Sara Khadem steps in to replace Nana Dzagnidze
Nana Dzagnidze of the Triveni Continental Kings, upon her request owing to personal reasons, has been granted exemption for the remainder of this edition of the Global Chess League.
As per regulations, she was replaced by one of the reserve players, Sara Khadem.
Sara Khadem is one of the top women players in the world. A Woman Grandmaster, originally from Iran (now lives in Spain), Sara Khadem is one of the highest-rated female chess players in the world and has won numerous national and international chess tournaments.
Who is Sara Khadem?
Born in Tehran (Iran) in 1997, Sara Khadem (Sarasadat Khademalsharieh) is one of the highest-rated female chess players in the world and has won numerous national and international chess tournaments. She holds the title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM).
Khadem started playing chess at the age of eight after she was introduced to the game by a classmate. Soon, she was spending six-seven hours a day studying chess. Her potential and hard work soon started to pay off, winning tournaments in Iran.
Her international success began with a victory in the Asian Under-12 Girls Championship in 2008, followed by a win in the World Under-12 Girls Championship in 2009. She continued to excel in youth competitions, winning the Asian Under-16 Girls Blitz Championship in 2012 and the World U16 Girls Blitz Championship in 2013. In 2014, she finished as the runner-up in the World Junior Girls Championship in Pune, India (where the first place went to top woman player Aleksandra Goryachkina).
In 2016, Khadem won the Iranian women’s championship, confirming her place as the top female player in the country. She also qualified for the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2015–16 as a nominee by the host country (Iran), achieving her first Grandmaster norm and finishing in second place despite being the lowest-rated player in the field.
She also represented Iran in various international youth chess championships, winning several medals. Khadem played in the Women’s World Chess Championship in 2017 which was also hosted by Iran. Despite the home turf advantage, she was eliminated in the first round by Sopiko Guramishvili. However, she went on to achieve impressive results in the Women’s World Rapid Chess Championship and Women’s World Blitz Chess Championship in 2018, where she finished as the runner-up in both competitions. She represented Iran at the Women’s Chess Olympiads of 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018.
In 2017 she married Iranian TV presenter and businessman Ardeshir Ahmadi (32), and the pair have a son. They reside in Spain.
In 2022 she moved from Iran to Spain where she now lives.
