European Women's Championship: Winning streak snapped as Hnatyshyn loses to Arabidze

by Stefan Liebig
6/2/2026 – On the top board in round seven of the 2026 European Women's Championship in Batumi, 2023 European Champion Meri Arabidze (pictured left) defeated 15-year-old Anastasiia Hnatyshyn, bringing the Ukrainian youngster's winning streak to an end. With the victory, Arabidze caught up with Hnatyshyn in the standings. The third co-leader is Sabrina Vega Gutierrez, who defeated Ulviyya Fataliyeva. | Photos: European Chess Union
YOUR PERSONAL CHESS COACH - Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.
FRITZ is more than just a chess engine – it’s a training revolution! Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.

It was a highly exciting encounter between Meri Arabidze and Anastasiia Hnatyshyn. Playing White, Arabidze pressed for a win but made several inaccuracies in the middlegame, allowing Hnatyshyn to seize the initiative. With a clearly superior position, the young Ukrainian then ran short of time and committed a costly mistake with 39...Qd7?, leading to a position that was very difficult to handle in practice, even though the engine still assessed it as equal. Arabidze went on to reach a favourable endgame and eventually secured the win, bringing her score to 6 points out of 7.

After six consecutive victories, Anastasiia Hnatyshyn's remarkable winning streak came to an end with the black pieces against Meri Arabidze. | Photo: European Chess Union

IM Sabrina Vega Gutierrez (ESP, 2375) defeated IM Ulviyya Fataliyeva (AZE, 2450) with the white pieces. The game developed at a rapid pace, and Fataliyeva committed a serious mistake on move 18 that immediately gave White a clear advantage. Vega demonstrated excellent technique and remarkable precision, converting her edge without giving her opponent any chances.

Trailing the three co-leaders is a group of five players on 5.5/7, all of whom won their seventh-round games: IM Laura Unuk (SLO, 2289), FM Alexandra Zherebtsova (MNE, 2242), IM Eline Roebers (NED, 2389), GM Anna Ushenina (UKR, 2420) and IM Olga Badelka (AUT, 2392).

Results

Bd. No. White Elo Pts. Result Pts. Black Elo No.
1 8
IM Arabidze, Meri 2409 5 1 - 0 6 WFM Hnatyshyn, Anastasiia 2207
76
2 19
IM Vega Gutierrez, Sabrina 2375 5 1 - 0 5 IM Fataliyeva, Ulviyya 2450
3
3 27
IM Bivol, Alina 2361 4½ 0 - 1 4½ GM Ushenina, Anna 2420
6
4 35
WGM Rakhmangulova, Anastasiya 2328 4½ ½ - ½ 4½ IM Salimova, Nurgyul 2404
10
5 11
IM Kiolbasa, Oliwia 2397 4½ ½ - ½ 4½ IM Kulon, Klaudia 2377
18
6 12
IM Badelka, Olga 2392 4½ 1 - 0 4½ WGM Mkrtchyan, Mariam 2365
26
7 13
IM Buksa, Nataliya 2392 4½ 0 - 1 4½ FM Zherebtsova, Alexandra 2242
57
8 78
WIM Aydin, Gulenay 2204 4½ 0 - 1 4½ IM Roebers, Eline 2389
16
9 47
IM Unuk, Laura 2289 4½ 1 - 0 4 IM Javakhishvili, Lela 2442
4
10 5
IM Narva, Mai 2426 4 1 - 0 4 GM Arakhamia-Grant, Ketevan 2306
45
11 7
GM Khotenashvili, Bella 2415 4 1 - 0 4 WGM Hrebenshchykova, Yelyzaveta 2309
44
12 9
IM Wagner, Dinara 2408 4 ½ - ½ 4 FM Jarocka, Liwia 2288
48
13 51
WGM Schneider, Jana 2283 4 1 - 0 4 IM Mammadzada, Gunay 2374
20
16 29
IM Milliet, Sophie 2361 4 1 - 0 4 WGM Safarli, Josefine 2253
55
24 23
WGM Klek, Hanna Marie 2369 3½ 1 - 0 3½ WIM Kirtadze, Anastasia 2233
66
28 33
IM Khukhashvili, Sopiko 2329 3½ 0 - 1 3½ WGM Sieber, Fiona 2224
70
42 104
WIM Ismayil, Malak 2122 3 1 - 0 3 WFM Peglau, Charis 2238
59
57 75
WFM Bashylina, Luisa 2208 2½ 1 - 0 2½ WFM Hayrapetyan, Nvard 2057
124

Standings after round 7

Rk. Name Pts.  TB1 
1 Hnatyshyn, Anastasiia 6 0
2 Arabidze, Meri 6 0
3 Vega Gutierrez, Sabrina 6 0
4 Unuk, Laura 5,5 0
5 Zherebtsova, Alexandra 5,5 0
6 Roebers, Eline 5,5 0
7 Ushenina, Anna 5,5 0
8 Badelka, Olga 5,5 0
9 Fataliyeva, Ulviyya 5 0
10 Kiolbasa, Oliwia 5 0
11 Socko, Monika 5 0
12 Toncheva, Nadya 5 0
13 Narva, Mai 5 0
14 Kobak, Polina 5 0
15 Salimova, Nurgyul 5 0
16 Kazarian, Anna-Maja 5 0
17 Milliet, Sophie 5 0
18 Rakhmangulova, Anastasiya 5 0
19 Kulon, Klaudia 5 0

...165 players

Games

Official page

<< FIDE ratings - June 2026
European Women's Championship - Live! >>
Topics: Batumi, European Women's Championship 2026
Stefan Liebig, born in 1974, is a journalist and co-owner of a marketing agency. He now lives in Barterode near Göttingen. At the age of five, strange pieces on his neighbour’s shelf aroused his curiosity. Since then, the game of chess has cast a spell over him. Flying high in the NRW youth league with his home club SV Bad Laasphe and several appearances in the second division team of Tempo Göttingen were highlights for the former youth South Westphalia champion.
Discussion and Feedback Submit your feedback to the editors

See also

Batumi: Mirzoeva and Hnatyshyn lead

5/29/2026 – Elmira Mirzoeva (pictured left) of England tops the standings after four rounds of the 2026 European Women’s Championship in Batumi. She shares first place with 15-year-old Ukrainian Anastasia Hnatyshyn. Seeded 53rd and 76th respectively, the two surprise leaders are half a point ahead of the next four players. Another half point behind them is a large chasing group of 29 players. | Photo: European Chess Union
More...
 1

See also

Batumi: 18 players with perfect start

5/27/2026 – After two rounds, as many as 18 players remain on a perfect 2/2 score and share the lead at the European Women’s Championship in Batumi, Georgia. But some of the favourites stumbled. Second seed IM Yuliia Osmak of Ukraine (2451) lost to Germany’s Charis Peglau (2238), while England’s Bodhana Sivanandan (2374, pictured) lost a theoretical battle against Switzerland’s Sofiia Hryzlova. | Photo: Tournament page
More...
 1

Video

60m The Two Knights

This entry into the 60 minutes series concentrates on the Modern variation of the Italian game where White opens the centre early : 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nf6 4 d4 exd4 5 e5!. This line can be reached by various move orders, most frequently from the Scotch 3 d4 exd4 4 Bc4. It's a sharp variation and Grandmasters such as Evgeny Sveshnikov have used it frequently,with very good results. It's a perfect line for club players to adopt which is relatively easy to learn and which contains many traps. All the main responses are covered here, including 5...d5, 5...Ng4 and 5...Ne4 and the conclusion is that is is difficult for Black to equalize in a straightforward way. Problems are being posed, which over the board might prove tough to solve.