FIDE ratings September 2010: average ratings up, up, and up...

The September 2010 ratings lists are out, and little change took place in the very top spots, with only Kramnik dropping down to fifth behind Aronian, after losing ten points in Dortmund. In the 2700 club, the biggest winners were Adams (+22), moving back to the top 20, Ivanchuk (+15), Gelfand (+12), Ponomariov (+15), and Wang Yue (+16), who recaptured the position of top Chinese player. Laurent Fressinet, the 2010 French champion, broke into the 2700 club for the first time, with a 21-point leap to 2718, and is now the second ranked Frenchman, just behind Vachier-Lagrave, but ahead of Bacrot. Junior Fabiano Caruana also gained the 3 points needed to reach 2700, making him the first Italian to do so, while the very last 2700 on the list is Alexander Morozevich who lost 15 points and is now at his lowest rating since 2003. It is still worth adding that he is no stranger to giant fluctuations as his charts attest to.

The youngest player in the top 100 is currently Anish Giri, and the grand doyen of the chess elite, the geezer of geezers, is Nigel Short.... aged 45.

Ratings inflation

This subject is discussed in almost every circle of chess, with the obvious conclusion that there is inflation. One need only note that there are now three players rated 2800 or more, 37 players rated at least 2700, etc. The mathematicians will point out that when comparing Elos, absolute numbers are fairly meaningless, and what matters is the Elo difference. After all, when comparing Player A to Player B, it matters little whether one is rated 2500 and the other 2600, instead of 2700 and 2800. What matters is that there is a 100 Elo difference.

However, one aspect is often overlooked: that of the FIDE titles. In 2002, the average rating of the top 100 players (which included Kasparov at 2838) was 2645. In the latest rating list, the average rating of the top 100 is now 2695, almost 2700. In order to maintain the standards of what a title is worth and represents, it goes without saying that norm and title requirements need to be readjusted accordingly.

Without much ado, here are the top 100 players.

FIDE September 1st 2010 – Top 100 Players

FIDE Top 100 Women July 2010

Judit Polgar is of course the undisputed queen, while Humpy slipped under 2600 and is in fact at her lowest rating, albeit not by much, since 2007. Hou Yifan gained one point and stayed in third. The Kosintseva sisters continue their rise, and are both within a whisper of overtaking the Chinese prodigy.

FIDE Top 20 Juniors July 2010

For the first time in history, the top Junior list has five players rated 2700 or more, and seems likely to gain a sixth with Le Quang. That said, the average rating of the junior list regularly sees a sudden drop as several of the top players cease to qualify. One need only notice that the top four ratings were all born in 1990. All said, the average rating of the top twenty juniors is an impressive 2664 Elo.

FIDE Top 20 Girls July 2010

There were few changes in the top girls with Hou Yifan still clearly ahead of her colleagues. Olga Girya gained 38 Elo to break 2400 for the first time.

Largest ratings gains in last 12 months

Understandably, the most conspicuous rating gain in the last 12 months has been that of Magnus Carlsen who gained 54 Elo and has taken over the no.1 spot with a healthy margin to boot. One can look at the lists and comment on gains and losses in the last two months, but how about of the last twelve months? Can you guess who among the current top 100 made the biggest gains?

Lists and data courtesy of FIDE