European Women's Ch: 70th seed Anastasia Kirtadze, aged 16, leads

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
4/7/2025 – After six rounds at the Women's European Chess Championship in Rhodes, 16-year-old Georgian WFM Anastasia Kirtadze has taken the sole lead with 5½ points. Seeded 70th and rated 2180, Kirtadze has defeated several top-ranked opponents. With five rounds remaining, she stands ahead of a strong chasing group that includes Sophie Milliet, Mai Narva, Bella Khotenashvili and Teodora Injac. The tournament runs over eleven rounds and is set to conclude on Friday. | Photo: European Chess Union
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A Georgian rising star

Six rounds into the 2025 Women's European Chess Championship, taking place in Rhodes, it is 16-year-old WFM Anastasia Kirtadze of Georgia who has taken the spotlight. Despite being seeded 70th in the tournament, Kirtadze is the sole leader at the halfway point, with an outstanding score of 5½ points out of a possible 6.

Kirtadze, who entered the event with an Elo rating of 2180, has been the surprise performer of the championship so far. She has faced an exceptionally tough line-up, playing five out of her six games against opponents ranked in the tournament's top 20. Her victories have come against some of the most experienced and high-rated players in the field, including Elina Danielian of Armenia (12th seed), her compatriot Lela Javakhishvili (6th) and Serbia's Teodora Injac (2nd). These wins have earned her a provisional gain of 165.2 rating points!

The tournament, which spans eleven rounds and is scheduled to conclude on Friday, remains highly competitive. Just half a point behind Kirtadze are four players: French IM Sophie Milliet (20th seed), Estonian IM Mai Narva (16th), Georgian GM Bella Khotenashvili (9th) and the aforementioned Injac. Kirtadze is set to face Milliet in the seventh round.

With five rounds still to play and many experienced players close behind, maintaining the lead will be a considerable challenge for the young Georgian. Nevertheless, her performance in the first half of the tournament highlights her individual promise and reinforces Georgia's reputation as a powerhouse in women's chess.

Teodora Injac

Following her loss against Anastasia Kirtadze in the first round, Teodora Injac bounced back with five wins in a row and is now tied for second place

Maltsevskaya 0-1 Kirtadze

Analysis by GM Karsten Müller

Standings after round 6

Rk. Name Pts.  TB1 
1 Kirtadze, Anastasia 5,5 0
2 Narva, Mai 5 0
3 Khotenashvili, Bella 5 0
4 Injac, Teodora 5 0
5 Milliet, Sophie 5 0
6 Maltsevskaya, Aleksandra 4,5 0
7 Danielian, Elina 4,5 0
8 Urh, Zala 4,5 0
9 Bulmaga, Irina 4,5 0
10 Beydullayeva, Govhar 4,5 0
11 Mkrtchian, Lilit 4,5 0
12 Roebers, Eline 4 0
13 Socko, Monika 4 0
14 Zherebtsova, Alexandra 4 0
15 Mammadova, Gulnar 4 0
16 Arabidze, Meri 4 0
17 Ushenina, Anna 4 0
18 Batsiashvili, Nino 4 0
19 Javakhishvili, Lela 4 0
20 Tsolakidou, Stavroula 4 0
21 Savina, Anastasia 4 0
22 Toncheva, Nadya 4 0
23 Gevorgyan, Maria 4 0
24 Krasteva, Beloslava 4 0
25 Vega Gutierrez, Sabrina 4 0

...136 players

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Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.