Students from the International Oil and Gas University achieve outstanding results in chess tournaments

Twenty-year-old FIDE Master Lala Shohradova has regained the women’s chess crown of Turkmenistan after a three-year interval. This was reported by the online newspaper “Turkmenistan: Golden age.” The student of the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International Oil and Gas University achieved this success by winning the women’s top league tournament held in Ashgabat over ten days.

The championship title was contested in a double round-robin format by eight of the country’s strongest players. Lala Shohradova (rating – 2109) performed confidently throughout the tournament and reaffirmed her status as the leader of women’s chess in the country. She scored 11.5 points in 14 games, finishing 3.5 points ahead of last year’s national champion, 10th-grade student of Specialized Secondary School No. 41 in Turkmenabat, Jahan Rejepova (rating – 2051), who took second place. Third place went to 16-year-old 10th-grade student of Secondary School No. 27 in Turkmenabat, Mahri Agamuradova (rating – 1926), with 7.5 points.

Lala Shohradova, a student of the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International University of Oil and Gas, began playing chess at the age of five. By the age of nine, she became the world champion among schoolgirls in her age category at the World Championship held in Thailand. At 12, she made her debut for the Turkmenistan national team at the 2018 World Chess Olympiad in Batumi. At 14, she won the national title among girls under 16. In November 2022, Lala became the Turkmenistan champion in rapid chess, and in February 2023 she won the national women’s classical chess title for the first time. She has now become a two-time champion of Turkmenistan.

During her school years in Turkmenabat, Lala trained under coach Gulhan Gurbandurdyyeva. She is currently honing her skills in Ashgabat under the guidance of Honored Coach of Turkmenistan Serdar Annaberdiyev.

According to the results of the 2026 National Championship, all medalists, as well as fourth-place finisher Ogulsuray Bayrambayeva (rating – 1906), a fourth-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Physical Education and Sports who scored 7 points, earned the right to represent the Turkmenistan women’s national team at the upcoming 46th World Chess Olympiad to be held in September this year in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. In addition, based on the highest FIDE rating, Lala’s sister, Leyla Shohradova (rating – 2183), a student of the Language Training Faculty of the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International Oil and Gas University, was also included in the national team. This year she was eligible to compete in the open (men’s) category.

Special attention should also be given to the performance of 12-year-old Dilber Hupbyyeva (rating – 1916), a 6th-grade student of Secondary School No. 7 in Dashoguz, who scored 6.5 points and came within one step of achieving her goal of qualifying for the national women’s team. The young chess player demonstrated truly mature and confident play, putting up strong resistance against more experienced opponents.

Source: online newspaper “Turkmenistan: Golden age”