The fourth day of the 2026 European Women’s Chess Championship began with a culinary introduction to local culture. Before the start of round four, the players and tournament officials gathered for a special lunch featuring authentic Adjarian khachapuri. As part of Adjara’s renowned hospitality, the participants were not only invited to enjoy this traditional dish but also had the opportunity to watch — and take part in — its preparation from start to finish.

ChessBase Magazine 231

From the 2026 Candidates Tournament, featuring a video review by Dorian Rogozenco, to Jan Werle’s opening video on the French Tarrasch Defence, and Oliver Reeh’s tactical column ‘Top Grandmasters at Work’. Analyses by Giri, So, Wei Yi and many others.
ChessBase Magazine offers top-class training material for club players and professionals! World-class players analyse their finest games and explain the ideas behind the moves. Opening specialists present the latest trends in opening theory and exciting ideas for your repertoire. Master trainers in tactics, strategy and endgames show you exactly the tricks and techniques you need to become a successful tournament player! Available as a download (including the magazine as a PDF file) or as a printed magazine with a download key sent by post.
Included: CBM #231 as a “ChessBase Book” for iPad, tablet, Mac etc.! At books.chessbase.com

 

Perfect score

Two players have emerged as the surprise leaders of the 2026 European Women’s Championship in Batumi with a perfect 4/4 score after four rounds: WGM Elmira Mirzoeva (2265), the English player seeded 53rd, and 15-year-old Ukrainian WFM Anastasiia Hnatyshyn (2207), who started the event as the 76th seed.

By contrast, the tournament favourites have had a difficult start. Top seed Stavroula Tsolakidou of Greece (2455) and second seed Yuliia Osmak of Ukraine (2451) are currently languishing in 106th and 94th place respectively, with just 1½ and 2 points from four games.

The 15-year-old Ukrainian Anastasiia Hnatyshyn (left) continues her remarkable run, winning her fourth consecutive game by defeating fifth seed Mai Narva of Estonia. | Photo: European Chess Union

Hnatyshyn faced IM Mai Narva of Estonia on the top board. The 219-point rating advantage enjoyed by the Estonian seemed to have little effect on the young underdog. Playing White, Hnatyshyn obtained an edge out of the opening and steadily increased her advantage as the game progressed. It was an impressive performance by the 15-year-old Ukrainian, who gave her opponent no chance of a comeback and converted her advantage into victory after 47 moves.

Thanks to a slightly better tiebreak score, Mirzoeva sits just ahead of the young Ukrainian in the standings. She defeated FM Anna-Maja Kazarian (Netherlands, 2317) with the black pieces in a highly complex encounter.

Mirzoeva built up a clear advantage early in the middlegame but then ran short of time and committed an error that handed Kazarian what should have been a decisive edge. Fortunately for the English player, Kazarian failed to convert her winning opportunity and blundered on move 53, completely overlooking a mating net around her own king. Mirzoeva seized the chance and wrapped up the game just three moves later.

Third seed Ulviyya Fataliyeva (right), the 2024 European Women's Champion, is currently in 10th place with 3 points from 4 games. | Photo: European Chess Union

The leading duo is closely pursued by four players on 3½/4: IM Oliwia Kiolbasa (Poland, 2397), WIM Gulenay Aydin (Turkey, 2204), IM Nurgyul Salimova (Bulgaria, 2404) and IM Gunay Mammadzada (Azerbaijan, 2374).

They are followed by a large group stretching from 7th to 35th place. This section of the standings is of particular interest, as the top ten finishers will qualify for the 2026 Women’s World Cup.

Standings after round 4

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Games

Links

• Tournament page
• Chess-Results