The 4th tournament of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024–2025 series began with the opening ceremony on Friday, March 14, in Cyprus’ capital Nicosia. Organised under the auspices of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and the Cyprus Chess Federation, the event is supported by its main sponsor, Freedom24. Ten of the world’s top female chess players will compete in the prestigious tournament, which runs until March 25.
The first round of play on March 15 featured a ceremonial first move by Evgenii Tiapkin, Executive Director of Freedom24. In accordance with tournament rules, players from the same federation faced each other at the start of the event.
“As we celebrate the fourth stage of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix in Nicosia, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering chess culture in Cyprus. Chess is more than a game, it embodies strategic thinking, discipline, and perseverance, qualities that extend far beyond the board,” said Tiapkin.
Freedom24 and its parent company, Freedom Holding Corp., have demonstrated a long-term commitment to promoting chess culture worldwide, particularly in Cyprus, where Freedom24 is headquartered. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp., emphasised the importance of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix in promoting women’s chess.
“I believe that chess is not only a tool for personal growth and character building — it is also a powerful way to shape a more harmonious, conscious, tolerant, and forward-looking society,” Turlov said. “Freedom Holding Corp. and FIDE share a common mission — to make the world a better place.”
Freedom24 was also the general partner of the 4th leg of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022–2023, held in Cyprus in May 2023. In addition, the company sponsored the Cyprus Open Chess Championship 2024 and other key chess events both domestically and internationally.
FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky welcomed the participants at the opening ceremony and expressed gratitude to the Cyprus partners for hosting and organising the event. “Over the past two years, Cyprus has developed into one of Europe’s chess hubs. We are delighted with our cooperation with the Cyprus Chess Federation and our partner, Freedom Holding Corp., who have been instrumental in supporting important chess events worldwide. Our mission here extends beyond staging a high-level tournament — we aim to lay a solid foundation and build on our previous efforts to make chess more popular, accessible, and attractive to all.”
Criton Tornaritis, President of the Cyprus Chess Federation, also praised Freedom24’s role in promoting chess in Cyprus.“This is the second time we have hosted this tournament in Cyprus, and I hope there will be a third. Before Freedom24’s support, chess was weak in Cyprus. Now, we have over 2,000 members in the Cyprus Chess Federation, most of them children.”
The tournament features an elite line-up, led by Aleksandra Goryachkina, who currently leads the Grand Prix standings after consecutive wins in the 2nd and 3rd legs in Shymkent and Monaco. She is joined by Indian stars Harika Dronavalli and Divya Deshmukh, the renowned Muzychuk sisters, Anna and Mariya, former European champion Nana Dzagnidze, Germany’s top player Elisabeth Paehtz, Greece’s leading player Stavroula Tsolakidou, and the series’ newcomers, Zhu Jiner and Olga Badelka, replacing Lei Tingjie and Regina Theissl-Pokorna.
The Women’s Grand Prix Series 2024–2025 consists of six tournaments, featuring a total of 20 players. Each competitor will take part in three of the six events and accumulate points based on her final ranking. The overall winner of the Grand Prix Series will be the player with the highest cumulative score in all three tournaments.
Chess enthusiasts can follow live updates and watch the games in real time on the official FIDE website.
