Nurgyul Salimova ended in a draw in the first game of her participation in the Challengers Tournament in Toronto against Ukraine’s Ana Muzychuk. The Sport in Bulgaria Foundation supported chess player played with the black pieces in the first round and shared the point with Muzychuk.

In her first participation in such a competition, the 20-year-old Salimova chose to play the Russian Game, which was countered with the Steinitz Attack by the three-time world champion in the abbreviated controls Muzychuk. However, it was clear from the opening that one of the two chess players would find it difficult to gain a significant game advantage. After 30 moves both had a top and five pawns, which did not suggest any development of the position. The draw itself was fixed on the 40th move.

In the second round today, Nurgül Salimova will play China’s Lei Tingjie, who won the previous edition of the Challengers Tournament in 2022/23 but then lost to her compatriot Jiu Wenjun in the world title match.