Women's Grand Swiss 2025 Payouts: How much did Vaishali Rameshbabu earn in prize money as champion?

The Women’s Grand Swiss 2025 carried a total prize fund of $230,000.

Indian chess star Vaishali Rameshbabu scripted history once again by winning the 2025 FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. With this triumph, she not only secured a spot in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament but also pocketed $25,000 in prize money.

The Women’s Grand Swiss 2025 carried a total prize fund of $230,000, with Vaishali taking the champion’s share.

Her victory is particularly special as she became the first player in the short history of the Grand Swiss to win the Women’s event twice, having also claimed the title in 2023. This makes her the only two-time winner across both the Open and Women’s sections of the tournament.

Also Read: FIDE Grand Swiss 2025: Vaishali defends title to qualify for Women’s Candidates

The win also cemented Vaishali’s status as one of the strongest players in the women’s circuit. She held her nerve in the final round, drawing with former Women’s World Champion Tan Zhongyi to finish at the top of the standings.

Earlier, she defeated another former world champion, Mariya Muzychuk of Ukraine, in the penultimate round to surge into the lead.

With her qualification, Vaishali joins Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh as the three Indians in the 2026 Women’s Candidates Tournament, underlining India’s growing dominance in women’s chess.

Chess legend Viswanathan Anand lauded her achievement, praising her determination and resilience after she had endured a tough spell in the Chennai GM tournament earlier this year.

The Grand Swiss tournament, held every two years, are among the toughest in the FIDE calendar. The 2025 editions were staged in Samarkand from September 2–16, featuring 172 players: 116 in the Open section and 56 in the Women’s event.

A total prize fund of $855,000 was distributed, with $625,000 for the Open and $230,000 for the Women’s section.

In the Open section, India’s Arjun Erigaisi narrowly missed out on a Candidates berth after drawing his final round with Germany’s Vincent Keymer. The two coveted Candidates spots went to Anish Giri and Matthias Bluebaum.

For Vaishali, however, the tournament marks another milestone in her journey. By winning back-to-back Women’s Grand Swiss titles, she has not only showcased her consistency at the highest level but also taken one step closer to her ultimate dream, a shot at the Women’s World Championship.

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