FIDE Candidates 2026 R14: Vaishali creates history after defeating Lagno to win Women's Candidates 2026

by Devansh Singh - 16/04/2026

Vaishali Rameshbabu defeated Kateryna Lagno in the final round of FIDE Women's Candidates 2026 to win the tournament. By winning the Candidates, Vaishali secured her spot in the World Championship match against the reigning Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun. Going into the final round, Vaishali had a score of 7.5/13 points, the same as Bibisara Assaubayeva. Divya Deshmukh drew against Bibisara in a wild game, and Vaishali scored a huge win over Kateryna Lagno and was crowned the Champion. Vaishali played some incredible Chess throughout the tournament. She scored 5 wins, had 7 draws, and conceded only 2 losses. Vaishali scored 8.5/14 points to secure the title. Photos: Michal Walusza, Niki Riga/ FIDE, Prajwal Bhat/ChessBase India

The Emotions

Vaishali Rameshbabu won her game against Kateryna Lagno to become the 2026 Candidates champion. It was a huge moment for Indian Chess. Just before the Candidates 2026, Koneru Humpy decided to withdraw from the event, and with her decision, there are now just 3 Indians taking part in the event. R Praggnanandhaa in Open, Vaishali and Divya in Women's. Divya had a tough time in the Candidates, but she delivered when it was required in the last round. Although she was out of the race, she drew against Bibisara to stop her on 8/15 points, and all eyes were on Vaishali, and she delivered!! Vaishali was the lowest-rated player of the Candidates, but that didn't stop her from performing like this and winning the title.

Vaishali and her mother, Nagalakshmi

Editor's Note: This win feels personal. Writing this article makes me emotional and happy at the same time. The way Vaishali performed, the way her mother, Nagalakshmi, is always there to support her, and Pragg is just wonderful to see.

Women's Section

The last round of Women's Candidates was an actual nail-biter. Vaishali Rameshbabu and Bibisara Assaubayeva were co-leading with 7.5/13 points. Vaishali was playing against Kateryna Lagno, and Bibisara was going against Divya Deshmukh. Divya had a better position against Bibisara, but the game ended in a draw. Now, the good thing for Vaishali was that Lagno was also playing for a win, as she was also in the race. Lagno went all in, and it backfired as Vaishali won the Game. Zhu Jiner drew against Anna Muzychuk, and Aleksandra Goryachkina won against Tan Zhongyi.

Vaishali in the press conference

Vaishali Rameshbabu vs Kateryna Lagno (1-0)

The most important and deciding game of the tournament was when Vaishali scored a fantastic win over Lagno. The game started with Lagno deciding to play the Sicilian Dragon, and she gave up a pawn in the opening in the hope of attacking Vaishali's king, but Vaishali grabbed the pawn and perfectly defended her king.

Marina Stylianides, director of Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, played the ceremonial move

Vaishali played 29.Rc4, the idea was pretty simple. She wanted to keep putting pressure on Lagno's queen. In the above diagram, you can see the possible manoeuvring of White's Rook. She defended the position really well as the Bishop on c3 was the real saviour holding up everything.

And the final handshake!!

Check out the game along with commentary by IM Sagar Shah.

Check out the post-game emotions

Vaishali's mother, Nagalakshmi, Brother Pragg and team members Pranesh and Vaibhav Suri are waiting for her to come outside the playing hall

Here she comes

The pure emotions!

Nagalakshmi's constant support was one of the most crucial reasons for her kids' success

Smiles all around

Pragg was always there to support Vaishali

Hurrayyyy!!!

When you just can not process what is going on!!

Proud Mother

Family

We caught up with her for a detailed interview afterwards - Vaishali talks about the game, her team, her feelings, and a whole lot more!

Divya Deshmukh vs Bibisara Assaubayeva

We can not forget the importance of Divya's match with Bibisara in the final round. Divya was in a clearly winning position, but could not manage to win; the draw was sufficient to hold Bibisara on a half point behind Vaishali. With this draw, Bibisara scored 8/14 points

Divya Deshmukh

Divya Deshmukh vs Bibisara Assaubayeva (0.5-0.5)

Aleksandra Goryachkina won against Tan Zhongyi to secure joint 3rd place with Zhu Jiner

Anna Muzychuk vs Zhu Jiner (0.5-0.5)

Champion: Vaishali Rameshbabu | Graphic: Anmol Bhargav

The match we will be waiting for

Round 14 Results | Graphic: FIDE

Final Ranking | Graphic: FIDE

Replay games of the Women's section

Open Section

Javokhir Sindarov already won the event with a round to spare, and it was a relaxed day for him as he made a quick draw against Wei Yi to finish on a record 10/14 points. Fabiano Caruana scored a win over Andrey Esipenko while Anish Giri defeated Matthias Bluebaum to finish the event on a high note. Praggnanandhaa and Hikaru Nakamura also played a solid draw.

Champion: Javokhir Sindarov

After Javokhir Sindarov won the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026 with a round to spare, he received a very important call - from the President of Uzbekistan! Watch their conversation in this video

Anish Giri got an amazing position out of the opening and converted it pretty easily against Matthias Bluebaum

R Praggnanandhaa vs Hikaru Nakamura (0.5-0.5)

Fabiano Caruana defeated Andrey Esipenko with black pieces to finish the event

Round 14 Results | Graphic: FIDE

Final Rankings | Graphic: FIDE

10/14 points is a new record!!

Replay games of the Open section

Photo Gallery: ChessBase India, FIDE

Vaishali with Jan Gustafsson

Sindarov is taking questions in the Scheinberg lounge

When the mic is taller than you

Vaishali is coming out of the playing hall

Sindarov signs a t-shirt of a young fan

You can see the happiness

FIDE Team

Champion: Vaishali Rameshbabu

Anish won a beautiful game against Bluebaum

Vaishali in ChessBase India's Live Stream

Videos:

We sit together with Vaishali late in the night after her win at the FIDE Women's Candidates 2026. We speak about her preparation, her mindset, her team and go over each of her games! It is an interview that gives you the complete picture of how Vaishali won the Candidates' tournament 2026.

After the final round of the FIDE Candidates 2026, there was a fun Q&A session with Javokhir Sindarov, the winner of the tournament. It featured some interesting questions, followed by an autograph and photo session — a nice moment for both the fans and Sindarov to interact.

15 minutes of raw and unseen footage of Vaishali, Pragg, and the team after her historic win at the FIDE Women’s Candidates 2026!

Enjoy some unseen footage from the press conference of R Vaishali after she won the FIDE Women's Candidates 2026, featuring wholesome reactions from his team and family after making history

Live Stream

Watch Live Stream by IM Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal from Cyprus | Video: ChesBase India

Check out the Tweets

Venue: Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort, Cyprus

Official FIDE partner for Candidates 2026 | Photo: FIDE Chess

The multi-award-winning Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort has been selected by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) as the ideal destination to host the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026, an event of historic and international significance. This selection represents the highest recognition both for Cyprus and for Cap St Georges Hotel& Resort, affirming the prestige, reliability, and organizational excellence required to host a world-class chess tournament. Surrounded by landscaped gardens with centuries-old olive trees, the resort reflects the island’s character through refined architecture and well-designed spaces, with a strong focus on privacy, comfort, and attentive service.

Both tournaments are held side by side at the Cap St Georges Hotel and Resort in Cyprus, a five-star coastal venue near Paphos. The resort offers a calm and professional setting for elite competition, with the playing hall, accommodation, and preparation areas located within the same complex, allowing players to focus fully on the event. Photo Gallery of Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort

Enjoy an amazing venue tour of the FIDE Candidates 2026 in Cyprus, happening at the Cap St Georges Hotel & Resort in Paphos. Sagar and Amruta give an extensive tour. Enjoy!

Schedule and Format

Each tournament features eight of the world’s strongest players competing in a double round-robin format over fourteen rounds of classical chess. All the games will start at 15:30 Local Time/18:15 IST

Key details and Information

Two tournaments will be held side by side – the (Open) FIDE Candidates Tournament and the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament.

Format: In both the Open and the Women’s, the eight qualified players will compete in a double round-robin tournament, consisting of 14 rounds.

Time control: The games will be played with a time control of 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 41.

Prize fund: The minimum prize fund for the event stands at a record €1,000,000.

Tie-breaks: In the event of a tie for first place after 14 rounds, a playoff will be held to determine the winner who qualifies for the World Championship Match, which will take place in November 2026.