiers. Competitive intensity dominates the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix because players fight to secure candidacy in the 2026 Candidates Tournament.