The people behind the game
Mariya Muzychuk
An imaginative tactician who won the 2015 knockout world championship in Sochi.
- Born
- 1992
- Country connections
- Ukraine
At the board
The games. The ideas.
Explore classic encounters and championship battles. Play every move, or jump straight to the moments that tell the story.
2016 · Women’s world championship · Game 9
The title returns to Hou
The ninth and final game of the 2016 championship. Hou’s queenside passed pawns decide a queenless position.
Read the position
Every move sets the scene.
Use the controls to explore the full game, or select an annotated moment below. Each explanation describes the position immediately after its highlighted move.
Complete move list 46 moves
The journey
A remarkable path.
Muzychuk held the women’s world title from April 2015 to March 2016. She has also represented Ukraine in successful international team campaigns, including the gold-medal-winning team at the 2022 Women’s Chess Olympiad. [1]
Explore the championship record →The championship record
Time with the crown.
- 2015–2016Women’s world championship
Reigns are periods of title ownership, not a count of championship victories. Open-ended reigns reflect the record checked on 18 October 2026.
Sources & credits
Biographical details and title records checked . Country connections describe the player’s career and background, rather than a live federation listing.
Portrait: This photo was taken by Krzysztof SzelągAutorem zdjęcia jest Krzysztof SzelągWykorzystując zdjęcie proszę podać jako autora:Krzysztof Szeląg / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0. Displayed in monochrome and cropped.
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