Wenjun Ju becomes Women’s World Champion for the fifth time
Wenjun Ju defeated Zhongyi Tan 6.5-2.5 in a twelve game match to become the FIDE Women's World Champion for the fifth time. The eventual champion started the Chongqing segment with a victory, completing her hat-trick. Then she won the next game too which meant that she needed only a draw in the next four games. That's what she did in Game 9 to retain her crown. The total prize fund was €500000. Wenjun won 60% which is €300000 since the tie-breaks were not needed, Zhongyi got €200000. Zhongyi could not bring her best game and the match turned out to be extremely one-sided. Photo: FIDE/Anna Shtourman
Wenjun needed least amount of games in all her title defenses in matches
Among all her title defenses, Wenjun Ju needed the least amount of games against Zhongyi Tan, nine. Their 2018 World title match had a score of 5.5-4.5, against GM Aleksandra Goryachkina in 2020, Wenjun won by 6-6 (2.5-1.5) and the score over GM Tingjie Lei (CHN) was 6.5-5.5. Zhongyi's quest for third match against Wenjun will continue on 5th May as she will participate in the final leg of FIDE Women's GP 2024-25.
Game 7: Wenjun - Zhongyi: 1-0
GM Wenjun Ju (CHN, 2561) scored a hat-trick by winning her third game in-a-row, the first one at Chongqing, China against the Challenger - GM Zhongyi Tan (CHN, 2555).
Instead of making an attempt to open up the position immediately, 37...a4 38.Nxc4 c5 one of the ways what Black could have played. Instead, 37...Kg7?? 38.Kg5 Ba8?? 39.Kxh5 Rb8 40.Rc4 Rh8+ 41.Kg4 and White went on to win the game in the next few moves.
Game 8: Zhongyi - Wenjun : 0-1
For the fourth time in eight games, GM Zhongyi Tan faltered in an endgame. It won't be an overstatement to say that her endgame is an area which was inferior than the reigning Women's World Champion, GM Wenjun Ju. The defending champion registered her fourth consecutive win. Now she just needed a draw in the next four games to retain her crown.
30.Qa7? neglecting the c4-pawn turned out to be a big mistake. White could have played Qa7 after capturing on b5 first. It would have been less damaging for White. 30...bxc4 31.Qxc7 Bb5 32.Nb7 c3 and the passed pawn played a key role in Black earning a victory.
Game 9: Wenjun - Zhongyi: 0.5-0.5
Wenjun needed just a draw to win the match and that's what she did in the ninth game.
Replay live stream
Closing ceremony
Time control and Regulations
The time control for each game is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 1.
If the match is tied at 6-6 after all 12 games, a tiebreak will determine the champion. The tiebreak procedure typically involves a series of rapid and, if necessary, blitz games to ensure a decisive outcome.
Schedule and Venues
The match is scheduled to take place from 1st to 23rd April 2025, across two Chinese cities: Shanghai and Chongqing.
Links
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Women's World Championship 2025 Game 7: Ju Wenjun takes a 5-2 lead
@ 13/04/2025 by FIDE Press Release (en) |
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Women’s World Championship 2025: Wenjun Ju two points ahead at the halfway mark
@ 12/04/2025 by Shahid Ahmed (en) |
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Shanghai and Chongqing to host 2025 FIDE Women’s World Championship Match
@ 11/02/2025 by ChessBase India (en) |