2011-2012 Women's Grand Prix, Nalchik

I added the Nalchik event to my page on the 2011-2012 FIDE Women's Grand Prix. After Rostov in August, and Shenzhen in September, this was the third Women's Grand Prix tournament in as many months. The last three events are scheduled for Kazan, Russia, in May 2012; Jermuk, Armenia, in June; and Istanbul, Turkey, in November.

The Nalchik event was marked by the runaway win of Zhao Xue (+9-1=1) and the collapse of former Women's World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk, who finished last (+3-7=1), only a half-point ahead of her last place finish in the Rostov Grand Prix event. What went wrong for the self-styled Chess Queen™? Her blog makes no excuses -- Congratulations to Zhao Xue for winning the third Women's Chess Grand Prix in Nalchik -- and features an interview with the winner.