The competition was held according to the Swiss system over 9 rounds with classical time control: 90 minutes for each participant per game, with an additional 30 seconds added for every move starting from the first. The tournament was FIDE-rated.

A total of 95 participants in the open category and 43 in the women’s category competed for rating points and the right to qualify for the main tournament of the year.

In the open category, in which women are allowed to compete on equal footing with men, the winner was Mergen Kakabayev, Secretary-General of the Chess Federation of Turkmenistan. He scored 7.5 points out of 9, finishing half a point ahead of the players from Lebap Shageldi Kurbandurdyyev and Sanjar Gaybullaev, who took second and third places respectively.

In the women’s category, the top podium position went to Leyla Shohradova, a student of the Language Training Faculty of the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International University of Oil and Gas. Previously, she had won the Dashoguz stage of the Grand Prix with a perfect score of 9 out of 9, and the Mary stage with 8.5 points. This time, 8 points were enough for her victory.

Second place went to Ogulsuray Bayrambayeva, a 4th-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Physical Culture and Sports, who scored 7 points. The same number of points was earned by Nurana Soyunova from the Kusht Alemi Academy, but additional tiebreak indicators placed her in third.

The Grand Prix series, established by the Chess Federation of Turkmenistan, is being held for the first time this year. The format includes five tournaments in each region to determine 16 participants for the final stage, which will take place from December 13 to 21 in Ashgabat.

The winners of the final stage in the open and women’s categories will receive direct qualification to the 2026 Turkmenistan Higher League.