© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Young chess players have made the headlines in recent years, with the likes of Indian grandmasters Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa R becoming major players in their teens. Now, an Indian prodigy, Anish Sarkar, has become the world’s youngest chess player to be ranked by the International Chess Federation — all at the age of three.
The Indian Express earlier reported that Kolkata-based Sarkar was enrolled at the Dhanuka Dhunseri Dibyendu Barua Chess Academy in March. Subsequently, he competed in the Under-9 tournament and finished 24th, defeating two rated opponents. In an Under-13 state event, he faced five rated players to get into the official rankings, released by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) or the International Chess Federation.
He currently has a rating of 1555 and his world rank (of active players) is 1,46,736. What exactly are ratings and rankings and what do chess players need to do to get recognised by FIDE? We explain.
According to the FIDE Qualification Commission, players get official ratings by participating in FIDE-rated tournaments. It says that FIDE organises very few tournaments itself; mostly only global events such as the World Championship, its qualifiers and other World Championships.
Most FIDE-rated tournaments will be tournaments within a country’s federation. Either the federation organises them, or independent organisations do so with its permission. Usually, federation websites have tournament calendars clearly indicating which tournaments are FIDE-rated and which are not.
To become a FIDE-recognised tournament, certain regulations on time limits for a game, a minimum rating for players and other criteria must be met.
Also, to be included in the rating list, a player must be registered through a national chess federation which is a member of FIDE, unless otherwise approved by FIDE Council. The federation must not be temporarily or permanently excluded from membership at the time.
The commission’s website adds, “There are three possible types of rating you might achieve: Standard, Rapid and Blitz, which reflect different game lengths. In order to get a Standard rating, you will need to play at least 5 games against players who are already rated, and score at least ½ point (a draw) in those games.”
FIDE regulations, updated earlier this year, also stated, “A rating for a player new to the list shall be published when it is based on at least 5 games against rated opponents. This need not be met in one tournament. Results from other tournaments played within consecutive rating periods of not more than 26 months are pooled to obtain the initial rating. The rating must be at least 1400.”
How is this rating arrived at? The FIDE website says, “The FIDE Rating system is a numerical system in which fractional scores are converted to rating differences and vice versa. Its function is to produce measurement information of the best statistical quality.”
Currently, FIDE awards chess’s highest honour to a player who is able to achieve a FIDE Classical or Standard rating of 2,500, plus three Grandmaster norms. These norms are defined by a set of complex and rigorous rules regarding tournaments, games, and players, set out in the FIDE Title Regulations.
