Ju and Lei obtain first classical wins
Ju Wenjun became the sole leader of the Norway Chess Women tournament after scoring her first classical win of the event in round seven. The women's world champion defeated Sara Khadem with the white pieces, collecting 3 points and thus overtaking previous co-leaders Humpy Koneru and Anna Muzychuk.
Humpy and Koneru faced each other on Monday and drew both their classical and Armageddon games, which allowed Muzychuk, who had the black pieces, to earn 1½ points and stay within striking distance of the top.
Standings after round 7
Rk |
Name |
FED |
Rtg |
Pts |
1 |
Ju Wenjun |
CHN |
2580 |
11½ |
2 |
Anna Muzychuk |
UKR |
2526 |
11 |
3 |
Humpy Koneru |
IND |
2543 |
10½ |
4 |
Lei Tingjie |
CHN |
2552 |
9 |
5 |
Vaishali R |
IND |
2475 |
8 |
6 |
Sara Khadem |
SPA |
2449 |
6 |
The King‘s Indian Attack is a universal opening: easy to learn, flexible, and rich in both tactical and positional opportunities.

Anna Muzychuk stands in sole second place | Photo: Michal Walusza
Ju's win over Khadem was decided in a technical position with queens, rooks, and bishops of opposite colours. A key moment came on move 42, when Khadem erred with 42...Qd2. A more tenacious defence would have started with 42...Qa5, defending the f5-pawn.
Ju capitalised with 43.Be6 Qe2 44.Bxf5+, gaining a tempo while grabbing a pawn. Despite her material advantage, Ju needed precision to convert the win, which she finally secured on move 73, marking a strong performance in her seventh mini-match of the event.
Glorious sacrifices, unexpected tactics and checkmating attacks. The King's Gambit is one of the oldest and most romantic openings in the game of chess. These DVDs contain all you need to know to play the King's Gambit.

Ju Wenjun v. Sara Khadem | Photo: Michal Walusza
Lei Tingjie also scored her first classical win in Stavanger, defeating Vaishali Rameshbabu with the white pieces. The Chinese grandmaster gained a slight initiative out of the Giuoco Piano and gradually built up pressure through the middlegame.
In a closely contested encounter, she outmanoeuvred her opponent and emerged victorious after 46 moves.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.Nc3 h6 6.h3 d6 7.Na4 Bb6 8.a3 Be6 9.Bxe6 fxe6 10.b4 0-0 11.0-0 Qe8 12.Bb2 12.c3 Nh5 13.Nxb6 axb6 12...Nh5 13.Nxb6 axb6 14.g3 Qf7 15.Nh2 Nd4 16.c3 Nf3+ 17.Nxf3 Qxf3 18.Qxf3 Rxf3 19.Rad1 19...b5 20.Kg2 Rf7 21.c4 bxc4 22.dxc4 Nf6 23.Rfe1 Nd7 24.Re2 Nb6 25.Rc2 Rd7 26.Rd3 Kf7 27.c5 dxc5 28.Rf3+ Kg8 29.bxc5 Na4 30.Ba1 Ra5 31.c6 bxc6 32.Rxc6 Nc5 33.Bc3 Rb5 34.Re3 34.Bxe5 Nxe4 35.Bxc7 e5 36.Re3 Rd4 34...Nd3 35.a4 Rb6 36.Rc4 36.Rxc7 Rxc7 37.Ba5 Rc2 38.Bxb6 Rxf2+ 39.Kg1 Rd2 40.a5 Nb4 36...Rb3 37.Re2 Ra3 38.a5 Nc1 38...c5 39.Rd2 Kf7 40.Kf1 g5 39.Bb2 39...Nxe2 39...Rxg3+ 40.fxg3 Nxe2 41.Bxe5 40.Bxa3 Nd4 41.a6 Nb5 42.Bb2 Na7 43.Bxe5 c6 44.Bb8 Nb5 45.Rxc6 Kf7 46.Rb6 1–0
Doesn’t every chess game get decided by mistakes? Absolutely. But most players never truly comprehend that they are making the same kind of mistakes over and over again.

Lei Tingjie | Photo: Michal Walusza
All games - Classical
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
Please, wait...
- Start an analysis engine:
- Try maximizing the board:
- Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
- Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
- Drag the split bars between window panes.
- Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
- Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
- Create an account to access the games cloud.
All games - Armageddon
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
Please, wait...
- Start an analysis engine:
- Try maximizing the board:
- Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
- Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
- Drag the split bars between window panes.
- Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
- Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
- Create an account to access the games cloud.
Links