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Zhu Chen

Zhu Chen of China became women's world chess champion in 2001. The title was then decided in a knockout tournament in Moscow, and in the final she beat Alexandra Kosteniuk after a tiebreak. Since 2006 she has played for Qatar.

Zhu Chen
Photo: Vinod Divakaran / Doha Stadium Plus Qatar, 2011. CC BY 2.0. Cropped and toned.
  • BornMarch 1976, Zhejiang, China
  • CountryChina, later Qatar
  • Women's world champion2001–2004
  • In the line of women's championsNo. 9 of 17
  • Highest rating2548 (January 2008)
    FIDE's official lists (from July 1971)

The road to the title

Zhu Chen won the world junior girls' championship twice, in 1994 and 1996. She became China's second women's world champion, after Xie Jun.

The title matches

Zhu Chen's points come first, then wins (+), losses (−) and draws (=) in the classical games. A tiebreak at faster time controls is given separately.
YearAgainstResultWhere
2001Alexandra Kosteniuk2–2, tiebreak 3–1
Won the title · the final of FIDE's knockout		Moscow

The 2001 knockout

At that time the women's championship was decided in large knockout tournaments of 64 players. The players met in short matches, and the loser went out. In Moscow in 2001 Zhu Chen made it all the way to the final against Alexandra Kosteniuk. The four classical games ended 2–2, and Zhu Chen won the tiebreak 3–1.

She was champion until 2004, when the title went to Antoaneta Stefanova in the next knockout.

Sources

  • Wikipedia: Zhu Chen
  • Chess.com: Zhu Chen
  • OlimpBase: the 2001 knockout
  • Wikipedia: Women's World Chess Championship 2001
  • FIDE: the January 2003 list and Zhu Chen's rating history

The facts on this page come from the sources above, checked against each other. Where the sources disagree, only what they agree on is given. The match results are also checked game by game.

Updated November 8, 2026