The world’s top 10 chess rankings remained largely unchanged in December, but an important milestone was reached.
Arjun Erigaisi crossed the 2800 Elo mark, becoming only the 16th player in history to achieve this remarkable feat. The young Indian gained just two points at the 2024 Chennai Grand Masters, but it was enough to join the elite club.
On the women’s side, the winner of WGP Shymkent, Aleksandra Goryachkina, and the runner-up, Tan Zhongyi, gained 18 and 10 points, respectively, with Aleksandra reentering the top five.
Biggest gains in Top 100 Open and Women
| Kochavi, Dana | WFM | ISR | 2362 (+196) |
| Ouellet, Maili-Jade | WGM | CAN | 2386 (+34) |
| Dadha, Daniel | GM | BEL | 2639 (+33) |
| Roebers, Eline | IM | NED | 2373 (+25) |
| Indjic, Aleksandar | GM | SRB | 2647 (+24) |
| Khamdamova, Afruza | WIM | UZB | 2354 (+24) |
| Aleksandra Goryachkina | GM | FIDE | 2546 (+18) |
| Navrotescu, Andreea | WGM | FRA | 2356 (+18) |
| Svane, Frederik | GM | GER | 2668 (+14) |
| Cheparinov, Ivan | GM | BUL | 2646 (+14) |
WFM Dana Kochavi (pictured below) became the unquestionable winner in this category. Facing very strong opponents in the 2024 European Individual Championship, the Israeli teenager scored an impressive 6.5/11, earning an incredible 186 rating points. This huge increment catapulted Dana into the top 100 women and the top 10 Juniors (women).
The European Championship also boosted the ratings of Daniel Dardha, Frederik Svane, Ivan Cheparinov, and the winner, Aleksandar Indjic, who broke into the top 100 Open.
Dana Kochavi wasn’t the only youngster to debut in the top 100 Women. Joining her is Afruza Khamdamova of Uzbekistan (pictured below), who dominated the U16 Girls category at the FIDE World Youth Championship (Florianópolis, Brazil) and added 24 rating points to her tally.
Maili-Jade Ouellet delivered a solid performance in the Fall 2024 Charlotte in the USA to gain 34 points, while Eline Roebers emerged as the winner of the Hoogeveen Schaaktoernooi 2024 double round-robin and increased her rating by 25 points.
