First World Women's Team Chess Championship 2007, Russia
This event is taking place from May 19 to 30 in Ekaterinburg, Russia, with
women's teams from ten national federations – smong them Russia, Ukraine,
China, Armenia, Georgia, Netherlands, Poland and Vietnam – participating.
The venue is the five-star Atrium Palace Hotel, where the teams are also staying.
The town of Yekaterinburg – which is usually romanized to Ekaterinburg,
is located on the eastern side of the Ural mountains and is the main industrial
and cultural center of the Urals Federal District. Its population well over
one a million makes it Russia's fifth largest city. It was founded in 1721 by
Vasily Tatischev and named after Saint Catherine, the namesake of Tsar Peter
the Great's wife Empress Catherine I (Yekaterina).

Yekaterinburg is famous for its theaters, like the Academic Ballet and Opera,
the Sverdlovsk Academic Theater of Musical Comedy and the Academic Dramatic
Theater. The city is the center of New Drama movement of contemporary Russian
playwrites, and is also the capital of contemporary dance. There are more than
30 museums in Yekaterinburg.

House of governor of Yekaterinburg, built in the early 19th century
Participants
Countries |
Players |
Czech Republic |
Katerina Nemcova, Petra Blazkova, Olga Sikorova, Jana Jackova |
Germany |
Jessika Nill, Elisabeth Pähtz, Ketino Kachiani-Gersinska, Melanie
Ohme, Maria Schöne |
Ukraine |
Inna Gaponenko, Oksana Vozovic, Tatjana Vasilevich, Anna Ushenina, Anna,
Kateryna Lahno |
Russia |
Ekaterina Kovalevskaya, Ekaterina Korbut, Elena Tairova, Nadezhda Kosintseva,
Tanya Kosintseva |
Poland |
Marta Przezdziecka, Jolanta Zawadzka, Iweta Rajlich, Monika Socko, Karina
Szczepkowska |
China |
Zhao Xue, Huang Qian, Ruan Lufei, Sheng Yang, Hou Yifan |
Georgia |
Sopio Gvetadze, Sopiko Khukhashvili, Nino Khurtsidze, Lela Javakhishvili,
Maia Chiburdanidze
|
Vietnam |
Le Kieu Thien, Hoang Thi Bao Tram, Pham Le Thao Nguyen, Le Than Tu, Nguyen
Thi Thanh An |
Botswana |
Tshepiso Lopang, Sylvia Pilane Masego, Ontiretse Sabure, Tuduesto Sabure,
Boikhusto Modongo |
Armenia |
Liana Aghabekian, Siranush Andriasian, Nelly Aginian, Lilit Mkrtchyan,
Elina Danielian. |
At the grand opening ceremony the participants and guests of the championship
were treated to a laser show, performance by acrobats, etc. Present were the
Governor of the Sverdlovsk region, Eduard Rossel and FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.

A cement truck arrives for the ceremonial laying of a foundation stone...

... by Governor Eduard Rossel and FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov

... for a new Chess Academy to be built in Yekaterinburg

Gala opening ceremony of the Women's Team Championship

A Ural singer on the stage with the Championship logo in the background

The world of chess – traced by a laser beam
Round one – 20.5.2007
In the first round of the championship China beat Vietnam resoundingly with
3.5-0.5. The Russian team easily won against the Germans with a 3-1 score. Tatyana
Kosintseva and Nadezhda Kosintseva drew against Elizabeth Pähtz and Ketino
Kachiani-Gersinska; Ekaterina Korbut beat Jessika Nill and Ekaterina Kovalevskaya
beat Maria Schöne.

Ekaterina Korbut, playing for Russia

Germany's Elisabeth Pähtz (pronounced "Pay-ts")

Tatiana Kosentseva playing for the Russian team
The encounter Ukraine vs Armenia was a seven-hour battle, which the Ukraine
team won 3-1. Maya Chiburdanidze won her game for the Georgian team, which beat
the Czechs 2.5-1.5. Poland curshed Botswana 4-0. There were no drawn matches
in the first round, which confirms that we are in for uncompromised battles
of other rounds.

Maia Chiburdannidze playing Jana Jackova in Georgia vs Czech Republic
China |
3.5-0.5 |
Vietnam |
Zhao Xue |
1-0 |
Le Kieu Thien Kim |
Hou Yifan |
1-0 |
Le Thanh Tu |
Ruan Lufei |
1-0 |
Hoang Thi Bao Tram |
Shen Yang |
½-½ |
Nguyen Thi Thanh An |
Russia |
3-1 |
Germany |
Kosintseva, Tatiana |
½-½ |
Paehtz, Elisabeth |
Kosintseva, Nadezhda |
½-½ |
Kachiani-Gersinska, Ketino |
Korbut, Ekaterina |
1-0 |
Nill, Jessica |
Kovalevskaya, Ekaterina |
1-0 |
Schoene, Maria Randi |
Poland |
4-0 |
Botswana |
Socko, Monika |
1-0 |
Sabure, Tuduetso |
Zawadzka, Jolanta |
1-0 |
Lopang, Tshepiso |
Szczepkowska, Karina |
1-0 |
Sabure, Ontiretse |
Przezdziecka, Marta |
1-0 |
Pilane, Masego, Sylvia |
Geogia |
2.5-1.5 |
Czech Republic |
Chiburdanidze, Maya |
1-0 |
Jackova, Jana |
Javakhishvili, Lela |
1-0 |
Sikorova, Olga |
Khukhashvili, Sopiko |
½-½ |
Blazkova, Petra |
Gvetadze, Sofio |
0-1 |
Nemcova, Katerina |
Ukraine |
3-1 |
Armenia |
Lahno, Kateryna |
½-½ |
Danielian, Elina |
Ushenina, Anna |
1-0 |
Mkrtchian, Lilit |
Gaponenko, Anna |
1-0 |
Aghinian, Nelly |
Vasilevich, Tatiana |
½-½ |
Andriasian, Siranush |
Round two – 21.5.2007
The second round saw the probably key encounter of the entire tournament. In
an eight-hour struggle the Chinese team produced an unprecedented 4-0 whitewash
of their Russian opponents!

WGM Shen Yang, rated 2440, playing on board four for China
Nobody could have anticipated such a result. The Russian team decided not to
field its most experienced player, Ekaterina Kovalevskaya, and to try a new
team composition: Tatiana and Nadezhda Kosintseva, Ekaterina Korbut and Elena
Tairova. After the opening it was clear that there would be long struggles on
all four boards. On board three Ekaterina Korbut managed to outplay Ruan Lufei
and get good chances to win. But she wasn’t able to increase the advantage
consistantly. A couple of mistakes lead to the worsening of her position and
finally Ekaterina lost. After that bad things happened with the rest of the
Russian team. The loss of Elena Tairova was a pity. At first she had a bad position,
then she not only equalised but managed to win an extra pawn. As compensation
Chinese Huang Qian had a good central piece in the endgame. During the sixth
hour Tairova made a mistake and the centralization of the opponent turned into
an advantage. The Chinese player promoted a pawn, for which Tairova had to give
a piece together with the game. The Kosintseva sisters did not put up much resistance,
and in the end the meeting of the two biggest opponents finished with a “dry
victory" for the Chinese team.

13-year-old Hou Yifan beat Nadezhda Kosintseva with black
In the rest of the games of the second round there were small surprises. For
instance the Armenian team, which is considered to be one of the favourites
for the medals, lost to the team of Vietnam 1.5-2.5. Poland beat Germany 3:1,
after a five-hour battle. The match between Georgia and Botswana ended earlier
than any other match – the Georgian team won 4:0, even without the participation
of their top player Maya Chiburdanidze. She had a day off today.
Round 2 – 21.5.2007
Vietnam |
2.5-1.5 |
Armenia |
Le Kieu Thien Kim |
0-1 |
Danielian, Elina |
Le Thanh Tu |
½-½ |
Mkrtchian, Lilit |
Hong Thi Bao Tram |
1-0 |
Andriasian, Siranush |
Pham Le Thao Nguyen |
1-0 |
Aghabekian, Liana |
Czech Republic |
1-3 |
Ukraine |
Jackova, Jana |
½-½ |
Lahno, Kateryna |
Sikorova, Olga |
0-1 |
Ushenina, Anna |
Blazkova, Petra |
0-1 |
Vasilevich, Tatiana |
Nemcova, Katerina |
½-½ |
Vozovic, Oksana |
Botswana |
0-4 |
Georgia |
Sabure, Tuduetso |
0-1 |
Javakhishvili, Lela |
Lopang, Tshepiso |
0-1 |
Khurtsidze, Nino |
Sabure, Ontiretse |
0-1 |
Khukhashvili, Sopiko |
Pilane Masego, Sylvia |
0-1 |
Gvetadze, Sofio |
Germany |
1-3 |
Poland |
Paehtz, Elisabeth |
½-½ |
Socko, Monika |
Kachiani-Gersinska, Ketino |
½-½ |
Rajlich, Iweta |
Nill, Jessica |
0-1 |
Zawadzka, Jolanta |
Ohme, Melanie |
0-1 |
Szczepkowska, Karina |
China |
4-0 |
Russia |
Zhao Xue |
1-0 |
Kosintseva, Tatiana |
Hou Yifan |
1-0 |
Kosintseva, Nadezhda |
Ruan Lufei |
1-0 |
Korbut, Ekaterina |
Huang, Qian |
1-0 |
Tairova, Elena |
Pictures and information supplied by Elmira Mirzoeva,
Press-attaché of the 1st World Women’s Team Championship
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