June's Blitz 'n' Memes: Women's Edition
Welcome everybody, to a special Women's edition of Blitz 'n' Memes...
If you're a fan of puzzles taken from top level women's chess tournaments, then you have come to the right place, because that is this month's special treat.
Earlier this month the WR Women's Chess Tour 2026 was held in Tokyo. It featured some of the strongest women chess players in the world. Representing Japan was WCM Azumi Sakai. Seeing that this was without a doubt the highest-level female chess tournament ever held in Japan, I couldn't pass up a chance to present some of the games.
The event was actually two tournaments, with the first day featuring Rapid time controls, followed by Blitz on the second day. Both tournaments were played in a knockout format.
There are some real beauties here, so it won't be easy to get 5 out of 5 this time around.
So, without further ado, let's get to the Blitz 'n' Memes.
Pawn Star
Our first tactic comes from the quarterfinal round of the blitz section, Indian GM Vaishali Rameshbabu playing White, defeated American IM Anna Sargsyan. GM Vaishali shows that the pawns are the real stars of chess.
Start things off with a forcing move.
Discover This
The next puzzle is drawn from the quarterfinal round of the Rapid section. Swiss/Russian GM Alexandra Kosteniuk, playing White, took on Japan's WCM Azumi Sakai. GM Alexandra pulls off a simple yet devastating attack.
The position of the Black queen, rook and king make this attack possible.
Backed into a Corner
Another quarterfinal match-up, this time in the Blitz section. Russian GM Kateryna Lagno, playing White, corners Japanese WCM Azumi Sakai. GM Kateryna dismantles Black's position with an audacious attack followed by a series of small position improvements leading to mate.
First, break open the position.
A Winning Transition
Next, we set our sights on another quarterfinal match-up from the Rapid section. Kazakhstan IM Alua Nurman, playing Black, defeats Bulgarian GM Antoaneta Stefanova. IM Alua shows great technique in forcing this game to a winning ending.
Use the Force!
Queen Street
Our final tactic is a real beauty, taken from the Semifinal round of the Rapid section. One of the queens of chess India's GM Vaishali Rameshbabu, playing White, outwits, Swiss/Russian GM Alexandra Kosteniuk.
Best of luck, you'll need it.
And that was it, that was Blitz 'n' Memes: Women's Edition.
Congratulations to GM Vaishali Rameshbabu and GM Kateryna Lagno for winning the Rapid and Blitz sections, respectively.
And of course, congrats to any of you puzzle GMs who solved all 5 tactics on the first try, you deserve your flowers.
As always, thanks for reading and feel free to share these puzzles with your friends down at the pub or library.
Regards, SheldonOfOsaka
P.S. if you'd like to take a look at some meme-themed chess merchandise, sneak into the "Click Button's" house and glue his chess pieces to his chessboard.
"Click Button"