A 20-year-old chess player from Astana, Amina Kairbekova, claimed second place in the elite Tournament A at the 24th Marienbad Open, completing her third norm toward International Master status. Her performance boosted her Elo rating to 2348, leaving her just 52 points short of the required 2400 threshold. The event in Czech Republic highlighted Kazakhstan's rising talent in women's chess.
The 24th Marienbad Open chess festival ran from January 17 to 24, 2026, in Mariánské Lázně, Czech Republic, featuring six tournaments for players of varying levels. In the strongest Tournament A, with an average Elo rating of 2388 and participants from eight countries including three grandmasters and one international master, Kairbekova scored 6 points out of 9, with six wins and three draws. This placed her second overall, 1.5 points behind Ukrainian grandmaster Anton Korobov, who won with 7.5 points. Korobov, a four-time Ukrainian champion with a peak rating of 2723 in 2014, took first. Mongolian international master Khuyagtsogt Itgelt finished third with 6 points, edged out by Kairbekova on the Sonneborn-Berger tiebreak.
Kairbekova's result earned her a 30.8-point rating gain, elevating her to 2348 Elo. This performance marked her third International Master norm, following previous ones at Paracin 2022 in Serbia and SixDays Budapest in September 2025 in Hungary. The FIDE Presidential Council will confirm the IM title once she reaches 2400, a milestone she now pursues in future events.
Born on January 19, 2006, Kairbekova already holds the Woman Grandmaster title. Her achievements include a silver medal with Kazakhstan's team at the 2023 Women’s World Team Chess Championship and victory in the 2025 Kazakhstan Women’s Championship. In Tournament C, another Kazakh, 21-year-old Zeynep Sultanbek from Shymkent, scored 6.5 points for fourth place, surpassing three international masters. She earned 2,000 Czech koruna but declined the 1,000 CZK best female player prize to let another receive it, earning praise for sportsmanship.
Kairbekova's success underscores Kazakhstan's strengthening women's chess, with two Woman Grandmasters—Zhansaya Abdumalik and Bibisara Assaubayeva—and three International Masters: Guliskhan Nakhbayeva, Dinara Saduakassova, and Meruert Kamalidenova.
