Josefine Heinemann wins women's tournament in Belgrade

by André Schulz
3/12/2025 – The Serbian Chess Federation organised its 56th International Women's Tournament in Belgrade from 1 to 9 March, on the occasion of International Women's Day on 8 March. German WGM Josefine Heinemann won with 7.0/9 and finished a full point ahead of IM Bhakhti Kulkarni from India. | Photos: Tournament page
YOUR PERSONAL CHESS COACH - Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.
FRITZ is more than just a chess engine – it’s a training revolution! Whether you’re taking your first steps into the world of club chess, or already playing at a tournament level: with FRITZ, you can train more efficiently, intelligently and with a more personalised approach than ever before.

The International Women's Tournament in Belgrade has a long tradition and was held for the 56th time this year. In addition to five players from their own country, the Serbian Chess Federation invited five international players, including Josefine Heinemann, a representative of the German Chess Federation. With almost 2300 Elo, Josefine Heinemann was seeded third behind India's Bhakti Kulkarni and Sofia Pogorelskikh, the best Serbian player in the field. 

With 2.5/4 - including two draws against the two players above her in the seeding - Josefine Heinemann started a little cautiously, but then picked up the pace.

In rounds five to eight, Heinemann won all her games, and in round eight she played a particularly fine game.

In the last round Heinemann just needed a draw to win the tournament.

Second was top seed IM Bhakti Kulkarni who drew in the last round against Sofia Pogorelskikh. However, the Indian had to survive a few anxious minutes before the draw was on the board. In her efforts to win the game, she tried to avoid a perpetual check, but ended up in a mating net. However, her opponent allowed her to escape.

Final standings

Rk Name Pts  Tb1 
1 Heinemann, Josefine 7 0
2 Kulkarni, Bhakti 6 0
3 Srdanovic, Jovana 5,5 0
4 Borisova, Ekaterina 5 1
5 Pogorelskikh, Sofia 5 0
6 Zherebtsova, Alexandra 4,5 0
7 Mehmed, Elif 4 1
8 Chelushkina, Irina 4 0
9 Vujovic, Vera 2,5 0
10 Mijic, Sara 1,5 0

Games

Links

Topics: Josefine Heinemann
André Schulz started working for ChessBase in 1991 and is an editor of ChessBase News.