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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 grandmaster. She's a runner-up of the World Championship and the winner of the World Rapid Championship 2019. In 2002, she became the youngest woman ever to achieve the title of Grandmaster aged 15 years, 1 month, 27 days. Humpy is a gold medalist at the Olympiad, Asian Games, and Asian Championship. She is also the first Indian female grandmaster.
Antoaneta Stefanova is a Bulgarian chess grandmaster and Women's World Champion from 2004 to 2006. She has represented Bulgaria in the Chess Olympiad in 2000 and the Women's Chess Olympiad since 1992.
Pia Ann Rosa-Della Cramling is a Swedish chess grandmaster. Since the early 1980s, she has been one of the strongest female players in the world as well as having been the highest-rated woman in the FIDE World Rankings on three occasions. She was the clear number-one-rated woman in the January 1984 rating list, and joint number-one-rated woman in the January 1983 and July 1984 lists. In 1992, she became the fifth woman to earn the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM).
Zhao Xue is a Chinese chess player. She is the 24th Chinese person to achieve the title of Grandmaster. Zhao was a member of the gold medal-winning Chinese team at the Women's Chess Olympiad in 2002, 2004 and 2016, and at the Women's World Team Chess Championship in 2007, 2009 and 2011. She has competed in the Women's World Chess Championship in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2017 and 2018, reaching the semifinals in 2010.
Anna Olehivna Muzychuk is a Ukrainian chess 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.
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, often referred to by his initials, MVL, is a French chess grandmaster who is a former World Blitz Champion. With a peak rating of 2819, he is the seventh-highest rated player in history.
Hou Yifan is a Chinese chess grandmaster, four-time Women's World Chess Champion and professor at Shenzhen University. She is 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.
Ju Wenjun is a Chinese chess grandmaster. She's the current World Champion. In March 2017, she became the fifth woman to achieve a rating of 2600. She is a four-time Women's World Chess Champion, having won the title first in May 2018. She then defended her title in November 2018, 2020, and 2023.
Harika Dronavalli is an Indian chess player who holds the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM). She was part of the gold winning women's team at the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024. She has won three bronze medals in the Women's World Chess Championship, in 2012, 2015 and 2017. Harika was honored with the Arjuna Award for the year 2007–08 by the government of India. In 2016, she won the FIDE Women's Grand Prix event at Chengdu, China and rose up from world no. 11 to world no. 5 in FIDE women's ranking. In 2019, she was awarded the Padma Shri for her contributions towards the field of sports.
Vidit Santosh Gujrathi is an Indian chess grandmaster. He attained the title of grandmaster in January 2013, becoming the 30th player from India to do so. He is the fourth Indian player to have crossed the Elo rating threshold of 2700. He became the third Indian ever to qualify for a FIDE Candidates tournament by winning the FIDE Grand Swiss 2023.
Yuliia Vladyslavivna Osmak is a Ukrainian chess player who holds the title of Woman grandmaster and International master. Women's Chess Olympiad winner (2022).
Gunay Vugar qizi Mammadzada is an Azerbaijani chess player who holds the titles of International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM) through the International Chess Federation (FIDE). She has been an under-10 girls' World Youth Champion, and both an under-8 and an under-14 girls' European Youth Champion. Mammadzada is a two-time Azerbaijani women's national champion, which she achieved in 2017 and 2019. She has represented Azerbaijan at the Chess Olympiad, the World Team Chess Championship, and the European Team Chess Championship, winning both team and individual bronze medals at the latter in 2019. Mammadzada has a peak FIDE rating of 2483 and has been ranked as high as No. 18 in the world among women.
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.
Ulviyya Fataliyeva is an Azerbaijani chess player who holds the title of International Master. She won the European Women's Individual Chess Championship in 2024.
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.
Polina Sergeevna Shuvalova is a Russian chess player. She holds the FIDE titles of International Master and Woman Grandmaster. She is the 2019 World Girls U-20 Champion as well as the World Girl's U18 Champion in 2018 and 2019. As of 2023, Shuvalova has earned one of three title norms required to become a grandmaster.
Divya Deshmukh is an Indian chess player who holds the title of Woman Grandmaster and International Master. She's a three-time gold medalist at the Olympiad. Deshmukh has also won multiple golds at the Asian Championship, the World Junior Championship as well as the World Youth Championship.
Michalina Rudzińska is a Polish chess Woman Grandmaster (WGM) (2024). She is twice winner of Polish Women's Chess Championships.
