European Women’s R & B Championships 2024: Ushenina and Maltsevskaya claim titles
Anna Ushenina (Ukraine) and Aleksandra Maltsevskaya (Poland) emerged victorious at the 2024 European Women’s Rapid and Blitz Championships, securing the rapid and blitz titles, respectively. The European Women’s Rapid & Blitz Chess Championships 2024 took place from January 10 to 12 in Novotel Hotel, in Monte Carlo, Monaco. The first event on the schedule, the Blitz Championship, was a 13-round Swiss tournament held on January 10, featuring 126 players from 28 European federations. In a highly competitive event, 12th-seed Aleksandra Maltsevskaya took the lead in Round 8 after defeating Anna Ushenina but suffered a setback in Round 10 against Eline Roebers (Netherlands), allowing Roebers to catch up. Heading into the final 13th round, Maltsevskaya and Roebers were tied for the lead with 9.5/12. However, their paths diverged there: Maltsevskaya secured a crucial victory against Bella Khotenashvili (Georgia) to clinch the title, while Roebers fell to the 2023 champion, Alexandra Kosteniuk (Switzerland). Kosteniuk and Ushenina, who also won her final-round game, tied for second place, with Ushenina earning silver due to a superior Buchholz. Final standings Blitz: 1 Maltsevskaya, Aleksandra POL 2324 10½ 2 Ushenina, Anna UKR 2329 10 3 Kosteniuk, Alexandra SUI 2430 10 4 Roebers, Eline NED 2322 9½ 5 Tsolakidou, Stavroula GRE 2274 9½ 6 Rudzinska, Michalina POL 2117 9 7 Arabidze, Meri GEO 2378 9 8 Khotenashvili, Bella GEO 2347 9 9 Batsiashvili, Nino GEO 2225 9 10 Paehtz, Elisabeth GER 2355 8½ Complete final standings The European Women’s Rapid Championship 2024, an 11-round Swiss tournament held from January 11 to 12 at the same venue, was equally thrilling, with several players sharing the top spot throughout the event. Entering the final 11th round, three participants—Anna Ushenina (pictured below, right), Yuliia Osmak (both Ukraine), and Sarasadat Khademalsharieh (Spain; pictured below left)—shared first place with 8/10. All three drew their final games, allowing Eline Roebers, who defeated Nino Batsiashvili (Georgia), to join them in the standings. The Buchholz tiebreak favored Ushenina, awarding her the gold medal. Khademalsharieh took silver, while Osmak completed the podium with bronze. Final standings Rapid: 1 Ushenina, Anna UKR 2348 8½ 2 Khademalsharieh, Sarasadat ESP 2344 8½ 3 Osmak, Yuliia UKR 2306 8½ 4 Roebers, Eline NED 2332 8½ 5 Javakhishvili, Lela GEO 2295 8 6 Stefanova, Antoaneta BUL 2385 8 7 Kosteniuk, Alexandra SUI 2491 8 8 Narva, Mai EST 2339 8 9 Cramling, Pia SWE 2354 8 10 Sliwicka, Alicja POL 2255 8 Complete final standings Photos: European Chess Union Facebook