China wins fourth women's World Team Chess title in advance

ASTANA, March 13 (Xinhua) -- With eight straight wins in hand, CHINA pocketed their long-expected women's World Team Chess Championship title in advance here on Wednesday.

CHINA beat the United States 3-1 in the eighth round to bag home back-to-back crowns from the most important Chess international tournaments for teams, including last year's Chess Olympiads.

"We've got a lot of 2.5-point wins here, so you know how steady we fought throughout the event," said coach Yu Shaoteng. "I am so happy that we can regain the champion after waiting for eight years."

CHINA had claimed the titles in 2007, 2009 and 2011, before iconic Hou Yifan announced her decision to pay more attention to her campus life.

But Chinese men found Round Eight too heartbreaking even if they beat England 3-1 as Russia grabbed back the men's title with clear point advantage. CHINA ranked fourth with last round to go, where they will meet host Kazakhstan.