Women’s Speed Chess Championship 2025: Vaishali knocked out in opening round

Indian GM R. Vaishali was eliminated from the Women’s Speed Chess Championship 2025 after losing to American IM Alice Lee in the opening round on Monday.

Lee came from behind to beat Vaishali 8-6 to progress to the quarterfinals.

Divya Deshmukh, fresh off her historic FIDE World Cup triumph and consequently becoming a Grandmaster, is the other Indian in the field. The 19-year-old Divya faces Chinese GM Lei Tingjie in her first-round clash on August 11.

The online event is a single-elimination bracket featuring 16 players. While eight are qualifiers, eight have been directly invited. The total prize money is USD 75,000 with the winner set to take home USD 7,000.

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All matches consist of three segments. In the opening round and the quarterfinals, the players play 5+1 games (time control of 5 minutes with an increment of one second per move) for 45 minutes followed 3+1 games for 30 minutes and finally, 1+1 games for 15 minutes. In the semifinals and the finals, the remaining competitors play 5+1 games for 75 minutes followed by 3+1 games for 50 minutes and finally, 1+1 games for 25 minutes.

Winning a game gives one point while a draw means both players get 0.5 point each. The player with the most points at the end of the final segment wins the match.

Vaishali dominated the 5+1 segment as she led 3.5-0.5 courtesy three wins and a draw. However, Lee bounced back in the 3+1 segment. After a draw, she won four games on the trot. She also triumphed in the last segment by a 3-2 scoreline to seal the victory.