Women's Candidates 2024 qualification

[Mick Norris]

Due to be in Toronto from 3 to 25 April 2024 with the winner qualifying for the WC match v Ju Wenjun

Eight players shall qualify for the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament 2024 by the following criteria:

A. 1 spot – FIDE Women’s World Championship Match 2023, Runner-up

B. 2 spots – FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2022-23 The players who finish 1st and 2nd in the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2022-23. If one of these players is GM Tan Zhongyi and she is also participant of the FIDE Women’s World Championship Match 2023, the unallocated spot shall be awarded to the next non-qualifying player in the final ranking of the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2022-23.

C. 3 spots – FIDE Women’s World Cup 2023 The players who finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2023. If the FIDE Women’s World Champion 2023 and/or one of the players qualified via tracks A or B is (are) among these three qualifiers, the unallocated spot(s) shall, in order of priority:
- be awarded by rating*;
- be awarded to the player who finishes 4th in the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2023 (if she has not qualified via tracks A or B);
- became (an) additional spot(s) at the FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2023.

*The spot shall be awarded to the player having the highest standard rating among non-qualified players in the January 2024 FIDE rating list, provided she has played at least 30 games rated in the FIDE standard rating lists from February 2023 to January 2024.

D. 2 spots – FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2023 The players who finish 1st and 2nd in the FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2023. If the FIDE Women’s World Champion 2023 and/or one of the players qualified via tracks A, B or C is (are) among these two qualifiers, the unallocated spot(s) shall be awarded to the next non-qualifying player of the FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2023.

If any replacement is needed, the spot shall be awarded to the player having the highest standard rating among non-qualified players in the January 2024 FIDE rating list, provided she has played at least 30 games rated in the FIDE standard rating lists from February 2023 to January 2024.

Qualified so far:

Finalist of last match - Lei Tingjie

Grand Prix - Kateryna Lagno, Aleksandra Goryachkina

World Cup - Nurgyul Salimova, Anna Muzychuk

Rating - TBD

Grand Swiss - IoM 23 October - 5 November first 2 (non-qualified)

[Mick Norris]

From the Grand Swiss, we have Rameshbabu Vaishali and Tan Zhongyi qualified

It would seem the Rating spot would go to Hou Yifan, but she probably wouldn't play the Candidates anyway, so if I am reading it right, it would go to Humpy Koneru who is next on the list

[Mick Norris]

FIDE

Humpy Koneru also made her way into the Candidates grabbing the rating spot as Hou Yifan did not play enough games in 2023

[LawrenceCooper]

FIDE

Humpy Koneru also made her way into the Candidates grabbing the rating spot as Hou Yifan did not play enough games in 2023

Which leaves us with two Chinese, Indian & Russian and one from Bulgaria & Ukraine.

[Mick Norris]

So presumably the first (and 8th) round will feature Lei Tingjie v Tan Zhongyi, Rameshbabu Vaishali v Humpy Koneru, Kateryna Lagno v Aleksandra Goryachkina, and Nurgyul Salimova v Anna Muzychuk

Should be an interesting event, not easy to pick a likely winner

[Mick Norris]

Regulations

Women's Candidates:

Lei Tingjie, 2023 Match Runner-up

Kateryna Lagno, 2022-23 WGP 1st

Aleksandra Goryachkina, 2022-23 WGP 2nd

Nurgyul Salimova, 2023 World Cup 2nd

Anna Muzychuk, 2023 World Cup 3rd

Vaishali Rameshbabu, 2023 Grand Swiss 1st

Tan Zhongyi, 2023 Grand Swiss 2nd

Humpy Koneru, Best by Rating (World Cup spot replacement)

Time control: 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 1.

Prizes: 24,000 euros for the winner, 18,000 euros for the second place, and 12,000 euros for the third place. Additionally, players receive 1,750 euros for every half-point scored.

[Ian Thompson]

Candidates Regulations, from which:

Women's Candidates Tournament Information:

Time control: 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 1.

Open Candidates Tournament Information:

Time control: 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 41.

Why the different time controls? Does FIDE think that women can analyse more quickly than men, that women can make their minds up quicker than men, or does it think that women are incapable of analysing as deeply as men?

[Mick Norris]

The women have increment from move 1, whereas the men from move 40 which I think has caused issues in the past; I'm not sure if this is just custom of previous events, or whether it's broadly copied across from the qualification events (what were the Grand Swiss time controls?)

[LawrenceCooper]

Candidates Regulations, from which:

Women's Candidates Tournament Information:

Time control: 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 1.

Open Candidates Tournament Information:

Time control: 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 41.

Why the different time controls? Does FIDE think that women can analyse more quickly than men, that women can make their minds up quicker than men, or does it think that women are incapable of analysing as deeply as men?

On Twitter/X Emil Sutovsky states that both time controls are based on player preference. It remains to be seen if the commentary focus on the women as they approach move 40 before switching to the open where the scramble will occur in the ten minutes after the women have made the time control.

[Paul Cooksey]

It does feel that by posting a graphic of the different open and women's time controls FIDE were deliberately trying to stir up some drama in much the same way they did by including Magnus in the open announcement.

Emil does seem to be an all publicity is good publicity adherent.

[Mick Norris]

Having had chance to check, the FIDE Grand Swiss 2023 had the same time control for the women as the Candidates, but the Open there was 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 50 minutes for the next 20 moves, followed by 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 1

The 2022 Open Candidates was 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, 60 minutes for the next 20 moves, and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment per move starting from move 61

[Kevin Thurlow]

"The 2022 Open Candidates was 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, 60 minutes for the next 20 moves, and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment per move starting from move 61"

That seems unnecessarily complicated and so does

"Time control: 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 41."

I always wonder about the motivation in such cases. Is it just to try to confuse the players?