Kazakhstan’s winning streak has ended, but its title challenge remains intact. The women’s national team drew 2-2 with China in the seventh round of the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, leaving both teams on 13 match points at the top of the standings, DKNews.kz reports.
The leaders entered the match with perfect records after winning all six previous rounds. China remains first on tiebreaks, while Kazakhstan is second with four rounds left to play.
16-year-old Yelnaz Kaliakhmet delivers Kazakhstan’s win
The decisive result for Kazakhstan came on the fourth board, where 16-year-old Yelnaz Kaliakhmet defeated China’s Song Yuxin.
Bibisara Assaubayeva drew with Zhu Jiner, while Alua Nurman shared the point with Song Yuxin. Meruert Kamalidenova lost to Lu Miaoyi, who has now scored six points in seven games at the Olympiad. FIDE described China-Kazakhstan as the women’s match of the day and confirmed the 2-2 result.
Kaliakhmet said an opening mistake by her opponent gave her the opportunity she needed.
«China is undoubtedly a very strong team. All their players are very solid and difficult to break down. I managed to catch my opponent making a mistake in the opening, and thanks to that I was able to win the game. I am very happy that I managed to score a point for the team», — Kaliakhmet said.
Her victory proved particularly important because the other three boards produced only one additional point for Kazakhstan.
Both leaders lose perfect records but stay on top
The seventh-round clash was one of the central matches of the day.
Kazakhstan and China had both started the Olympiad with six consecutive match victories and 12 match points. Their draw ended the only two perfect records remaining in the women’s competition.
After seven rounds, both teams have six wins and one draw for 13 match points. China holds first place on tiebreaks, with Kazakhstan second.
Five teams are immediately behind them on 12 points: India, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia and Mongolia. India defeated Germany 3.5-0.5 in Round 7, Georgia beat Poland 2.5-1.5, while Bulgaria, Armenia and Mongolia all recorded important victories to close the gap on the leaders.
The result leaves little room for error over the remaining four rounds. FIDE’s official schedule confirms that the 11-round Olympiad concludes on September 27.
India is Kazakhstan’s next major test
Kazakhstan will face another heavyweight opponent immediately.
In Round 8, the women’s team will play defending Olympiad champion and top seed India. India confirmed the pairing after its convincing victory over Germany.
The two teams entered the tournament among the leading contenders. India was seeded first, while Kazakhstan started as the third seed; FIDE confirmed that both opened the competition with 4-0 victories in the first round.
Kazakhstan has remained unbeaten since then. Its run included a 3.5-0.5 victory over Slovenia and a 3-1 win over Armenia before the team continued its perfect start through six rounds.
The India match now gives Kazakhstan a second consecutive direct test against one of the tournament’s highest-rated teams.
Kazakhstan’s men suffer heavy defeat against Serbia
The seventh round was far more difficult for Kazakhstan in the Open section.
The men’s team lost 0.5-3.5 to Serbia. Aldiyar Ansat earned Kazakhstan’s only half-point with a draw against Velimir Ivić, while Denis Makhnev, Sauat Nurgaliyev and Daniyal Sapenov lost their games.
Makhnev faced Alexey Sarana, a familiar name to Kazakhstan’s chess audience. Sarana has regularly competed in the country and won the Vladimir Dvorkovich Memorial – Aktobe Open in 2025, as well as the KazChess Masters in Almaty in both 2025 and 2026.
Kazakhstan’s men will face Bosnia and Herzegovina, the 59th seed, in Round 8.
For the women’s team, however, the tournament remains finely balanced at the top. Kazakhstan has taken 13 of a possible 14 match points through seven rounds, and its next opponent is India — one of five teams now just a single point behind.
We previously reported on how Kazakhstan entered the 46th Chess Olympiad as one of the highest-seeded teams in the women’s competition, setting up the medal challenge now unfolding in Samarkand.
