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Divya Deshmukh Named Best Female Player at FIDE Awards
Divya Deshmukh is a chess player from India.
FIDE named her the Best Female Player for the latest Olympiad award period.
She received the honour at a ceremony in Samarkand.
Divya has won several important chess competitions.
In 2025, she won the Women’s World Cup and became a Grandmaster.
She will also play in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament.
At the same Olympiad, 11-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan made history for England.
Bodhana became the youngest player ever to earn the Woman Grandmaster title.
Indian International Master Divya Deshmukh received FIDE’s Best Female Player award for the 2024–2026 Olympiad cycle.
The honour was presented at the closing ceremony of the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand.
Deshmukh won the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup, earning the Grandmaster title and a place in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament.
She previously won the 2022 Indian Women’s Chess Championship, the 2023 Asian Women’s Chess Championship and the 2024 FIDE World Junior Girls’ Championship.
Indian-origin player Bodhana Sivanandan, representing England, became the youngest woman to earn the Woman Grandmaster title at age 11.
- Who
- Indian International Master Divya Deshmukh was named Best Female Player; Javokhir Sindarov received the other player award. Bodhana Sivanandan also made a separate record-setting achievement at the Olympiad.
- What
- FIDE announced its Best Female Player and other player honours for the 2024–2026 Olympiad cycle, while Bodhana Sivanandan became the youngest Woman Grandmaster.
- Where
- The ceremony took place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, during the 46th Chess Olympiad.
- When
- The awards were presented during the closing ceremony of the 46th Chess Olympiad; the cycle covered September 2024 to August 2026.
- Why
- FIDE presented the honours as part of its Excellence Awards for the Olympiad cycle; the announcement did not tie the player awards to a specific tournament result or score.
Key facts
- Award recipient
- Divya Deshmukh
- Award
- Best Female Player, 2026 FIDE Excellence Awards
- Award cycle
- September 2024 to August 2026
- Birth
- December 9, 2005, in Nagpur
- Major 2025 achievement
- Won the FIDE Women’s World Cup and earned the Grandmaster title
- Candidates qualification
- Qualified for the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament
- Bodhana Sivanandan
- Became the youngest Woman Grandmaster at age 11 while representing England
Quotes
Bodhana Sivanandan
An 11-year-old Indian-origin chess player representing England at the Chess Olympiad
“I like travelling and also because I do full-time school as well, it links to loads of school subjects, so it's really useful there as well.”
livemint.com
“I'm happy to do it, but I want to keep going and keep making history as well, instead of just stopping here.”
livemint.com
Sources
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