Bulgaria’s Women Shine at European Chess Championship, Finish Just Outside the Medals

The Bulgarian national chess teams concluded their participation at the European Chess Championship in Batumi, Georgia, with both the men’s and women’s squads finishing their campaigns on a high note with final-round victories.

The Bulgarian women’s team achieved a particularly notable success, defeating Germany 2.5–1.5 in the ninth and final round to secure fourth place in the overall standings. This result also ended Germany’s hopes of improving beyond their already guaranteed third-place finish after the previous round.

The decisive point for Bulgaria came from the third board, where Nadya Toncheva triumphed with the black pieces over Josefine Heinemann. The 17-year-old from “Levski Sofia,” who made her debut for the national team this year, proved to be Bulgaria’s standout performer, recording six wins in eight games. Her performance was instrumental in Bulgaria’s strong showing against the defending European champions, who claimed the title two years ago in Budva.

The other three games in the match ended in draws. On the top board, Antoaneta Stefanova shared the point with Dinara Wagner, while Beloslava Krasteva drew with Hanna Marie Klek on the second board. On the fourth board, Viktoria Radeva, despite having a winning position, opted for a safe draw against Lara Schulze to secure the overall team victory.

With six wins and three losses, Bulgaria finished with 12 match points, just one short of Germany’s total. Poland claimed the championship title with 16 match points, followed by Ukraine with 14.

In the men’s event, Bulgaria ended the tournament with a convincing 3.5–0.5 victory over Moldova. Arkadij Naiditsch set the tone with a win on the first board against Ivan Schitco, while Martin Petrov followed up with another victory over Vladimir Hamitevici on the second. The only draw came on the third board between Momchil Petkov and Iulian Baltag, and Kiril Georgiev sealed the strong result by defeating Dmitrii Gubin with black.

The men’s team concluded the championship with 10 match points, placing 16th overall in the final rankings. Ukraine won the men’s title with 15 match points, followed by Azerbaijan and Serbia, each with 13.