...and here we go again: Elisabeth Paehtz was once more knocked out by Bibisara Assaubayeva, this time in the semifinal. Once again, the final featured Assaubayeva against one of the Muzychuk sisters.
Fiona Steil-Antoni assists the young talent in making the opening move in the game between Mariya Muzychuk and Bibisara Assaubayeva | Photo: WR Chess
The difference, however, was that Assaubayeva had beaten Mariya Muzychuk in Tuesday's rapid final. In the blitz final, she faced Mariya's sister Anna – but more on that later.
Assaubayeva began Wednesday's blitz event by once again facing her opponent from Tuesday's final. She again defeated Mariya Muzychuk. The four-game match ended 2-2, so an Armageddon game was required to decide the winner. Assaubayeva won with white and advanced to face the winner of Paehtz against Humpy Koneru in the semifinal. Paehtz consistently put the Indian under pressure with her very fast play and deservedly advanced to the semifinal with a 3-1 victory.
Elisabeth Paehtz was extremely unlucky to be knocked out by Bibisara Assaubayeva in the blitz. The Kazakh star had also ended her run in the rapid tournament the previous day. | Screenshot from the live broadcast
Against Assaubayeva, the German representative played impressively quickly and well. She had a chance to wrap up the match after three games. But then this happened:
The fourth game was not easy from Paehtz's point of view, but she defended well with black and the game ended in a draw. As on the previous day, a sudden-death game was required. In the Armageddon (without increment until move 60), Paehtz lost to Assaubayeva, who received the black pieces with 4:04 minutes on the clock. Paehtz had 5 minutes. Unlike in the preceding games, Paehtz could not rely on a clear time advantage. Assaubayeva took control after the opening and won convincingly, advancing to the final against Anna Muzychuk.
Anna Muzychuk had given Georgian Nino Batsiashvili no chance in a 3-0 quarterfinal victory. She also needed only three games in the semifinal against Eline Roebers, whom she eliminated after scoring a 2½-½ win.
The final match began with a defeat for the Ukrainian. In game two, however, she struck back successfully with white and levelled the score at 1-1 with a strong performance. There followed a well-played game from both sides, which appropriately ended in a draw.
Bibisara Assaubayeva reached both finals in Saint-Tropez | Photo: WR Chess
The tension continued to rise. Muzychuk again produced a very focused performance in game four and made it clear that she was determined to qualify for the final tournament in Stuttgart. She quickly seized the initiative and already stood well here:
After the blitz and rapid results were combined, it was clear that Assaubayeva had secured a place in the final tournament of the 2026 WR Women's Tour in Stuttgart. The contest between the two Muzychuk sisters was much closer. Mariya reached the rapid final but was knocked out in the first round of the blitz, while Anna had exactly the opposite results. Since Anna won her final, however, she finished a clear second in the combined rapid and blitz standings and will therefore also be in Stuttgart.
Finalists for Stuttgart
Eight players competed in a knockout rapid tournament on Tuesday, 25 August, from 14:00, followed by the blitz tournament on Wednesday, 26 August, from 14:00. Each rapid pairing consisted of two games, while the blitz pairings consisted of four games each. If the score was tied, an Armageddon game followed.
The WR Women's Chess Tour 2026 is a new international tournament series for leading female players, comprising four stops on four continents: Asia, the Americas, Africa and Europe. Each stop features knockout tournaments in rapid and blitz, with both disciplines counting towards qualification. The two most successful players at each stop qualify for the Grand Final, which will be held in Stuttgart on 22 and 23 November. There, eight players will compete in a knockout tournament for the overall title and a prize fund of US$40,000.
| Advertising |
