In 1961, aged 20, Gaprindashvili won the fourth women's Candidates Tournament, setting up a title match against Russian world champion Elisabeth Bykova. She won the match easily, with a final score of 9−2 (+7−0=4), and went on to defend her title successfully four times. She finally lost her crown in 1978 to another Georgian, Maia Chiburdanidze, by a score of 6½–8½ (+2−4=9).