Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk is a Russian and Swiss chess grandmaster who was the Women's World Chess Champion from 2008 to 2010 and Women's World Rapid Chess Champion in 2021. She was European women's champion in 2004 and a two-time Russian Women's Chess Champion. Kosteniuk won the team gold medal playing for Russia at the Women's Chess Olympiads of 2010, 2012 and 2014; the Women's World Team Chess Championship of 2017; and the Women's European Team Chess Championships of 2007, 2009, 2011, 2015 and 2017; and the Women's Chess World Cup 2021. In 2022, due to sanctions imposed on Russian players after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, she switched federations, and as of March 2023 she represents Switzerland.
Koneru Humpy is an Indian chess player best known for winning the FIDE Women's rapid chess championship in 2019. In 2002, she became the youngest woman ever to achieve the title of Grandmaster (GM) at the age of 15 years, 1 month, 27 days, beating Judit Polgár's previous record by three months. In October 2007, Humpy became the second female player, after Polgár, to exceed the 2600 Elo rating mark, being rated 2606.
Anna Olehivna Muzychuk is a Ukrainian chess player who holds the title of Grandmaster (GM). She is the fourth woman in chess history to attain a FIDE rating of at least 2600. She has been ranked as high as No. 197 in the world, and No. 2 among women. Muzychuk is a three-time world champion in fast chess, having won the Women's World Rapid Chess Championship once in 2014 and the Women's World Blitz Chess Championship twice in 2014 and 2016. In classical chess, she was the 2017 Women's World Championship runner-up.
Almira Skripchenko is a Moldovan-French chess player who holds the titles of International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She won the European Women's Individual Chess Championship in 2001, and is a seven-time French Women's Chess Champion.
Hou Yifan is a Chinese chess grandmaster, four-time Women's World Chess Champion and the second highest rated female player of all time. A chess prodigy, she was the youngest female player ever to qualify for the title of grandmaster and the youngest ever to win the Women's World Chess Championship.
Anna Yuriyivna Ushenina is a Ukrainian chess grandmaster who was Women's World Chess Champion from November 2012 to September 2013.
Nikita Kirillovich Vitiugov is a Russian chess grandmaster who internationally represents England as of September 2023. He changed federations in response to the Russia-Ukraine war. He was a member of the victorious Russian team at the World Team Chess Championship in 2009 and 2013. Vitiugov won the Gibraltar Masters tournament in 2013 and the Grenke Open in 2017. Vitiugov won the 2021 Russian Chess Championship.
Ding Liren is a Chinese chess grandmaster and the reigning World Chess Champion. He is the highest-rated Chinese chess player in history and also a three-time Chinese Chess Champion. He was the winner of the 2019 Grand Chess Tour, beating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the finals and winning the 2019 Sinquefield Cup. Ding is the first Chinese player ever to play in a Candidates Tournament and pass the 2800 Elo mark on the FIDE world rankings. In July 2016, with a Blitz rating of 2875, he was the highest-rated Blitz player in the world. In July 2023, Ding became the No. 1 ranked Rapid player, with a rating of 2830.
2015 in sports describes the year's events in world sport. This year, some sporting events listed below are qualifying ones, for athletes, to compete at the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro. From July 2015 to May 2016, the venues for the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics will be tested, by hosting various events in them.
Bella Khotenashvili, known prior to 2023 as Bela Khotenashvili, is a Georgian chess grandmaster. She competed in the Women's World Chess Championship in 2012, 2015 and 2017.
Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina is a Russian chess player who holds the title of Grandmaster (GM). She is the No. 3 ranked woman in the world by FIDE rating behind only Hou Yifan and Koneru Humpy. With a peak rating of 2611, she is also the fourth-highest rated woman in chess history, and the highest-ever rated Russian woman. Goryachkina was the challenger in the 2020 Women's World Championship match, which she lost in rapid tiebreaks to Ju Wenjun. She is also a three-time Russian Women's Chess Champion, which she achieved in 2015, 2017, and 2020. In August 2023, she won the FIDE Women's World Cup after defeating Nurgyul Salimova in a tie break match.
Olga Alexandrovna Girya is a Russian chess player. She holds the title of Grandmaster (GM), which FIDE awarded her in 2021. She was a member of the gold medal-winning Russian team in the 2014 Women's Chess Olympiad and in the 2017 Women's World Team Chess Championship. Girya competed in the Women's World Chess Championship in 2012, 2015, 2017 and 2018. She won the Russian Women's Chess Championship in 2019.
Jan-Krzysztof Duda is a Polish chess grandmaster. A prodigy, he achieved the grandmaster title in 2013 at the age of 15 years and 21 days. As of December 2023, he is ranked No. 1 in Poland and No. 16 in the world. His personal best rating of 2760 makes him the highest ranked Polish player of all time.
David Antón Guijarro is a Spanish chess grandmaster. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 2013, at the age of 18. He has competed at two Chess Olympiads.
Alina Anatolyevna Kashlinskaya is a Russian-born Polish chess player. She holds the titles International Master and Woman Grandmaster, which FIDE awarded her in 2014 and 2009, respectively. Kashlinskaya is the 2019 European Women's Individual Chess Champion.
Kacper Piorun is a Polish chess player who received the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM) in September 2012. He is a five-time winner of the World Chess Solving Championship, and two-time winner of the Polish Chess Championship.
Irina Bulmaga is a Moldovan-born Romanian chess player. She received the FIDE titles of Woman Grandmaster (WGM) in 2012 and International Master (IM) in 2013.
Nurgyul Salimova is a Bulgarian chess player. She was awarded the titles of International Master and Woman Grandmaster by FIDE in 2019. Salimova won the Bulgarian Women's Chess Championship in 2017. In 2023, she won the silver medal in Bulgarian Chess Championship, and was the only woman to compete in the open section.
Elvira Bayakhmetovna Berend is a Kazakhstan-born Luxembourg chess player who holds the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She is a three-time Luxembourg Chess Championship winner and four-time World Women's Over 50 Chess Championship winner.
Govhar Beydullayeva is an Azerbaijani chess Grandmaster. She is the 2022 World Girls U-20 Champion as well as the World Girl's U18 Champion in 2021.
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