Turkmen Chess Players Set National Record for Most Medals Won at a Single Championship
Young chess players from Turkmenistan delivered an outstanding performance at the Central and North Asian Youth Chess Championship for boys and girls in the U8–U20 age categories, setting a new national record for the highest number of medals won by Turkmen athletes at a single chess championship.
The tournament was held from June 30 to July 9 on the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan. It brought together 479 players from six countries: Kazakhstan (122), Kyrgyzstan (188), Russia (54), Tajikistan (11), Turkmenistan (19), and Uzbekistan (85).
In the classical chess competition, Turkmen players won six medals: one gold, two silver, and three bronze.
The tournament consisted of nine Swiss-system rounds with a time control of 90 minutes plus a 30-second increment per move.
Gold Medal
In the U10 category, Bagul Jumayeva (rating 1597), a fourth-grade student from Secondary School No. 2 in Danev District of Lebap Region (born in 2017), won the gold medal with 8 points, increasing her rating by 67.6 points.
Silver Medals
• Annamuhammet Hommadov (rating 2396), a third-year student at the Turkmen State Institute of Physical Education and Sports and a trainee of the Specialized Chess and Checkers School in Ashgabat, scored 6 points in the U20 category and gained 13.2 rating points.
• Lala Shokhradova (rating 2153), a student at the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International Oil and Gas University, earned 6.5 points in the G20 category and increased her rating by 6.2 points.
Bronze Medals
• Meryem Rustemova (rating 1585), a third-grade student at Specialized School No. 41 in Turkmenabat, won bronze in the G8 category with 7 points.
• Dilber Khupbiyeva (rating 1889), a student at Specialized Foreign Language School No. 7 in Dashoguz, secured bronze in the G12 category with 6.5 points.
• Jahan Rejepova (rating 2084), an 11th-grade student at Specialized School No. 41 in Turkmenabat, claimed bronze in the G16 category with 6 points.
Both Annamuhammet Hommadov and Meryem Rustemova were close to winning gold medals. Hommadov finished second only because of tie-break criteria after matching the champion's score, while Rustemova led the tournament for most of the competition before losing the decisive final game. Two other Turkmen players also narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth based on tie-breaks.
Blitz Competition
On July 8, Turkmen players added five more medals in the blitz tournament: two silver and three bronze.
Silver medalists:
• Ali Akhmedov, a ninth-grade student at Specialized Secondary School No. 49 in Ashgabat (U14).
• Shageldi Kurbandurdyyev, a 12th-grade student at Secondary School No. 31 in Danev District, Lebap Region (U18).
Bronze medalists:
• Meryem Rustemova (G8),
• Dilber Khupbiyeva (G12),
• Nazar Narimanov, a seventh-grade student at Specialized Secondary School No. 41 in Turkmenabat (U12).
Earlier, Turkmen players had also won five medals in the rapid chess competition, including two gold, two silver, and one bronze.
Overall, across the rapid, classical, and blitz events in Kyrgyzstan, Turkmen athletes captured 16 medals—3 gold, 6 silver, and 7 bronze—setting a new national record for the highest number of medals won by Turkmenistan at a single chess championship.
The participation of the Turkmen team was organized by the Chess Federation of Turkmenistan with the support of the State Committee of Turkmenistan for Physical Culture and Sports.
