The FIDE Women’s World Championship has started in Tehran. It’s a 64-player knock-out format event with a series of two-game matches, where the winner advances and the loser goes home. The final match is all of four games. There are, of course, rapid, blitz, and Armageddon tie-breaking games when necessary. The prize fund is $450,000 with a first prize of $60,000.
Controversy over the tournament began when current women’s champ, Hou Yifan, pulled out from FIDE’s women’s championship cycle in protest over the format, asking why women can’t have the same format as the men. It got even more controversial when FIDE decided to hold the event in Iran, which, due to religious laws, will require the players to wear head scarfs. There are also concerns about rules that forbid men and women who aren’t married to one another to be alone in the same room, restrictions on freedom of speech, and possible negative consequences of public exercising, jogging outside for example.
Leading the boycott against the religious requirements was the current US women’s champion, Nazi Paikidze. She was joined by former women’s world champ, Ukrainian Mariya Muzychuk. Another boycotter, Carolina Lujan, Argentina’s top-ranked woman, wrote about her concerns on her Facebook page: “The mandatory use of hijab do not seem to me . . . a simple dress code. . . . I’m not ready to be forced to use it. Also . . . a possible confusion could send us to jail or worse.’’ Sadly, FIDE did nothing to assuage these fears and the event went on as planned.
Former US women’s champ Irina Krush, citing safety concerns from the State Department, declined her invitation. However, three lower rated American players made the trip, Viktorija Ni, Sabina-Francesca Foisor, and Katerina Nemcova. Sadly, they all lost in the first round, making only $3,750, which barely covers the cost of the trip.
Even without these players, it is still a strong event with nine players over 2500. The clear favorite is Ju Wenjun, whose great results of late have pushed her rating over 2600.
Coming events: Feb. 25, Boylston $15 Open, Boylston CC, Cambridge, www.BoylstonChess.org; Feb. 26., New England Chess School Spiegel Cup Series (Scholastic) Tournament, www.ChessNE.com/tournament.
Recent results: Boylston Valentine Day Open, Open, 1st, A. Felix-Botta, 3.5-.5, Under: 1st: Joy Cao, 4-0; Concord-Carlisle 2nd Annual Blitz, 1st; Alexander Erlich-Herzog, 11.5-.5.
Answer to today’s problem: 1…Bxd4+! 2.Rxd4 Qf1+! 3.Bxf1 (forced) gxf1(Q) (or R) #.
Chris Chase can be reached at BostonGlobeChessNotes@gmail.com.
