Sara Khadem al-Shariah Among the Stars of Women's Chess Worldwide

The Women's Grand Prix tournament is currently being held in Tehran with the participation of the 12 best female chess players in the world, and Sara Khadem al-Shariah is Iran's representative in this competition. The 19-year-old Iranian chess player won the title of Asian Youth Champion in 2008. The following year, she stood on the podium in Turkey for the World Under-12 Championships, repeating the title achieved by Atousa Pourkashiyan in 2000. In a domestic competition to qualify for the World Grand Prix, she faced Pourkashiyan and after five rounds of play, achieved three victories, one draw, and one loss to become the first Iranian representative in the history of this competition. In 2012, Sara became the Asian Rapid Chess Champion and repeated this title at the World Championships in 2013. The following year, she won the silver medal at the World Youth Championships in India. At the age of 18, she obtained the title of International Master at the 84th World Chess Congress. Antoaneta Stefanova, a Bulgarian Grandmaster and former world champion, is among the participants in this competition and has been at the top level for over a decade. Sara Khadem al-Shariah stated regarding her selection to play in these competitions: 'I am the first Iranian chess player to experience this tournament. Competing with the stars of world chess is a great honor for me, but I need a long-term foreign coach for a strong presence. Unfortunately, foreign coaches who come to Iran work temporarily.' The best female chess player in Iran currently told ISNA news agency: 'I currently hold the sixth position in the youth ranking globally and hope to achieve a similar position in the adult category.' She also mentioned that she received the 'International Master Norm for Men' during the Iceland tournament, making her the only Iranian woman to achieve this title. Sara Khadem al-Shariah is now competing in Tehran with the top adult players in the world. In the first four rounds of the tournament, she did not achieve victory but also did not suffer any losses. The Iranian representative managed to hold Swedish Grandmaster Pia Cramling, the European women's champion, to a draw. Nana Zagnidze from Georgia, who also holds the Grandmaster title, agreed to a draw against Sara. Harika Dronavalli, the 11th-ranked player in the world from India, also could not achieve victory against the Iranian representative, and the game ended in a draw. Sara continued her unbeaten streak in the fourth round, drawing against Zhu Wenjun from China, earning two points from four games. Currently, Natalia Pogonina from Russia is leading with three and a half points. The tournament will be held over 11 rounds, and tougher games are ahead for the Iranian representative. Other players present in this competition include Humpy Koneru from India, Stefanova from Bulgaria, Zhao from China, Pogonina and Valentina Gunina from Russia, Nino Batsiashvili from Georgia, and Natalia Zhukova from Ukraine.