Overview

• Vaishali and Kateryna Lagno finished level on points in Samarkand, with the average rating of opponents tie-break used to determine the winner.
• The ARO split was 2434 to 2433 in Vaishali’s favor, a margin tournament officials linked to her recent rating loss in Chennai.
• The victory confirms Vaishali’s place in the 2026 Women’s Candidates, joining Indian qualifiers Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh.
• Under FIDE regulations, Vaishali and Lagno will divide the $40,000 first prize equally, with the women’s prize pool up to $230,000 this year.
• Anish Giri won the open event with 8/11 and earned $90,000 as the overall open prize fund rose to $625,000.