IM Sara Khadem suffered every chess player’s worst nightmare in round seven of the 2025 Monaco FIDE Women’s Grand Prix when, after over five hours and 74 moves, she resigned against GM Koneru Humpy in an equal position. Humpy joins GM Aleksandra Goryachkina and IM Batkhuyag Munguntuul half a point behind leader GM Kateryna Lagno, who was tested for 107 moves by GM Tan Zhongyi.
Round eight starts on Wednesday, February 26, at 9 a.m. ET / 15:00 CET / 7:30 p.m. IST.
Monaco FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Round 7 Results
We almost got five draws in round seven, which would have been no reflection at all of the fighting chess we witnessed.
Humpy’s bounce-back win has taken her into a tie for second place, while Khadem’s second loss in a row has left her just half a point ahead of last place.
Monaco FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Standings After Round 7
The one exception to the rule of fighting chess in round seven was Paehtz-Goryachkina, which really was “blink and you missed it.” The commentators hadn’t looked at the game before it had already concluded in an 11-move draw by repetition, with GMs Elisabeth Paehtz and Aleksandra Goryachkina quickly leaving the scene with more time on their clocks than they’d started with.
That meant second-placed Goryachkina didn’t apply pressure to the leader, but she would still end the day in second place, alongside IM Batkhuyag Munguntuul, who remains unbeaten after making a sixth draw in a row.
Her opponent, GM Harika Dronavalli, made a fifth draw in a row herself, after starting with two losses. Munguntuul seemed to have an opening edge with the white pieces, but when she allowed simplifications on the queenside the game hurtled toward a draw.
The key game of the round for the standing was Tan vs. Lagno, with the Women’s World Championship Challenger having a chance to catch the leader with a win. She almost managed, since for a brief moment she was winning in the endgame, but instead we got a marathon 107-move draw, with the Chinese star only stopped when Lagno spotted a way to force stalemate at the end.
Kateryna Lagno finds a stalemate idea to end a 107-move, 6-hour game and remain the sole leader of the Monaco FIDE Women’s Grand Prix with 2 rounds to go! https://t.co/nX9ehRoebw pic.twitter.com/NkRD2rjm5R
— chess24 (@chess24com) February 25, 2025
In round six IM Bibisara Assaubayeva missed a win right out of the opening, but in round seven the tables were turned. It was her opponent GM Alexandra Kosteniuk who let a big advantage slip away. Assaubayeva was able to swap off queens and then hold on in what was still an unpleasant endgame.
The greatest drama, however, came in the one decisive game of the round.
Humpy 1-0 Khadem
It’s hard to argue against Humpy deserving this bounce-back win. A very offbeat opening saw the Indian star gain a completely winning position by move 30. When she later went for a piece sacrifice it only complicated her conversion, but defending against four pawns for a piece was no easy matter. A mistake on move 70 looked to be the end of the road for Khadem as 71.f4! was again winning.
After 71…Rxh7 72.f5+ Khadem had to give up the rook, but there would be one last, huge twist. GM Alojzije Jankovic had barely finished explaining that 74.Rh5? surprisingly doesn’t win and that 74.Kf4 is an only move, when Humpy made the blunder.
If the Iranian-born IM, now representing Spain, had played 74…Kd5! it turns out White has no way to force a win. Instead, though, she extended her hand in resignation!
A tragic end to what had been a fantastic fight.
Khadem faces another tough game, Black against a rested Goryachkina, in round eight, while Humpy has the chance to overtake leader Lagno, though she does have the black pieces for their clash. Munguntuul is also Black but would stake a big claim for winning the Grand Prix and earning a grandmaster norm if she beats Paehtz.
Round 8 Pairings
How to watch?
The 2025 Monaco FIDE Women’s Grand Prix is the third of six legs of the 2024-2025 FIDE Women’s Grand Prix. The 10-player round-robin runs February 18-27 in Monaco. Players have 90 minutes, plus 30 minutes from move 40, with a 30-second increment per move. The top prize is €18,000 (~$20,000), with players also earning Grand Prix points. Each of the 20+ players competes in three events; the top two qualify for the 2026 FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament that decides the World Championship challenger.
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