India’s R. Vaishali became the first from the country to win the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament after she beat Kateryna Lagno in the final round on Wednesday in Cyprus.
She will now challenge Ju Wenjun for the Women’s World Chess Championship title later in the year.
The inaugural Women’s Candidates was held in 1952 and served as the qualifying event for the World Championship until 1997, when the match format was replaced by knockout tournaments. The Candidates returned in 2019 after FIDE restored the match format to determine the Women’s World Champion.
Here’s a look at the full list of FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament winners over the years.
List of players who have won the Women’s Candidates over the years
1952 – Elisabeth Bykova – USSR
1955 – Olga Rubtsova – USSR
1959 – Kira Zvorykina – USSR
1961 – Nona Gaprindashvili – USSR
1964 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1967 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1971 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1974 – Nana Alexandria – USSR
1977 – Maia Chiburdanidze – USSR
1980 – Nana Alexandria – USSR
1983 – Irina Levitina – USSR
1986 – Elena Akhmilovskaya – USSR
1988 – Nana Loseliani – USSR
1990 – Xie Jun – China
1992 – Nana Loseliani – Georgia
1994 – Zsuzsa Polgar – Hungary
1997 – Xie Jun – China
2019 – Aleksandra Goryachkina – Russia
2022 – Lei Tingjie – China
2024 – Tan Zhongyi – China
2026 – R. Vaishali – India
Published on Apr 15, 2026
List of players who have won the Women’s Candidates over the years
1952 – Elisabeth Bykova – USSR
1955 – Olga Rubtsova – USSR
1959 – Kira Zvorykina – USSR
1961 – Nona Gaprindashvili – USSR
1964 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1967 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1971 – Alla Kushnir – USSR
1974 – Nana Alexandria – USSR
1977 – Maia Chiburdanidze – USSR
1980 – Nana Alexandria – USSR
1983 – Irina Levitina – USSR
1986 – Elena Akhmilovskaya – USSR
1988 – Nana Loseliani – USSR
1990 – Xie Jun – China
1992 – Nana Loseliani – Georgia
1994 – Zsuzsa Polgar – Hungary
1997 – Xie Jun – China
2019 – Aleksandra Goryachkina – Russia
2022 – Lei Tingjie – China
2024 – Tan Zhongyi – China
2026 – R. Vaishali – India
