Daily Editorial Recap | Queens of Tallinn 2024
- Day 4: Sunday, 1 December
- Day 3: Saturday, 30 November
- Day 2: Friday, 29 November
- Day 1: Thursday, 28 November
Day 4: Sunday, 1, December
Saara Benlamine Wins Queens of Tallinn Main Event
It was a bittersweet ending to the second-edition of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn on Sunday at Olympic Park Casino as three new Queens were crowned on the four-day festival’s final day.
Finland’s Saara Benlamine was the star of the day after winning the most prestigious event of them all after winning the €5,148 top prize. It is easy to say that Benlamine was the Queen of all Queens not just because she shipped the Main Event but also for winning a side event trophy earlier in the week in the €80 NLH/PLO4/PLO5 Mix for €551.
Lithaunia’s Indre Martoviciute-Kasten, who has won Queens events as part of the Kings of Tallinn and Kings of Vilnius this year, completed a trifecta by also winning one of the side event trophies during the 2024 Queens of Tallinn after defeating Finland’s Riitta Sahala heads-up in the two-day €555 NLH 6-Handed to win the €3,060 top prize.
Meanwhile, Finland’s Kirsi Jurvansuu and Estonia’s Kairit Leibold each earned the €526 top prize in the final event of the Queens of Tallinn in the one-day €250 NLH Progressive Bounty. Jurvansuu defeated Leibold to earn the trophy and the big bounty awaiting the winner.
Read on to learn more about the Main Event on the final day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn at Olympic Park Casino:
Benlamine Crowned the Queen of Queens
Olympic Park Casino and OlyBet Poker pride themselves in inclusion and diversity. OlyBet Poker Tournament Director Teresa Nousiainen and Olympic Entertainment Group Poker Director Christer Larsen both shared they were thrilled how the second Queens of Tallinn grew upon the inaugural edition last year and from the excitement from many of the players in attendance for this ground-breaking festival.
The final day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn €250 Main Event began in front of a live-streamed audience at OlyBet TV with just a final table of nine hopefuls shooting for the title. The three-day event attracted a banner field of 85 entries to create a €17,578 for one of the largest women-only events in European poker history.
Two Lithuanians ended the penultimate day in the money before the final table began including FLIP founder Daiva Byrne (10th – €460) and Ruta Ismailova (11th – €460).
The final table began with another Lithuanian holding the chip lead in Ausra Razmaite with Saara Benlamine not too far behind.
Latvia’s Kristiana Stauere was under some pressure as she had a short stack in the Main Event but also had a stack waiting for her when the second day of the €555 NLH 6-Handed resumed. She delivered a horrific bad beat to Estonia’s Liisi Voltri after her king-jack suited got there for a straight to crack rockets.
Voltri appeared destined to be the first player to hit the rail with just one big blind remaining after the hand but she managed to ladder up one spot to eighth place for €640 after Canada’s Sanaz Fattahi lost her short stack to exit in ninth place for €540 after her ace-queen proved to be no matched to 2023 Queens of Tallinn Main Event champion Marta Porter’s big slick.
All momentum then shifted to Porter in her efforts to win back-to-back titles as she snagged the chip lead during seven-handed play. A break took place with Vanessa Webley down to just a couple of big blinds but she managed to spin that up with some big blind magic with pocket tens to gain a little bit of breathing room. This proved in the end to earn her nearly an extra €1,000 as she witnessed three players hit the rail while nursing her short stack.
Webley then managed to chip up some more before she emotionally left Stauere with just 1 big blind after her king-queen improved to trips to defeated ace-nine with Stauere ahead until the river. Like Webley, Stauere managed to double up back into the mix. However, this was short lived as her queen-five suited didn’t improve against Webley’s pocket nines to exit in seventh place for €770.
At this point Benlamine was back with the chip lead with six players remaining, which she held onto until the heads-up action. Evely Pihela then eliminated former Miss Finland Sara Chafak in sixth place for €940 when her ace-queen held against ace-eight.
Porter, who was once in control, witnessed her stack crumble by more than half after losing a coin flip with sixes against Pihela’s king-nine. Her hopes for to enter poker immortality with wining the first two Queens of Tallinn Main Events were dashed on a bad beat in fifth place for €1,250 after her ace-seven suited managed to pull ahead of sevens.
Benlamine, who held more than half the chips in play, was soon back at it again. Her ace-jack held against king-queen to eliminate Webley in fourth place for €1,690 while padding her chip lead.
Pihela was by far the short stack during three-handed play and nearly laddered up to the heads-up play on what would have turned out to be a cooler for Razmaite. Razmaite instead double up to near the chip lead when her big slick found an ace on the turn to get ahead of Benlamine’s cowboys. Pihela lost her short stack shortly after on a bad beat to exit in third place for €2,320 after he ace-jack didn’t hold against king-nine suited with Benlamine improving to trips.
Benlamine had approximately double the stack of Razmaite to begin the heads-up action. Razmaite won several small pots to take the chip lead. However, this was short live as Benlamine won a couple of sizeable pots to not only regain the lead but to take a 4:1 chip advantage. Razmaite doubled her eight big blind stack after her king-seven got there against ace-six. However, Benlamine kept her composure and eventually chipped up to an even bigger advantage than before when the final hand took place.
Razmaite jammed for six big blinds with king-four and was called by Benlamine with ace-deuce suited. Benlamine’s hands were in the air on the stream as she celebrated the dry board which resulted in her winning a hard-earned trophy while leaving Razmaite to collect the healthy runner-up prize of €3,360.
A massive congratulations to Saara Benlamine for winning the 2024 Queens of Tallinn Main Event at Olympic Park Casino and joining Lithuania’s Marta Porter as the only Main Event champions in what promises to be a storied tradition.
| Place | Name | Country | Prize |
| 1 | Saara Benlamine | Finland | €5,148 |
| 2 | Ausra Razmaite | Lithuania | €3,360 |
| 3 | Evely Pihela | Estonia | €2,320 |
| 4 | Vanessa Webley | England | €1,690 |
| 5 | Marta Porter | Lithuania | €1,250 |
| 6 | Sara Chafak | Finland | €940 |
| 7 | Kristiana Stauere | Latvia | €770 |
| 8 | Liisi Voltri | Estonia | €640 |
| 9 | Sanaz Fattahi | Canada | €540 |
| 10 | Daiva Byrne | Lithuania | €460 |
| 11 | Ruta Ismailova | Lithuania | €460 |
Day 3: Saturday, 30 November
Aušra Razmaitė Leads Final 9 in Queens of Tallinn Main Event
Saturday brought a different energy to Olympic Park Casino with men joining the women in two separate events on the penultimate day of the four-day 2024 Queens of Tallinn.
All eyes on Sunday will be on the Main Event chip leader Aušra Razmaitė and the other eight players to advance to the final day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn €250 Main Event. The final table will be live streamed for everyone to enjoy at OlyBet.tv and OlyBet Poker social media outlets.
The Estonian poker community earned both trophies on tap on Saturday. Kalju Raap defeated Greece’s Enea Subashi (second – €980) in the €150 Ladies & Gentlemen to win the trophy and the €1,400 top prize. Meanwhile, Sören Kangur defeated fellow Estonian Raul Rajasalu to earn the €1,087 top prize in the €80 NLH Hyper Turbo. Subashi made the most of the open events as he finished on the podium for a second straight time on Saturday with a third-place finish for €540.
In other news, FLIP founder Daiva Byrne leads the final five players in the €555 NLH 6-Handed. Latvia’s Kristiāna Štauere is in an interesting spot as she not only advanced to the final table of the Main Event but also is the short stack to start the €555 NLH.
Read on to learn more about the Main Event and what’s to come on Sunday’s final day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn at Olympic Park Casino:
Razmaitė Leads Talented Field in Main Event
Saturday’s Day 2 of the Main Event witnessed another 10 entries get into the mix to grow the field to 85 entries for a €17,578 prize pool with all players having their eyes on the €5,148 top prize, the trophy, and, of course, the honor of becoming the 2024 Queens of Tallinn Main Event champion.
There were four Lithuanians remaining after Estonia’s Christel Piller bubbled the tournament in 12th place. However, there will be just two Lithuanians at the final table, as two Lithuanians ended the day at the payout desk collecting the min-cash of €460 after Daiva Byrne and Ruta Ismailova both exited just short of the final table.
Aušra Razmaitė will lead the way to start off the action with 673,000. Fellow Lithuanian Marta Porter is in the middle of the pack with 209,000 in attempt to make history. Porter defeated a field of 65 entries in the 2023 Queens of Tallinn €350 Main Event for €6,167 and would be quite a stamp on her poker resume to win the Queens of Tallinn Main Event in back-to-back years.
Porter wasn’t the only player to advance to back-to-back final tables as last year Estonian presenter Evely Pihela earned the eighth-place prize in the Queens of Tallinn Main Event for €740 and is now in line to earn much more with a fourth-place stack of 243,000. Pihela will be joined by countrymate Liisi Voltri who will come onto the final table with a slightly shorter stack of 205,000.
A pair of Finnish players are near the top of the leaderboard in Saara Benlaime and former Miss Finland Sara Chafak. Benlaime had a heck of a day and ended Day 2 with 603,000 while Chafak, who began Day 2 as the chip leader, will start the final day with 273,000.
Meanwhile, the short-stacked players in Latvia’s Vanessa Webley (132,000), Kristiāna Štauere (127,000), and Canada’s Sanaz Fattahi (89,000) will all be players that can create some waves if they manage to get some momentum. It is a no-lose situation for Štauere as if she busts the Main Event, she will at least be able to focus on one tournament at a time with the €555 NLH kicking off one after after the Main Event at 1 p.m.
The blinds will be 4,000/8,000 with an 8,000 big blind ante when the action resumes at Noon in the Main Event. Check out the seat draw below:
| Seat | Name | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
| 6 | Ausra Razmaite | Lithuania | 673,000 | 84 |
| 4 | Saara Benlamine | Finland | 603,000 | 75 |
| 5 | Sara Chafak | Finland | 271,000 | 34 |
| 7 | Evely Pihela | Estonia | 243,000 | 30 |
| 9 | Marta Porter | Lithuania | 209,000 | 26 |
| 8 | Liisi Voltri | Estonia | 205,000 | 26 |
| 3 | Vanessa Webley | England | 132,000 | 17 |
| 1 | Kristiāna Štauere | Latvia | 127,000 | 16 |
| 2 | Sanaz Fattahi | Canada | 89,000 | 11 |
2024 Queens of Tallinn Day 4 Schedule (Sunday, December 1)
The final day will be a bittersweet ending for all the women who attended the 2024 Queens of Tallinn. While many will be battling for one of the final three trophies on tap, others will be saying their heartful goodbyes to old and new friends.
The day begins with the final day of the Queens of Tallinn €250 Main Event, which you can view starting at 12:30 on the live stream at OlyBet.tv.
The restart of the two-day €555 NLH 6-Handed was pushed back an hour and will start at 1 p.m. instead of the originally scheduled restart time of 12 p.m.
Players will then have one final chance to win a trophy in the one-day €250 NLH Progressive Bounty starting at 2 p.m.
Best of luck to all of the women battling it to become of the Queens of the weekend on the final day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn at Olympic Park Casino.
| Event | Time |
| 12:00 | Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event Final Day |
| 13:00 | Event #9: €555 NLH 6-Handed Final Day |
| 14:00 | Event #11: €250 NLH Progressive Bounty |
Day 2: Friday, 29 November
Sara Chafak Leads 2024 Queens of Tallinn Main Event
Friday brought some excitement to Olympic Park Casino with many women ready for battle on the second day of the 2024 Queens of Tallinn.
Finland’s Saara Benlamine earned the only trophy of the day after she defeated a field of 21 entries, including Estonia’s Christel Haller heads-up to earn the €551 top prize in the one-day Event #5: €80 NLH/PLO4/PLO5 Mix.
However, it was another Finn who set herself up for a much bigger payday as the former Miss Finland Sarah Chafak bagged the overnight lead in the three-day Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event heading into Day 2.
Many other players won tickets to both the Main Event and the €555 NLH 6-Handed in a pair of satellites hosted on Friday.
Read on to learn more about the Main Event and what’s to come on Saturday at the 2024 Queens of Tallinn at Olympic Park Casino:
Good Start, But Long Road Ahead for Chafak
The €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event hosted both of its opening flights on Friday and already attracted 75 entries. Less than have the field advanced with 35 women finding bags into Day 2. More players are expected to join with a fresh stack of 30,000 in chips with late registration open for the first three blind levels of Day 2 after it kicks off on Saturday at Noon.
Sarah Chafak created havoc on Day 1a by catapulting her 30,000 opening stack into a massive pile of 186,000 in chips to begin Day 2 on the top of the leaderboard.
It was an international crowd in the Main Event thus far as can be evidenced by the five others who advanced with a six-figure stack including Estonia’s Liisi Voltri (159,800), Finland’s Saara Benlamine (139,700), Poland’s Ewa Madziar (137,700), the Lithuanian 2023 Queens of Tallinn champion Marta Porter (116,800), and United Kingdom’s Vanessa Webley (110,000). It should be a day to remember for Benlamine, who not only advanced with a third-place stack in the Main Event but also won a trophy later in the evening.
The popular Finnish poker player Anne Bezdek (98,000) is just behind the bunch in hopes of earning the trophy. Meanwhile, Indre Martoviciute-Kasten, who won not one, but two Queens of Tallinn events as part of the Kings of Tallinn this year, also found herself in a good spot with 83,900. Latvia’s Kristiana Stauere (76,600) is also hoping to keep her momentum going after winning the Queens of Vilnius trophy last weekend.
Several other notable players also advanced to Day 2 via the two opening flights including Lithuanian FLIP founder Daiva Byrne (62,900), Estonian presenter Evely Pihela (51,600), Finnish poker guru Anna-Mari Hursti (51,600), Estonia’s Kairit Leibold (50,400), Canada’s Sanaz Fattahi (43,400), Finland’s Anu Lilja (41,400), Lithuania’s Ruta Ismailova (38,000), Estonian presenter and singer Teele Viira (36,300), and Estonia’s Ave Lepik (29,400).
Blinds are scheduled to start at 800/1,600 with a 1,600 big blind ante and increase every 40 minutes to start Day 2. Check out the full chip counts to start the day below:
| Place | Name | Country | Chips | Prize |
| 1 | Sara Chafak | Finland | 186,000 | 116 |
| 2 | Liisi Voltri | Estonia | 159,800 | 100 |
| 3 | Saara Benlamine | Finland | 139,700 | 87 |
| 4 | Ewa Madziar | Poland | 137,700 | 86 |
| 5 | Marta Porter | Lithuania | 116,800 | 73 |
| 6 | Vanessa Webley | England | 110,000 | 69 |
| 7 | Anne Bezdek | Finland | 98,000 | 61 |
| 8 | Indre Martoviciute-Kasten | Lithuania | 83,900 | 52 |
| 9 | Christel Tiina Piller | Estonia | 79,100 | 49 |
| 10 | Katrin Rajasalu | Estonia | 78,500 | 49 |
| 11 | Ausra Razmaite | Lithuania | 77,600 | 49 |
| 12 | Kristiana Stauere | Latvia | 76,600 | 48 |
| 13 | Aiste Jakutiene | Lithuania | 68,200 | 43 |
| 14 | Vita Veidemane | Latvia | 67,900 | 42 |
| 15 | Anja Becker | Germany | 66,000 | 41 |
| 16 | Daiva Byrne | Lithuania | 62,900 | 39 |
| 17 | Riitta Sahala | Finland | 58,200 | 36 |
| 18 | Anna-Mari Hursti | Finland | 51,600 | 32 |
| 19 | Evely Pihela | Estonia | 51,600 | 32 |
| 20 | Kairit Leibold | Estonia | 50,400 | 32 |
| 21 | Sanaz Fattahi | Canada | 43,400 | 27 |
| 22 | Anu Lilja | Finland | 41,400 | 26 |
| 23 | Helina Tamm | Estonia | 41,400 | 26 |
| 24 | Linda Jõe | Estonia | 38,700 | 24 |
| 25 | Ruta Ismailova | Lithuania | 38,000 | 24 |
| 26 | Teele Viira | Estonia | 36,300 | 23 |
| 27 | Airin Pindis | Estonia | 36,200 | 23 |
| 28 | Giedre Valgemäe | Lithuania | 33,600 | 21 |
| 29 | Ave Lepik | Estonia | 29,400 | 18 |
| 30 | Karin Ehala | Estonia | 28,100 | 18 |
| 31 | Mirjam Jalak | Estonia | 19,100 | 12 |
| 32 | Evija Misa | Latvia | 15,700 | 10 |
| 33 | Kristina Kuzmenok | Estonia | 14,100 | 9 |
| 34 | Helen Pavlov | Estonia | 11,600 | 7 |
| 35 | Yuliia Taran | Ukraine | 4,200 | 3 |
2024 Queens of Tallinn Day 3 Schedule (Saturday, November 30)
The Queens of Tallinn begins the day with its second day of the €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event at Noon. Women can also enjoy playing against other women in the €555 NLH 6-Handed at 8 p.m. with a free satellite with €40 re-entries starting at 2:30 p.m.
Men will be able to join in on today’s action as well with two events open for all in the €150 Ladies & Gentlemen, which boasts a raffle to a €555 ticket to the 2025 Kings of Tallinn at 5 p.m. and the high-octane €80 Hyper Turbo at 10 p.m.
Check out Saturday’s schedule below and head to the Queens of Tallinn landing page at OlyBetEvents to read the full schedule.
| Event | Time |
| 12:00 | Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event 2 |
| 14:30 | Event #7: Free Entry Last Chance Turbo Satellite to Ladies €555 NLH (2x €555 Seats GTD) |
| 17:00 | Event #8: €150 NLH Ladies & Gentlemen, Kings of Tallinn 2025 including a €555 Ticket Raffle (Open) |
| 20:00 | Event #9: €555 NLH 6-Handed |
| 22:00 | Event #10: €80 Hyper Turbo (Open) |
Day 1: Thursday, 28 November
Sirkka-Liisa Seppälä Wins First Trophy at 2024 Queens of Tallinn
The second edition of the Queens of Tallinn kicked off its four-day festival in style on Thursday at Olympic Park Casino, located in the heart of the Estonian capital of Tallinn. The festival boasts 11 events, all but two just for women, across four days from November 28 to Dec 1 and is a testament to OlyBet’s commitment to inclusion and diversity.
Finland’s Sirkka-Liisa Seppälä was the star of the opening day after winning the day’s only trophy in Event #1: €80 NLH Deep Stack Queens of Tallinn Opening Event for €1,548.
Meanwhile, seven players from five different countries punched their tickets into the three-day Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event via Event #2: Free Entry Satellite to the Main Event.
Before both events started, the casino hosted its legendary 2024 Queens of Tallinn Meet and Greet on the casino floor allowing players to have some fun before the battle began.
Seppälä Wins Event €80 Deep Stack
The ladies-only €80 NLH Deep Stack Queens of Tallinn attracted an eager crowd of 79 entries to create at €5,198 prize pool. Six players from the local country cashed in this event but it was the diversity was more present after five Estonians immediate hit the rail in Kristina Kuzmenok (fifth €390), Marita Mägi (sixth – €320), Kairit Liebold (seventh – €260), Änn Jõgi (eighth – €210), and Jelena Maidla (ninth – €170).
Players from Finland, Poland, Estonia, and Lithuania were remaining. Liithuanian poker guru Ruta Ismailova (fourth – €530) and the trophy was soon after guaranteed to leave Estonia after Estonia’s Mirjam Jalak (third – €730) ran out of gas. Poland’s Ewa Madziar managed to collect a four-figure prize of €1,040 but was unable to defeated Seppälä at the end, who will go down as the first player to win a trophy during the 2024 Queens of Tallinn at Olympic Park Casino.
| Place | Name | Country | Prize |
| 1 | Sirkka-Liisa Seppälä | Finland | €1,548 |
| 2 | Ewa Madziar | Poland | €1,040 |
| 3 | Mirjam Jalak | Estonia | €730 |
| 4 | Ruta Ismailova | Lithuania | €530 |
| 5 | Kristina Kuzmenok | Estonia | €390 |
| 6 | Marita Mägi | Estonia | €320 |
| 7 | Kairit Leibold | Estonia | €260 |
| 8 | Änn Jõgi | Estonia | €210 |
| 9 | Jelena Maidla | Estonia | €170 |
2024 Queens of Tallinn Day 2 Schedule (Friday November 29)
The action will be hot and heavy on the casino floor at Olympic Park Casino on Wednesday with the Queens of Tallinn hosting five events including two opening flights for the €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event.
Players will also have a chance to win a trophy in the €80 NLH/PLO4/PLO5 Mix while also having two opportunities to win seats for a fraction of the costs (including a chance for free) to later events in the schedule.
Check out Friday’s schedule below and head to the Queens of Tallinn landing page at OlyBetEvents to read the full schedule.
| Event | Time |
| 12:00 | Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event 1a |
| 15:00 | Event #4: Free Satellite to €250 QoT Main Event, €40 Re-entry (3x €250 Seats GTD) |
| 20:00 | Event #5: €80 NLH/PLO4/PLO5 Mix |
| 20:00 | Event #3: €250 Queens of Tallinn Main Event 1b |
| 22:00 | Event #6: €40 Satellite to Ladies NLH €555 (3 x €555 Seats GTD) |
