3/28/2019 – FIDE has announced in a press release the exact dates and the final field for the Women's Candidates Tournament in Kazan. Yifan Hou is not playing and Aleksandra Goryachkina will take her place. The tournament starts on May 29th. A brief history of the Women's World Championship.

3/5/2019 – Hou Yifan played her first rated classical game since December, as she led her team from Oxford University to their third consecutive win over varsity rivals Cambridge. It was the first time the top-rated woman in the world participated, and the 137th such match overall. Cambridge clings to a tiny (and shrinking) lead of 59-56 wins (with 22 draws). Cambridge alumnus GM DANIEL FERNANDEZ takes a look at the games. | Pictured: Oxford's team Andrew Rogozinski (reserve), Daniel Abbas, Hou Yifan, Joris Gerlagh (captain), Benjamin Foo, Lisa Schut, Gordon Scott, Filip Mihov, Isaac Sanders | Photo: John Saunders

12/26/2018 – The year 2018 is drawing to a close and it was filled with great events, strong tournaments and fantastic games. Now, at the end of the year, we invite you to vote for the player of the year (male and female), the newcomer, the game, the combination and the endgame of the year. What do you think: Who was the best female player of 2018?

12/1/2018 – FIDE's December ratings are out and surprisingly little has changed across all rating categories. The World Championship did not lead to a new number one. The Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun will have to wait to claim the number one spot as well, since Hou Yifan played in the German League and is in no danger of dropping off the rating list due to inactivity despite her ongoing University studies. There was more of a shakeup in rapid and blitz ratings thanks to India's first ever super-tournament which featured both. | Pictured: Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun survived a strong challenge to hang on to her title, not unlike a certain Magnus Carlsen! | Photo: ugra2018.fide.com

7/25/2018 – Nikita Vitiugov defeated Hou Yifan by a 6½-3½ score in a Blitz Encounter in Russia as part of the ongoing Russia-China friendship series of events. Back in China, the injured Ding Liren seems to be making a smooth recovery and is already set to play a match with Veselin Topalov next month. Details on how he's been spending his time, and games from the Chinese League, which he had to miss. | Photo: Vladimir Barsky

7/3/2018 – The two best female players of all time recently came together for The Conversation, a BBC podcast interview. They spoke about their respective chess careers as the best women in the sport, the challenges they each faced, and how they chose to transition away from dedicated competition. These are subjects both have dealt with often before, but rarely have the two come together for a direct back-and-forth conversation like this.

6/12/2018 – In the first part of our interview with Ju Wenjun we spoke about her World Championship match against Tan Zhongyi. In the second part of the interview, we have much more general questions to ask her. What is a normal day like in the life of Ju Wenjun, what does she think about the World Championship format, what's her opinion about Hou Yifan not playing women's chess and who is the male player she would like to play a match against. Interview of the 17th Women's World Champion by Niklesh Jain and Angela Franco.

5/3/2018 – Thursday in Shanghai, the Women's World Championship match between defending champion Tan Zhongyi and challenger Ju Wenjun commences. The competition is played over ten games, half in Shanghai (Ju Wenjun's hometown), half in Chongqing (Tan Zhongyi's hometown). Live games from 9:00 AM CEST (3:00 AM EDT) | Photo: Gu Xiaobing

4/18/2018 – The 24-year old former Women's World Champion, in an interview with Spiegel Online's Christian Gödecke, explains her current plans for the future, as she shifts her focus in the wake of her impending Rhodes Scholar status at Oxford University and says, "I would prefer not to distinguish between men and women players". | Photo: Macauley Peterson

4/10/2018 – Fabiano Caruana strikes again! A win with black in the final round in Baden-Baden leaves him alone atop the GRENKE Chess Classic standings, with no playoff needed. Caruana defeated Nikita Vitiugov, while all other games ended in a draw. Magnus Carlsen finished the tournament in clear second place. Vitiugov, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Levon Aronian finished with 5 points apiece, tied for third through fifth. | Photos: Georgios Souleidis, Macauley Peterson

4/9/2018 – From March 31st to April 9th, the Grenke Chess Classic takes place in Karlsruhe and Baden-Baden, Germany. Ten grandmasters play a single round-robin, headed by World Champion Magnus Carlsen, Levon Aronian, the winner of the 2017 tournament, Fabiano Caruana, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Viswanathan Anand. Live games and commentary webcast. | Photo: Macauley Peterson