The two remaining perfect records in the Women's Chess Olympiad came to an end in round seven, as China and Kazakhstan drew their direct encounter 2–2 on Wednesday. The result left the two teams tied for first place on 13/14 match points, with the chasing group now only one point behind.
The match itself was quite balanced, though it was the Kazakh side the one with better chances of claiming overall victory. The top two boards ended drawn, as Zhu Jiner shared the point with Bibisara Assaubayeva and Song Yuxin drew Alua Nurman - Nurman missed a few chances to make the most of an advantagous position. The decisive results came lower down the order: Lu Miaoyi defeated Meruert Kamalidenova for China, while Elnaz Kaliakhmet replied by beating Yan Tianqi for Kazakhstan.
Lu's victory continued a very strong individual event, taking her to 6/7. Kaliakhmet is also having a great tournament, as she has so far collected 5½/6 points. Coincidentally, the two winners of the match are both aged 16, and are ranked 4th and 8th among girls under-16 in the live ratings list.
Lu v. Kamalidenova
Kamalidenova created dangerous threats along the light-squared long diagonal in a sharp middlegame, but Lu first dealt with her opponent's threats and then was the one creating a decisive attack on the kingside: 36.Rxf7! Nxf7 37.Nxf7 Qd5 (37...Rxf7 fails to 38.Bc4, pinning the rook) 38.Nxh6+
After 38...Kh7, both 39.Qxf8+ and 39.Qe7+, as played in the game, lead to checkmate. Kamalidenova resigned before allowing 39...Kxh6 40.Qxf8+, and White will queen next on d8.
Lu Miaoyi | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
The handshake ahead of the crucial Alua Nurman v. Song Yuxin encounter | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
With the top-board encounter ending level, several of the teams immediately behind them had an opportunity to close the gap.
India made a significant advance among the main contenders by defeating Germany 3½–½.
Humpy Koneru, Divya Deshmukh and Savitha Shri all scored wins, while Vaishali Rameshbabu drew Elisabeth Paehtz. The result took the defending champions to 12/14 and restored them to within a single point of the leaders after their setback against Poland in round five.
Savitha v. Schulze
Savitha continues her perfect run in Samarkand! The 19-year-old, currently ranked 7th in the under-20 women's live ratings list, collected her six wins in as many games by beating Germany's Lara Schulze on Wednesday. Engines show that this endgame is still holdable for Black, though Schulze failed to find the correct 60...Rd6 and instead went for 60...Ra2?
The white knight then found the right path to collect the h-pawn: 61.Nd4 Ke4 62.Nf5 Nd5 63.Ng3+ and the pawn on h5 will fall next.
Savitha Shri probably sharing insights from her game with her coach Mishra Swayams | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
Georgia also moved to 12/14, although their route was considerably tighter. The second seeds edged Poland 2½–1½, with Nino Batsiashvili and Lela Javakhishvili supplying the Georgian victories. Oliwia Kiolbasa defeated Nana Dzagnidze for Poland, while Meri Arabidze drew Monika Socko.
After a slower start to the event, Georgia have therefore worked their way back towards the top group and now sit alongside India among the closest pursuers.
The next round will bring two particularly important encounters involving the four highest-seeded teams in the competition. Kazakhstan will face top seeds India, while China will meet second-seeded Georgia. Both matches will have an immediate effect on the race for first place.
Georgia's Nino Batsiashvili defeated Poland's Aleksandra Maltsevskaya | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
Three other teams also reached 12/14 after scoring notable wins against higher-rated opposition.
Bulgaria, seeded 11th, defeated 6th-seeded Ukraine 3–1. The first two boards were drawn, as Beloslava Krasteva and Gabriela Antova secured the match with wins on boards three and four.
Armenia, seeded 16th, also continued their strong tournament by beating 7th-seeded Azerbaijan 2½–1½. Lilit Mkrtchian and Elina Danielian scored the Armenian wins with white, while Gulnar Mammadova registered Azerbaijan's only victory.
Mongolia were the third lower-seeded team to join the group one point off the lead. They defeated 8th-seeded France 2½–1½ in a match where three games were drawn. Khishigbaatar Bayasgalan produced the decisive result by beating Sophie Milliet on board three.
The standings after seven rounds therefore show China and Kazakhstan on 13/14, followed closely by India, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia and Mongolia on 12/14.
Elina Danielian is playing on board three for Armenia and scored a key victory on Wednesday | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
Coaches and teammates following the endgame battle between Bulgaria's Gabriela Antova and Ukraine's Tetyana Skarbarchuk | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
The United States, meanwhile, returned to winning ways after collecting only one match point from rounds five and six. They defeated Switzerland 3–1, with Carissa Yip beating former women's world champion Alexandra Kosteniuk on the top board and Tatev Abrahamyan defeating Ghazal Hakimifard on board three. Irina Krush and Rose Atwell drew their games.
The result moved the Americans to 11/14 match points, still two behind the leaders but within reach of the large group ahead of them.
Hosts Uzbekistan also reached 11/14 after a convincing 3½–½ victory over Slovenia, while the Netherlands joined the same group by defeating Türkiye. Greece are also on 11/14.
Tatev Abrahamyan collected her fourth win of the event playing on board four for the United States Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
Uzbekistan v. Slovenia with Afruza Khamdamova and Laura Unuk on the top board | Photo: Michal Walusza / FIDE
| Rk. | SNo | FED | Team | Group | Games | + | = | - | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | CHN | China | A | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 187 | 22,5 | 62 | |
| 2 | 3 | KAZ | Kazakhstan | A | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 167,5 | 20,5 | 62 | |
| 3 | 1 | IND | India | A | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 185,5 | 22 | 62 | |
| 4 | 11 | BUL | Bulgaria | A | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 172 | 22 | 60 | |
| 5 | 2 | GEO | Georgia | A | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 162,5 | 20,5 | 59 | |
| 6 | 16 | ARM | Armenia | A | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 156 | 20 | 59 | |
| 7 | 15 | MGL | Mongolia | A | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 145 | 19 | 60 | |
| 8 | 5 | USA | United States of America | A | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 166 | 21 | 61 | |
| 9 | 13 | UZB | Uzbekistan | A | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 151,5 | 20 | 60 | |
| 10 | 12 | NED | Netherlands | A | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 148 | 20 | 56 | |
| 11 | 24 | GRE | Greece | A | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 124 | 18,5 | 54 | |
| 12 | 20 | ENG | England | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 150 | 21,5 | 52 | |
| 13 | 8 | FRA | France | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 148 | 20,5 | 56 | |
| 14 | 7 | AZE | Azerbaijan | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 144,5 | 19 | 61 | |
| 15 | 9 | POL | Poland | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 143,5 | 18,5 | 64 | |
| 16 | 17 | SUI | Switzerland | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 143 | 19 | 59 | |
| 17 | 10 | GER | Germany | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 142,5 | 17 | 64 | |
| 18 | 14 | SRB | Serbia | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 140 | 19 | 57 | |
| 19 | 30 | IRI | Iran | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 138 | 19 | 58 | |
| 20 | 39 | PER | Peru | B | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 137 | 19,5 | 57 | |
| 21 | 36 | CZE | Czech Republic | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 135 | 19 | 50 | |
| 22 | 32 | BLR | Belarus | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 134 | 19 | 55 | |
| 23 | 23 | ROU | Romania | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 133 | 20 | 54 | |
| 24 | 42 | PHI | Philippines | B | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 133 | 20 | 52 | |
| 25 | 35 | INA | Indonesia | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 133 | 19,5 | 55 | |
| 26 | 28 | ARG | Argentina | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 131,5 | 19 | 54 | |
| 27 | 38 | CAN | Canada | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 125 | 20 | 49 | |
| 28 | 19 | ESP | Spain | A | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 123,5 | 17 | 58 | |
| 29 | 43 | UZB | Uzbekistan 2 | B | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 122 | 19 | 48 | |
| 30 | 21 | VIE | Vietnam | A | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 121 | 19 | 52 |
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